Every game at Panzer Athletic Center feels like a big one, but Wednesday night’s men’s basketball clash represents the climax of the regular season on its final day.
The top-seeded Montclair State Men’s Basketball team has already clinched at least one home game in the 2024-2025 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) tournament. With a win, they’ll earn themselves the right to host the semifinal and – potentially – the NJAC final on their own floor.
The implications linger in every crevice of the hardwood, and the Red Hawks will have to earn their path against the reigning conference champions in The College of New Jersey.
The top-seeded Montclair State Men’s Basketball team has already clinched at least one home game in the 2024-2025 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) tournament. | Photo Courtesy of Montclair State Athletics.
The Lions march into town second in the NJAC after ripping off five straight victories in February. After a shaky start to their conference schedule, they have found a flame at the right time as they hope to, at the least, secure themselves a first-round in over the Red Hawks.
If recent history is any indicator, TCNJ will need to crack the seemingly unbreakable code to beat its North Jersey foe.
With a win, Montclair State will complete its third straight season sweep of the Lions. The Red Hawks have come out as victors in the last six head-to-head matchups, dating back to December of 2021. Four of those wins were by double-digits, and in those six games, TCNJ held a second-half lead just once.
The teams’ first meeting of the season, on Jan. 15, was more of a domination than the 78-71 final score displays. The Lions’ last lead in the game was 4-3. Montclair State ran away from there, leading by as much as 19 points with under five minutes left in the game.
But if the law of averages tells us anything, TCNJ is inching closer and closer to breaking that streak, and a win Wednesday night could be a season-defining one.
The Lions will need another stellar performance from their star Junior Guard, Nick Koch. The bigger the occasion, the bigger the stat line from Koch. The third-leading scorer in the conference has notched 30-plus points in each of his last two games. And as if there’s any added motivation, he has never beaten Montclair State.
The Red Hawks have come out as victors in the last six head-to-head matchups, dating back to December of 2021. | Photo Courtesy of Montclair State Athletics.
On the other end, the Red Hawks will look to their stars to deliver a home court-sealing triumph. Recent NJAC Player of the Week honoree Jacob Morales is averaging over 25 PPG over his last seven games. Senior guard Mike Jackson has an opportunity to grant Montclair State the top seed in the conference tournament in his final non-elimination game at Panzer.
With so much yet to be determined, Wednesday’s game at Panzer Athletic Center should be raucous, chaotic and an evening to remember.
