Williams Leads Kean Past Rutgers-Camden, 48-43

CAMDEN, N.J. (01/09/08) - Freshman guard Keith Williams (Jersey City, N.J.) scored the final seven points of the game to lead the Kean University men's basketball team to a 48-43 victory over host Rutgers University-Camden in New Jersey Athletic Conference South Division action on Wednesday evening.

With Kean trailing 43-41, Williams (pictured left) knocked down a three-pointer with just over two minutes remaining to give the Cougars (5-8, 1-1 NJAC) the lead for good and sealed the victory with four free throws in the final 12 seconds to seal the Cougar victory.

Rutgers-Camden (3-10, 0-2) led by as many as nine points (33-24) early in the second half before the Cougars mounted their comeback.  The game was tied on three occasions late in the second half, including at 41-41, before Scarlet Raptors took their final lead of the night, 43-41, on a layup by freshman guard Brandon Canty (Riverside, N.J.).

Williams sank the last of his trio of three-pointers with 2:01 remaining to give the Cougars the lead for good at 44-43. He added a pair of foul shots with 12.7 seconds remaining and two more with 0.9 seconds left for the final margin on his way to a game-high 19 points. Williams, who earned his second NJAC Rookie of the Week honor on Monday, also had six rebounds, one assist and three steals for Kean.

The Cougars built an early 7-1 lead to open the game before the Scarlet Raptors held a slight two-point advantage (20-18) at halftime.

In the game, Kean also received nine points from freshman forward Akinwande Oshodi (Florence, N.J.) and seven rebounds from rookie guard Dean Hughes (Pemberton Township, N.J.). 

Rutgers-Camden was paced by eight points from junior guard Bill Banks (Berlin, N.J.), while sophomore guard Joshua Askew (Philadelphia, Pa.) added seven points. Askew and junior forward Antoine Miller (Camden, N.J.) tied for game-high rebounding honors with eight.

The Cougars held a slim 40-39 rebounding advantage, but made five fewer turnovers than the Scarlet Raptors (19-14).

Both teams return to NJAC action Saturday, as the Cougars host New Jersey City University at 3 p.m., while Rutgers-Camden travels to William Paterson University for a 1 p.m. contest.