CALDWELL, N.J.- Caldwell University men's basketball sophomore
Eric Johnson-Alford (Clifton, N.J.) turned in a career effort with his first double-double as the Cougars defeated Wilmington University 86-64 in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference contest.
The Cougars improve to 6-9 overall and 4-3 in the CACC, while the Wildcats fall to 9-7 and 4-3 in conference play.
Caldwell jumped out to an early lead as they built a 22-7 lead midway through the opening half. Sophomores
Zay Jennings (Allentown, Pa.) and
Ned Ogoemesim (Westampton, N.J.) drained triples in the early going. Johnson-Alford dropped in six points, while senior
Derek Dorn (New Rochelle, N.Y.) and freshman
Manley Dorme (Nanuet, N.Y.) each added four points.
Wilmington chipped away as they closed the gap to 32-27 with under a minute to play. Johnson-Alford drained a late jumper to give the Cougars a 34-27 lead at halftime.
Johnson-Alford scored eight points in the first six minutes of the second half to help Caldwell push ahead 49-39 at the 14:03 mark. The Wildcats cut the score down to seven points at 50-43 with 11:50 remaining in the game.
The Cougars pulled away with an 11-0 run to extend their lead into double digits. Sophomore
Vaughn Covington (Sicklerville, N.J.) drained four free throws and added a jumper in the run. Jennings connected on a trifecta along with a jumper at the 9:39 mark to give Caldwell a 61-43 lead. The Cougars held a double-digit lead the rest of the way as they earned their fourth conference win of the season.
Johnson-Alford set new career-highs with 27 points and 12 rebounds for his first career double-double. He tied his career-best with three blocks and added two steals. Dorn totaled 13 points and three assists, while Jennings netted 13 points. Junior
Ahmad Harrison (Newark, N.J.) tallied seven points, six assists and three steals, while Dorme finished with six points and nine rebounds. Covington posted six points and four assists.
The Cougars travel to Georgian Court University for a CACC contest on Saturday, January 13 at 3 pm.