Box Score EWING, N.J. (Feb. 10, 2014) – The College of New Jersey men's basketball team out-scored Rutgers University-Camden, 10-6, in overtime to post a hard-fought 70-66 victory in a New Jersey Athletic Conference makeup game here Monday night.

The Lions, who also defeated the Scarlet Raptors, 69-56, in their first meeting of the season on Dec. 7 in Camden, improve to 8-14 overall and 6-9 in the NJAC, snapping a six-game losing streak.

Rutgers-Camden, which trails the all-time series against TCNJ, 58-17, falls to 4-18 overall and 2-13 in the NJAC. The Scarlet Raptors have lost four straight games.

In a game full of lead changes and momentum swings, the teams battled to a 60-60 tie through regulation. Rutgers-Camden took its final lead of the night, 61-60, on an early overtime free throw by junior guard/forward Alex Smart (Sicklerville, NJ/Timber Creek). TCNJ bounced back with a three-pointer by junior forward Alex Fox (Washington, NJ/Westwood) and a free throw by junior forward Skyelar Ettin (Princeton, NJ/Princeton) to take a 64-61 lead, but the Scarlet Raptors cut the gap to 64-63 on a jumper by sophomore guard/forward John Tatem (Camden, NJ/Pennsauken Tech) with 1:03 remaining. Moments later, the Lions connected with a big trey by freshman guard Eric Klacik (Basking Ridge, NJ/Ridge) and added a foul shot by junior guard Jayson Johnson (Bordentown, NJ/Life Center Academy) to lead, 68-63, with 12 seconds remaining. Tatem nailed a three-pointer to make it close (68-66) with five seconds remaining, but Johnson sealed the victory for the Lions with a pair of free throws with three seconds left.

The game was tight from start to finish. With the Scarlet Raptors leading early, 14-13, Ettin put TCNJ ahead with a layup, making the score 15-14. It was a 21-18 game when the Lions rattled off seven straight points to make it a 10-point game at 28-18, but Rutgers-Camden countered with a 15-2 run to end the half, aided by six points from junior guard/forward Teon Russell (Camden, NJ/Woodrow Wilson). The Scarlet Raptors regained the lead, 31-30, on a three-pointer by guard/forward Steven Schneider (Berlin, NJ/Eastern Regional) with 1:44 remaining in the half. Schneider assisted on a layup by freshman guard Tom Heim (Mullica Hill, NJ/Clearview Regional) at the halftime buzzer to give the Raptors a 33-30 lead at the break.

Smart scored 11 first-half points to lead the Scarlet Raptors, while Russell netted nine and hauled down five rebounds. TCNJ received 10 points from Ettin in the opening 20 minutes.

The Raptors increased their lead to 37-30 by starting the second half with a pair of field goals by Smart, but TCNJ mounted a comeback of its own, finally regaining the lead, 41-40, on a three-pointer by Ettin. The Lions built their lead to 55-48, but in a game of surges, it was Rutgers-Camden's turn to rally.

A foul shot by Tatem and back-to-back layups by Russell and Tatem made it a 55-53 TCNJ lead. The Lions held on to a two-point margin, 59-57, before Schneider drained a three-pointer with 1:35 remaining to put Rutgers-Camden on top, 60-59.

After the Lions tied the game at 60-60 on a free throw Fox, the Raptors had a chance to regain the lead, but a missed jumper was rebounded by Ettin with 29 seconds remaining. The Lions missed a layup with six seconds remaining in regulation and Tatem grabbed the rebound, but his last-second jumper was off, sending the game to overtime.
Ettin finished with a game-high 23 points for the Lions, while Fox and sophomore forward Bobby Brackett (Lawrence, NJ/Lawrence) both netted 14 points and Johnson added 11. Brackett also had a game-high 21 rebounds – 19 off the defensive boards – for a double-double.

Russell had a double-double for the Scarlet Raptors, his ninth of the season, as he scored 14 points and added 15 rebounds.

Smart led the Raptors with 22 points, aided by 10-for-20 shooting from the floor. He also added eight boards. Tatem notched 10 points for the Raptors and junior guard Jason Richardson (Cedarbrook, NJ/Winslow Township) tied his career high with eight rebounds, helping the Raptors to a 45-44 edge off the boards.

Rutgers-Camden hosts Richard Stockton College Wednesday in an 8 p.m. NJAC game.