JERSEY CITY, N.J. (Feb. 15, 2023) – The New Jersey City University men's basketball team held Rutgers University-Camden scoreless for a span of 4:45 late in the game as it rattled off 15 straight points to stun the Scarlet Raptors, 76-66, in a New Jersey Athletic Conference game here Wednesday night.
 
The win lifted the Gothic Knights to 12-13 overall and helped them secure the sixth and final spot in the upcoming NJAC playoffs with a 7-11 conference mark.
 
Rutgers-Camden, which led by most of the way and was up by 12 points with 9:08 remaining, closed its season at 4-21 overall and 2-16 in the NJAC.
 
NJCU has won its last three games and 15 of the last 16 against Rutgers-Camden. The Gothic Knights hold a 72-6 lead in the all-time series.
 
The game featured three early lead changes and a 7-7 tie, with the Scarlet Raptors finally taking the lead, 12-10, on a three-pointer by freshman forward Cameron Downs. They expanded the margin to 17-14 before running off nine straight points, sparked by a foul shot from sophomore guard Kobe Devine, a pair of foul shots by Downs and back-to-back treys by sophomore guard Eric Benjamin. Benjamin's second trey made it a 26-14 game.
 
The Scarlet Raptors led, 35-27, at halftime, with Downs leading the way with nine points. Sophomore forward Rich Santos and junior guard Ethan Tarte had seven first-half points for the Raptors, while Benjamin had six.
 
Senior guard Jason Battle had eight points in the opening half for the Gothic Knights, Junior forward Avante Gilbert had seven.
 
Rutgers-Camden expanded its lead to 56-44 on a jumper by freshman guard Qua'meer Amin with 9:08 remaining in the game. Three minutes later, that lead was down to six points, 62-56, and NJCU had started a streak where it held the Scarlet Raptors scoreless for 4:45, scored 15 straight points and took the lead for good.
 
The Gothic Knights tied the game at 62-62 with 4:37 remaining on a pair of foul shots by freshman guard Bakhi Rogers-Robinson. They took the lead 26 seconds later on a three-pointer by Battle.
 
When Downs ended the scoreless string on a layup with 1:28 remaining in the game, the Scarlet Raptors trailed, 71-64.
 
Battle paced NJCU with 19 points, while freshman forward Branden Moore netted 15 and both Gilbert and junior forward Ryan Savoy added 11. Moore added a team-high six rebounds to help the Gothic Knights hold a 32-26 edge off the boards.
 
Downs led Rutgers-Camden with game highs of 20 points and eight rebounds. Tarte finished with 11 points.
 
Senior guard Jaymes Savage, playing his last game with the Scarlet Raptors, notched five points, six rebounds, two steals and a game-high three assists. Savage closed his three-year Rutgers-Camden career having started all 56 games the Scarlet Raptors played in that span. He finished his career with 333 points, 299 rebounds and 85 steals. His 162 assists placed him 12th on the program's career list.
 
NJCU shot 22-for-47 (46.8 percent) from the floor, while Rutgers-Camden was 21-for-48 (43.8).