NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y., March 4, 2018 – The Monroe College men's basketball team dropped a 71-65 decision to ASA College on Sunday in the 2018 NJCAA Region XV Championship game at the Monroe Athletic Complex. The Avengers advance to the District 3 Championship next weekend.
 
The All-Region XV Tournament Team was announced shortly after the end of Sunday's contest. Jhery Matos and Bryan Assie represented the Mustangs on the All-Tournament Team. ASA's Joshua Hightower was named Tournament MVP, while teammates Robert Terrero and Jose Pabon were selected to the All-Tournament Team. Harcum's Charles Humphries was also named to the All-Tournament Team.
 
Sunday's championship game got off to a slow start as both teams locked down on defense early on. ASA scored the first points at the 17:45 mark, and then a layup by Bryan Assie and a three from Clifton Tracey put Monroe up, 5-2. The Mustangs later took a 10-5 lead, but the Avengers responded by going on a 10-0 run to go ahead, 15-10.
 
Monroe halted ASA's run when Jhery Matos made a layup, kicking off an 8-0 stretch for the Mustangs that saw them take an 18-15 edge. Jose Pabon then hit a three for the Avengers to tie things up once again. Ebrima Jassey Demba made a bucket to put the Mustangs back in the lead, but the Avengers netted the next eight to take a 26-20 lead with 1:27 left in the half. Damont Kearse then got to the lane and made both, and Kearse closed out the half with a jumper from the elbow, leaving Monroe down, 26-24, at the break.
 
Early in the second half, the Mustangs strung together a 9-0 run to take a 41-35 lead. ASA slowly chipped away at the deficit, drawing within two points at 48-46 with 7:12 left to play. ASA then scored seven straight points, taking a 53-48 edge. Another 7-0 run moments later put the Avengers up, 60-50, with 3:38 on the clock.
 
The Mustangs then turned up the full-court press and went on a 6-0 run in just 29 seconds, getting back within four of the Avengers. ASA turned things around with an 8-2 run, taking a 67-58 lead with just 43 seconds to play. The Mustangs were forced to foul, and ASA pushed its lead to as many as 11 points, eventually holding on for a six-point win to claim the Region Title.
 
Matos led the Mustangs with 18 points and six assists on Sunday. Assie added 13 points and four rebounds. Kearse netted 11 points and dished out five assists. Tracey added 10 points and three steals.
 
Sunday's loss ends the 2017-18 campaign for the Mustangs. They finish the season with a 20-11 overall record and were the No. 1 team in the region after the regular season. Matos earned Region XV Player of the Year honors, and was joined by Assie and Kearse as members of the All-Region XV First Team.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 26 teams competing across nine sports. There are 18 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's rugby, and the newly added club women's rugby team, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Monroe Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has six teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level as of the fall of 2017.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe College Athletics), Twitter (@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).