SCRANTON, Pa., February 13, 2023 – After its last game resulted in the end of the team's 12-game winning streak, the No. 17-ranked Monroe College Mustangs men's basketball team was all business on Monday, leading from start-to-finish in a 96-62 victory at Lackawanna College. The Mustangs improve to 23-3 overall with the win, while the Falcons drop to 15-9.
The Mustangs turned in a number of big performances on Monday.
Emmanuel Ogbole nearly completed a triple-double, finishing with 19 points, 10 rebounds and nine blocked shots in the win.
Melvin Council Jr. continues his climb toward the Mustangs' all-time scoring record with a team-high 25 points in the win.
Tyje Kelton registered a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds, adding four assists as well. Ziare Well tallied 17 points off the bench for the Mustangs in the win.
Jawarie Hamelin also nearly pulled off an abnormal double-double, totaling nine assists and eight rebounds.
The Mustangs got hot from the jump and never looked back in the win. The visitors scored the first 12 points of the game, and led by 17 points midway through the first half.
Keith Warren Jr. hit a three to push the lead to 30-11 with 9:03 left in the opening frame.
Jawarie Hamelin later pushed the lead to 20 with a three of his own. The Falcons cut the deficit down to 13 with 3:55 remaining before halftime, but it was all Mustangs down the stretch, with an
Albert Vargas three right before the buzzer giving Monroe a 44-26 advantage at the break.
After the Falcons scored four of the first six points of the second half to get within 16, Monroe's lead was never less than 18 points the rest of the way. A three by Council just 87 seconds into the half pushed the lead to 24 points. The lead was down to 18 points with 8:30 to play before the Mustangs rattled off 15 straight points to take a 84-51 advantage in the final three minutes. The lead peaked at 96 points on a jumper by Warren with 41 seconds left before the Falcons scored two more points to lead to Monroe's 34-point win.
The Mustangs shot 57.5 percent (42-of-73) from the field in Monday's victory, including 11 three-pointers. They outrebounded the Falcons, 54-25, and doubled them up points in the paint, 40-20.
After having a spaced-out schedule over the past few weeks, the Mustangs are busier this week, playing next on Thursday, Feb. 16, when they host County College of Morris at the Monroe Athletic Complex. Thursday's matchup is set to tip off at 7 p.m. following the Mustang women's team's matchup with Raritan Valley Community College.
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).
