HOBOKEN, N.J. (November 27, 2022)  – Senior Conor Coffey had a game-high 15 points and junior Mike Goodall finished with 12 points and five steals as the Stevens Institute of Technology men's basketball team defeated Rutgers-Newark 72-56 Sunday in a non-conference matchup at Canavan Arena.

Sophomore Jack Spellman filled the stat sheet with seven points, six boards and six blocks and first-year Matt Leming came off the bench to sink four threes for the Ducks, who won their second straight to improve to 2-4.

Tyrone Bowens and Jordan Salisbury each came off the bench to score 13 points to lead Rutgers-Newark, who lost its third straight in falling to 1-5. Stevens has won each of the last three meetings between the teams. 

After using an improbable comeback to win their last game, the Ducks didn't need that type of effort to defeat the Scarlet Raiders. Stevens nearly led wire-to-wire, with Rutgers-Newark claiming its only lead of the game after Travis Miles had a fast-break dunk for the first points of the game. Spellman found a cutting Brett Bischoping for the Ducks' first basket of the game on the next possession. Bischoping then found a wide-open Goodall for a corner three to put Stevens up for good. The Ducks found the mark from long range throughout the game, making 10 of their 22 shots (.455) from behind the arc. 

While the Ducks were on target on their 3-point attempts, Rutgers-Newark was ice cold from behind the arc, shooting just 11.1% (2 for 18), which is the Scarlet Raiders' worst performance from behind the arc since Jan. 6, 2018 (1 for 10 (.100) against William Paterson). 

Stevens used a 10-0 run in the first half to build a double-digit lead. Spellman sparked the run with a layup and then fed Leming for a three. The Ducks' sharpshooter would hit another three, which was followed by a fast-break basket from Coffey, which forced a Rutgers-Newark timeout. While the Ducks were swooping and hooping their way to a 21-6 lead, they also turned up the defensive intensity, holding Rutgers-Newark scoreless for nearly five minutes.

The Scarlet Raiders trimmed the Ducks' double-digit lead to just four points after scoring four points of the second half, but Bischoping kept possession for Stevens with a key offensive rebound that led to a Goodall basket, before hitting a jumper of his own to push the lead back to eight.

Stevens' lead would fluctuate between five and eight points before a technical foul against the Rutgers-Newark bench led to a pair of free throws for Leming. Leming then drained a long three to score five points in five seconds, to push the Ducks' lead back to a comfortable 13 points. 

Junior Alex Ratner hit a short jumper to push the lead to 16 and graduate student Connor Strambi made a pair of free throws to give the Ducks their largest lead of the game at 65-46. Strambi finished with nine points and four rebounds, while finishing a team-high +23.

Pivotal Point

• With Rutgers-Newark cutting into the Ducks' lead with just under two minutes left in regulation, Coffey found an open Spellman on the left block. Spellman made the easy layup, while also absorbing contact from Shy'Heed Jenkins-Floyd.
• Spellman made the ensuing free throw to push the lead back to 16, effectively ending any comeback bid by the Scarlet Raiders.

Inside the Numbers

• With their 10 threes, the Ducks have recorded consecutive games with double-digit makes from behind the arc for the first time since early last season (Nov. 28-Dec. 4), when the Ducks reeled off three straight games with at least 10 threes. 
• Stevens shot 52.2% for the game, which included a blistering 11 of 19 (57.9%) in the second half. 
• Rutgers-Newark held a 37-32 edge on the boards, including a 16-6 margin on the offensive glass. The advantage in offensive rebounds led to a 14-6 edge for the Scarlet Raiders in second-chance points.
• Each team received 29 points off the bench.
• Bischoping finished with a career-high three blocks and three steals.
• Coffey finished with a game-high six assists and has 13 helpers over his last two games. 
• The Ducks recorded 18 assists on 24 baskets. 
• Goodall's five steals marked a career-high.
• The Ducks made a season-high 14 free throws.

From the Sidelines - Head Coach Bobby Hurley

• "Really happy with today's performance. I thought we were pretty locked in defensively and we did a good job of working together on the offensive end to find good shots."

Up Next

• Men's Basketball opens MAC Freedom play on Nov. 30 at Delaware Valley.
• The Ducks have earned victories in each of the three contested contests between the programs, with Delaware Valley earning one win by forfeit. 
• A link for live stats is posted to StevensDucks.com.

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