Men's Hoops Drop Heartbreaker at Ramapo in NJAC
Playoffs
MAHWAH, N.J. (2/26/08) - Senior guard
Lamar Wright (Galloway, N.J.) scored a team-high
20 points to lead three players in double-figures, however the Kean
University men's basketball dropped a heartbreaking 60-59 decision
to host Ramapo College in the New Jersey Athletic Conference
playoffs on Tuesday evening.
Trailing by one point with 14 seconds remaining, the Cougars got
the ball inside but several tip-ins wouldn't fall as time expired
ending the Cougar season.
Ramapo sophomore Andre Kenny (Jersey City,
N.J.) scored the game-winner for the Roadrunners, knocking
down a jumper in the paint with 14 seconds left as Ramapo erased a
four-point deficit in the final two minutes.
In the NJAC playoffs for the first time since 2000-01, the
Cougars close out the season 9-17 overall under first year head
coach Rob Kurzinsky. Ramapo (16-10) faces North Division
top-seed Richard Stockton College in a semi-final match-up on
Thursday, February 28.
The Cougars built an early 17-8 lead on a jumper by freshman
Jonathan Jones (Linden, N.J.) midway through the
opening half and would eventually take a 32-29 lead into
halftime.
In the opening half, Wright (pictured right) led all scorers
with 13 points, while freshman Akinwande Oshodi (Florence,
N.J.) added seven points. For Ramapo, senior forward
Assad Shaakir (Newark, N.J.) had 12 points and
four rebounds to lead the Roadrunners.
The Cougars maintained a slight advantage early in the second
half before Ramapo battled back to regain the lead at 45-44 with
12:08 remaining in the game. After the two teams exchanged
baskets, Ramapo extended their lead to four points at 50-46 on a
pair of free throws by Shaakir with 8:10 left.
Both teams traded baskets in the final six minutes, as there were
six lead changes and two ties in the final minutes. The
Cougars took a 59-55 lead on a three-pointer by junior Sean
Carter (Freehold, N.J.) with exactly two minutes
remaining, before Ramapo senior guard Jason Marshall
(Hackensack, N.J.) cut the deficit to 59-58 with a
three-pointer with 1:26 remaining to set-up Kenny's game-winning
shot.
In his final collegiate game, Wright had five rebounds and two
three-pointers to go along with his 22 points, as he played all but
one minute and all 20 minutes of the second half. In just
three seasons at Kean, Wright finished with 1,067 career points to
rank 20th all-time in program history.
Senior guard Will Floyd (Eustis, Fla.)
(pictured left) added 12 points, five rebounds and four steals in
his final game in a Kean uniform, while Oshodi had 11 points, three
steals and two blocks before fouling out.
Shaakir was the lone Roadrunner in double-figures, finishing
with 22 points, hitting 7-of-8 from the floor, and adding a
team-high eight rebounds.
