NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y., January 20, 2022 – Though No. 7 Harcum College looked dominant in the early minutes of Thursday's Region matchup at the Monroe Athletic Complex, the Monroe College Mustangs men's basketball team got hot to erase the early deficit and never looked back, rolling to a big 88-71 victory over the NJCAA's seventh-ranked team. The Mustangs improve to 18-5 overall and 1-0 in Region play, while the Bears fall to 18-2 and 1-1.
Harcum's defense was suffocating the Mustangs over the first three minutes of the game, as the Bears took a 7-0 lead over that span. The Mustangs got back within four at 11-7, but the Bears netted the next six to take a 10-point advantage.
Keith Warren Jr. drained a three to get within seven, but Mohamed Wague responded with a layup for the Bears to put them up, 19-10.
Warren then started to heat up with another three the next time down the court. Both teams went quiet for nearly 90 seconds until Warren caught fire with his third long ball, cutting the deficit to three points. Jonathan Izemef made a two for Harcum, but Warren then sank his fourth straight three to make it a two-point game. After a stop,
Melvin Council Jr. hit a jumper, tying the game at 21-21 after an 11-2 run for the Mustangs.
The Bears took the lead again on a pair of free throws by Derrius Ward, but Warren dropped his fifth trey of the half to make it a 24-23 lead for Monroe. The scoring halted for two minutes before Wague scored two to put the visitors back on top.
Tyje Kelton then hit from beyond the arc to put Monroe ahead by two, but Jordan Martin hit a three of his own for Harcum to take the lead back.
Braelon Joe then took advantage of a steal by Kelton and hit a jumper to once again take the lead.
It was all Monroe from there for the final five minutes of the half.
Hamdel Mohammed put one off the glass to make it a three-point game. Council then hit a pair of threes on back-to-back possessions to make it a nine-point lead for the Mustangs.
Braelon Joe scored on a fast break to push the lead to 11. Martin made 1-of-2 from the charity stripe for the Bears to get back within 10, but Council did the same with 16 seconds left to take a 40-29 advantage into the half.
Council led all scorers with 16 at the break, while Warren was right behind with 15 after going 5-of-5 from long range. Council also led the team with five rebounds and five assists, as well as a pair of steals.
Monroe kept the momentum going with a 9-2 run to open the second frame, taking an 18-point lead with 16:49 to play. The Bears got back within 12 at 51-39, but
Isac Ahnstrand halted their run temporarily with a three. Yazid Powell scored two, and then Tre Dinkins hit a three for Harcum to make it a 10-point game with 12:35 still left.
David Gordon hit from three to push the lead back to 13, but Wague made two from the line cut the lead down to 11. Gordon picked up another two after that, but Martin went to the line and made two for the Bears. Council then hit a tough jumper to make it a 61-48 lead for Monroe, and then drew a foul on the next possession, making both chances from the line to move the lead back to 15.
A three by Martin brought the Bears back within 12 with 9:08 on the clock, but Warren hit jumpers on consecutive possessions, and then Kelton followed with another two to make it an 18-point Mustang lead. The Bears cut the deficit down to 11 with 3:23 remaining, but Council netted two the next two times down the court to go back up by 15. A three by Ahnstrand with 1:11 on the clock was the dagger, putting the Mustangs up by 19 points with time running out. The teams traded baskets in the final minute as they were waiting for the final buzzer, which went off to finalize the Mustangs' 17-point victory over their seventh-ranked Region foes.
The pair from Rochester had a pair of dominant performances for the Mustangs on Thursday, as Council led all scorers with 28 points, while Warren was close behind with 23. Council completed a double-double with 13 rebounds, adding six assists, three steals and a block as well. Kelton also picked up another double-double, finishing with 12 points and 10 boards, as well as three assists and two steals to help give the Mustangs a big boost off the bench.
The Mustangs shot 34-of-75 (45.3 percent) from the field on Thursday, while holding the Bears to just 35.6 percent (26-of-73) shooting. Monroe also hit on 41.4 percent (12-of-29) of their shots from three-point range, while the Bears made just 6-of-35 (17.1 percent).
Riding a four-game winning streak, the Mustangs will get some time off over the next nine days, getting back to work on Saturday, Jan. 29, when they host the Monroe College Express in an inter-campus matchup at the Monroe Athletic Complex. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. following the women's matchup between the Mustangs and Express.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 35 teams competing across nine sports. There are 21 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, the Monroe College marching band, and the newly added esports and men's volleyball programs, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has 14 teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at
www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (
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