NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y., November 3, 2022 – After entering his 20th season at the helm of the Monroe College Mustangs men's basketball program with 499 career wins, Head Coach
Jeff Brustad did not need long to reach a huge career milestone with win No. 500, doing so in the Mustangs' opening-night victory over Dutchess Community College by a score of 97-67 in front of a standing-room-only crowd at the Monroe Athletic Complex. The Mustangs open the year with a 1-0 record, while the Falcons start off 0-1.
Coach Brustad's career record now improves to an impressive 500-137 for a winning percentage of .785. Coach Brustad reached 400 victories back on March 21, 2017, in an NJCAA Championship tournament upset win over Indian Hills Community College. Monroe's 20th-year head coach is no stranger to accolades, having accumulated eight District Coach of the Year awards and 12 Region 15 Coach of the Year honors. Brustad has led the Mustangs to eight appearances in the NJCAA Div. I Men's Basketball Championship.
The Mustangs got off to a hot start in front of a raucous crowd on Thursday, running out to an 18-4 lead on the Falcons. The Mustangs went on a 9-0 run later in the half to take a commanding 37-14 advantage, capping off the run on an alley-oop from Albert Vargas to Ziare Wells. In the final minute of the half, Emmanuel Ogbole and Melvin Council Jr. had back-to-back dunks to push Monroe's lead to 27, but the Falcons scored the final three points of the period, sending the game to the half with the Mustangs up, 52-28.
Council totaled 15 points in the first half to lead all scorers, matching Hamdel Mohammed's four rebounds to lead all players as well. Jawarie Hamelin dished out four assists and stole the ball three times.
A dunk by Council with 16:59 on the clock in the second half put the Mustangs up by 30 points at 62-32. Monroe's lead peaked at 38 points after a dunk by Wells, and again shortly after when a jumper by Vargas gave Monroe an 89-51 edge with 5:04 to play. The Falcons were able to get some points on the board down the stretch, but the Mustangs managed to hold on to a 30-point lead at the final buzzer.
Council led all scorers with 17 points on the evening to go with six rebounds, four assists and three steals. He was the first of five double-digit scorers for the Mustangs, with Stefano Faloppa next up with 12 points on the night. Ogbole, Zatai Townsend and Wells all had 10 points apiece in the win. Mohammed finished with nine points and a team-high nine boards. Vargas and Isac Ahnstrand each handed out six assists in the win. Ogbole blocked five shots in the game.
Monroe shot 58.1 percent (43-of-74) from the field in Thursday's win, while holding the Falcons to just 22-of-59 (37.3 percent) shooting. The Mustangs dominated from in close, scoring 66 points in the paint compared to just 24 for the Falcons. Dutchess turned the ball over 31 times, while Monroe gave it away just 16 times, leading to Monroe's 39-15 advantage in points off turnovers.
The Mustangs get no time to relish in their victory, as they head down to Virginia for the Richard Bland Statesmen Classic for the weekend. Their first game takes place on Friday, Nov. 4, when they take on host Richard Bland College at 8 p.m.
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 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 11 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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