NEWARK, NJ (February 7, 2007) – Junior forward Assad Shaakir (Newark, NJ/St. Patrick) had a dozen of his 20 points in the first half as Ramapo muscled its way to a 43-32 halftime edge in route to a crucial 91-75 New Jersey Athletic Conference men's basketball victory over Rutgers-Newark in The Golden Dome.

Shaakir hit five of six shots from the floor, including two of three from beyond the arc, and junior forward Shawn Frost (Newark, NJ/Our Lady of Good Counsel) added all 10 of his points in the opening half at Ramapo shot 52.8% from the floor. Shaakir and Frost snared five rebounds apiece in the period as the Roadrunners controlled the boards, 21-13, and limited Rutgers-Newark to just two offensive rebounds.

Sophomore guard Desmond Sanders (Newark, NJ/St. Patrick) netted 11 of his 17 points in the second half as Ramapo (17-5, NJAC 8-2) allowed the Raiders (16-7, NJAC 6-5) no closer than six points in the opening four minutes before pulling away for a comfortable win.

Junior guard Ahmad Mosby (Jersey City, NJ/St. Anthony) had a dozen points for Ramapo while senior guard Antoine Pryor (Elizabeth, NJ/St. Patrick) added 11 points.

Sophomore forward David Cherry (Linden, NJ/Roselle Catholic) poured in a game-high 21 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds for Rutgers-Newark. Senior guard Philippe Slater (Newark, NJ/University) tallied 19 points and three assists while sophomore guard Chadd Barnes (Newark, NJ/University) totaled 14 points and six rebounds. Freshman forward Deshawn Singleton (Passaic, NJ/Passaic) notched 10 points and added five rebounds.

Shaakir, who added a game-high nine rebounds, helped Ramapo earn a sweep of regular-season meetings against Rutgers-Newark. It was his 3-point jumper with six seconds left in the Bradley Center on January 10 which gave the Roadrunners a 91-90 win.

The Roadrunners stayed within half game of North Division-leading New Jersey City, a 71-60 winner over William Paterson in Wayne, tonight. Both Ramapo and NJCU locked up tournament berths, tonight. The Scarlet Raiders stayed just one game ahead of WPU in the battle for the third and final divisional berth to the NJAC Championship Tournament. The Pioneers visit Ramapo on Saturday night before Rutgers-Newark travels to WPU on Wednesday as the battle for the final tournament slot will go down to the final week of the regular season.

The Roadrunners dominated the boards, 46-29, against a depleted Scarlet Raider front line which was missing 6-foot-7 sophomore center Afalobi Ajumobi (Roselle, NJ/Roselle Catholic) and 6-foot-5 junior forward Derryck Alexander (Lakewood, NJ/Lakewood) – Rutgers-Newark's top two rebounders who missed the game with injuries.