Men’s basketball gains ground with win over TCNJ

Getting hot at the right time is what the Rowan men’s basketball team needs right now.

With the season down to its last four games, the Profs will need to win the rest of their New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) match-ups to gain a top seed in the conference playoffs.

They started that run out with a 70-49 win over the College of New Jersey. Rowan had a dominating first half in which they capped off with a 17-2 run.

“At halftime, we told our guys that might have been the best defensive half we had all year,” said head coach Joe Cassidy. “[TCNJ] scored 114 points the other night against Penn State Brandywine, so we were very happy with our defense.”

Injuries were a big concern for the Profs heading into the game. With sophomore Steve Secula and seniors Tyson Hartnett and Allen Pritchett battling injuries, the Profs got a lot of help from the young players, especially sophomore Gary Foster and freshman A.J. Greenwald.

Foster, making his fifth start of the season, had a career-high 14 points in the win over the Lions. Ten of Foster’s points came in the second half.

“We’ve got a bunch of hurt players and it’s just that the next man has to step up and my number was called, so I just had to perform,” Foster said. “I just took what the defense pretty much gave me. I felt like I had an advantage over my man so I exploited it.”

Greenwald was making only his second start of his college career. He added 13 points in the winning effort.

“I had my first start [Jan. 30] against William Paterson and I was a little shaky,” Greenwald said. “I think after that, I was able to settle down for this game and I came out and I think I did what I needed to do to help the team win.”

Foster and Greenwald’s performances did more than just lift Rowan. It allowed for Secula, Hartnett and Pritchett to slowly work their way back into games.

The banged up Secula contributed eight points off the bench.

Hartnett missed the previous three games with a hand infection he sustained against Richard Stockton, but he made an appearance back on the floor for the Profs with 10 minutes to play in the first half.

He showed no signs of a sore right hand, which was wrapped heavily. He scored nine points in eight minutes and added two more shortly after in the second half.

Pritchett, who has a high-ankle sprain, right calf contusion and concussion, entered the game in the second half, scoring nine points.

“It sure is hurting but [the trainers] are taking care of me,” Pritchett said of his right leg, which was wrapped from the thigh to the calf. “It affected my drive game a little more [than the shooting]. The mechanics are always there. They will never go away as long as you square up.”

With a 15-6 record and 6-4 in the NJAC, Rowan is currently sitting in first in the south division. Stockton is 5-4 in the division, but holds the tie breaker. The two teams meet up one more time on Feb. 13.

Rowan was supposed to play its second crucial NJAC game this past Saturday at Kean University but with the blizzard sending the state into a state of emergency, the game was rescheduled to Feb. 15.