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CALDWELL, N.J. - The Caldwell College men's basketball team suffered its first Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference loss of the season on Thursday, losing to Bloomfield College, 74-69 in the George R. Newman Center. The Cougars are now 2-1 in the conference and 6-8 overall, while the Deacons improve to 8-5 overall and 3-0 in the CACC.
The first half remained close, with Caldwell gaining a slight edge after late lay-ups by freshman guard Nik Otovic (Kraljevo, Serbia), pictured, and sophomore guard Dante Rollins (East Orange, NJ/Bloomfield Tech) allowed the Cougars to take a 25-23 lead at the half. Bloomfield trailed by only two points at halftime despite making just 22.9 percent (6-of-17) from the field in the first half.
The Cougars held onto the lead until six straight points by the Deacons gave Bloomfield a 39-37 advantage at the 13-minute mark. Caldwell briefly regained the lead midway through the second half, but a three-pointer by Omari Knox sparked an 8-0 run that put Bloomfield ahead 50-43 with just over nine minutes to play. Six points by junior guard Eddie Crockett (Passaic, NJ/Passaic) helped the Cougars pull to within three, 52-49 with seven minutes on the clock. But a 12-4 run pushed the Bloomfield lead to 64-53 with 2:43 left. Seven points from Otovic helped Caldwell cut the deficit to four with 38 seconds left, but the Cougars were unable to get any closer before time expired.
Senior forward Manny Perez (Egg Harbor Twp., NJ/Egg Harbor Twp.) tallied 19 points and seven rebounds to pace the Cougars. Perez also went 5-of-5 from the free throw line, giving him a school-record 489 free throws made in his career. He passes former Cougar standout Brian Tonkovich, who made 487 free throws from 1994-98. Otovic finished with a career-high 14 points to go with five assists. Knox finished with 33 points, including 25 in the second half as the Deacons shot 51.9 percent from the field after halftime.
The Cougars continue CACC play with a home game against Philadelphia University. Tip-off is set for 3:00 p.m. in the Newman Center.
