CALDWELL, N.J.- The Caldwell University men's basketball team shot 65% from the field in the second half on their way to an 87-71 victory against Goldey-Beacom College in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference match-up.
The Cougars improve to 9-14 overall and 7-9 in the CACC, while the Lightning drop to 8-17 and 6-10 in conference play.
Goldey-Beacom build a six point lead midway through the opening half at 19-13. The Cougars rallied back with a 14-4 run to pull ahead by four points at 27-23 with 2:58 left in the opening half. The Lightning made a late run and hit a late triple to even the score at 31 heading into halftime.
The teams trades leads early in the second half but the Lightning built a 46-39 lead with 13:55 left in the game. The Cougars found the hot shooting touch as they scored on their next seven possessions to take the lead for good.
Caldwell connected on five triples in those seven possessions as freshman
Ned Ogoemesim (Westampton, NJ) hit two from downtown and added a lay-up, while senior
Salvatore Vitello (Bridgewater, NJ) drained a pair of triples. Senior
Dawan Lighty (Paterson, NJ) added a three-pointer and a lay-up as the Cougars pushed ahead 58-50 with 10:19 remaining in the game.
The run kicked off a 30-6 run that stretched from the 13:32 mark and concluded at the 7:21 mark of the second half. Ogoemesim accounted for 16 points in the run including three trifectas and a three-point play, while Vitello added three triples and Lighty chipped in five points. The game-deciding run put the Cougars in the lead at 69-52 at the 7:21 mark. Caldwell held a double-digit lead the rest of the way to earn their third win in a row.
For the Cougars, Ogoemesim set new career bests with 23 points and 12 rebounds along with five assists. He shot 8-for-10 from the field and 4-for-5 from downtown in a career day for the freshman. Vitello also set new career-highs with 22 points and nine assists, while chipping in four rebounds and three steals. He drained a career-best six triples as he finished 6-for-7 from downtown. Lighty totaled 12 points, three assists and three steals.
Caldwell shot 65.5% from the field in the second half, while the Lightning shot 42.4% in the half. For the game, the Cougars held the shooting edge 52.5% to 41.4%.
The Cougars travel to Concordia College on Wednesday, February 17 for a CACC clash against the Clippers at 7 pm.
