CALDWELL, N.J.- Caldwell University men's basketball team sophomore Zay Jennings (Allentown, Pa.) drained four first half triples as the Cougars defeated Felician University 92-76 in their Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference opener.
 
The Cougars improve to 2-6 on the season and 1-0 in the CACC, while the Golden Falcons fall to 3-5 and 0-1 in conference play.
 
Caldwell got off to a fast start as they quickly built a 13-4 lead in the first four minutes of the game. Jennings connected on a pair from downtown, while junior Ahmad Harrison (Newark, N.J.) added a triple in the run.
 
Jennings continued his hot shooting to push Caldwell's lead into double figures. He added two triples as the Cougars pulled ahead 23-12 at the 12:22 mark of the first half. The Golden Falcons closed to gap to seven points at 30-23 with 7:11 left in the half.
 
Caldwell dropped in the next six points to extend their lead into double figures. Felician trimmed the score back to eight points with just over four minutes to play but the Cougars finished the half strong.
 
The Cougars closed out the half with a 10-4 run paced by four points each from senior Derek Dorn (New Rochelle, N.Y.) and sophomore Eric Johnson-Alford (Clifton, N.J.) to give Caldwell a 46-32 lead at the break.
 
The Golden Falcons ripped off the first seven points of the second half as they cut the score to 46-39 less than two minutes into the half.
 
Caldwell broke the game open as they rolled off a 24-10 run near the midway point of the half to push their lead to double-digits that they would keep to the final buzzer.
 
Dorn and Harrison each converted key three-point plays in the run to aid in the Cougar run. Sophomore Ruud Lutterman (Gorinchem, Netherlands) added six points, while sophomore Vaughn Covington (Sicklerville, N.J.) capped the run with three free throws at the 10:10 mark to give Caldwell a 70-49 lead. The Cougars took their lead to the final buzzer to secure their first conference victory.
 
Dorn and Jennings paced the scoring for Caldwell with 16 points each as all five starters netted double-digits in points. Dorn totaled four assists and four steals, while Jennings shot 4-for-6 from downtown as he added two assists. Harrison chipped in 14 points, six assists and four steals, while Lutterman added 10 points. Sophomore AJ Kittles (Glassboro, N.J.) posted 10 points and eight boards. Covington tallied 12 points, four rebounds and three assists, while Johnson-Alford finished with six points and seven boards.
 
The Cougars travel to Pace University on Thursday, December 7 for a non-conference game at 7 pm.