NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y., January 6, 2024 – The Monroe College Mustangs men's basketball team got the new year started on the right foot, defeating Howard Community College by a score of 71-59 on Saturday in the team's first game of the Monroe College Men's and Women's Mixer at the Monroe Athletic Complex. The Mustangs improve to 11-5 with the win, while the Dragons drop to 12-4.
The Mustangs got an early jump on the Dragons with a 9-4 lead across the first five minutes, but the Dragons bounced back with six straight points to jump ahead by one. The Mustangs then took over again, rolling to a 15-1 run to take a 24-11 advantage on the Dragons with 5:52 left in the half. The last five minutes of the first changed the game, as the Dragons went on a 13-3 run to cut the deficit down the three points.
Albert Vargas hit a three with 15 seconds left, but Howard's Jalen Bowie beat the buzzer with a jumper to leave Monroe up, 30-26, heading to the break.
Stefano Faloppa scored seven points and pulled down a team-high five rebounds in the first half.
Jawarie Hamelin matched his seven points, while Vargas finished the half with five points and four boards.
The Mustangs came out firing in the second half, scoring the new period's first 10 points to push the lead to 40-26. The Dragons scored the next four, but
Ziare Wells drained a three, and then Hamelin stole the ball and dunked on the fast break to make it a 45-30 game. The Mustangs used a seven-point run to take a comfortable 52-31 lead over the Dragons with 12:03 to play.
With the Mustangs still up by 21 later in the half, the Dragons scored 8-of-9 to make it a 14-point game with 8:18 on the clock. The Mustangs fended off the Dragons, pushing the lead to 17 points at 65-48 with 5:11 left to play. As the pace of the game slowed down late in the contest, the Dragons scored six straight points to make it a 67-55 game with 3:25 to go. That was as close as the Dragons would get, as the Mustangs held on to their 12-point lead for a 71-59 victory.
Hamelin finished with a team-high 15 points to go with five rebounds and two steals in the win. Faloppa and Palmer had 12 points apiece, with Palmer pulling down eight boards and Faloppa securing seven. Wells totaled 10 points and seven boards in the game.
Ryan Williams Jr. came off the bench to total five points, six rebounds and a team-high four assists. Vargas added nine points and four boards.
The Mustangs will look to make it a perfect weekend tomorrow, Jan. 7, when they host Cecil College in the Mustangs' final game of the Monroe Mixer. Sunday's tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 28 teams competing across nine sports. There are 20 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe College marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven 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).
