TALLAHASSEE, Fla., December 4, 2022 – A couple big-time matchups on Saturday and Sunday did not go the way of the No. 8-ranked Monroe College Mustangs men's basketball team down in Florida. First, the Mustangs took on the defending NJCAA Champion Northwest Florida State College on their home court on Saturday, falling to the Raiders, 73-59. The Mustangs then went toe-to-toe with No. 4 Chipola College on Sunday at Tallahassee Community College, falling to the Indians, 72-62. Monroe drops to 10-2 overall with its first two losses of the season.
Northwest Florida State 73, No. 8 Monroe 59 (Saturday, Dec. 3)
As of this posting, statistics from Saturday's matchup with Northwest Florida State were not yet available.
No. 4 Chipola 72, No. 8 Monroe 62
The Mustangs and Indians were neck-and-neck throughout much of the opening half. The Mustangs scored five straight late in the half after a three by
Ziare Wells and a layup by
Hamdel Mohammed to go up, 28-23. Chipola made it a one-point game with 1:25 to play in the half, but
Keith Warren Jr. drained a three on the next possession, eventually sending the game to the half with the Mustangs up, 35-31.
A three by
Isac Ahnstrand early in the second half broke a tie to put Monroe back up, 40-37, but a long ball by Chipola's Zach Bell tied the game again at 40-40. Some close play saw the Indians hold a 53-49 lead with 6:47 to play, but Chipola caught fire at a crucial point in the game after that. An 11-2 run for the Indians put them ahead, 64-51, with just 3:27 to go. Chipola's lead reached as many as 15 points before Warren got hot and made three from beyond the arc down the stretch to get Monroe within eight. However, it was too little, too late for the Mustangs, as a pair of free throws for the Indians made it a 10-point game in the final seconds to hold off Monroe's late run.
Warren's four three-pointers helped him to a team-high 14 points in Sunday's game.
Emmanuel Ogbole and Mohammed matched for nine points in the game.
Tyje Kelton pulled down a team-high eight rebounds to go with six points.
The Mustangs will look to get back on track and start a new winning streak next weekend when they head down to Bolivia, N.C. for the Brunswick Community College Holiday Classic. The three-game weekend begins on Friday, Dec. 16, when the Mustangs take on host Brunswick at 5 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 (
Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (
@Monroe_Mustangs) and Instagram (
@monroemustangs).
