CALDWELL, N.J.- Caldwell University men's basketball junior Anthony Cooper (Ashburn, Va.) notched a career-high 31 points to power the Cougars past Felician University 80-76 in a  Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference contest.
 
The Cougars improve to 5-4 on the season and 5-4 in the CACC, while the Golden Falcons fall to 4-4 overall and 4-4 in conference play.
 
Felician jumped out to a 16-11 lead midway through the opening half. Caldwell rallied back with a 17-6 run. Cooper netted nine points in the run, including converting a three-point play, to help the Cougars take a 28-22 lead with 4:11 left in the half.
 
The Golden Falcons tied the score at 34 in the final minute but a bucket by senior Manley Dorme (Nanuet, N.Y./Don Bosco Prep) in the waning seconds gave the Cougars a 36-34 halftime lead.
 
Caldwell pushed their lead to four points midway through the second half. Felician battled back to pull even at 67 with 3:15 remaining in the game. The Cougars answered with an 11-0 burst to take control of the game. Freshman Daniel Dade Jr. (Springfield, Mass.) bookended the run with a trifecta and a pair of free throws to put the Cougars ahead 78-67 with under a minute to play. Dade Jr added a pair of free throws in the final seconds to halt a Felician come back.
 
Cooper recorded a career-high 31 points along with six rebounds and three assists. Dorme totaled 14 points and eight boards, while freshman Jarnel Rancy (Middle Island, N.Y.) finished with 10 points, eight rebounds and two blocks.
 
 
The Cougars host Georgian Court University for a CACC contest on Thursday, February 25 at 6 pm. The game will be streamed on the CACC Network at caccnetwork.com.