Men's College Basketball
Rider Rocks Rival
Rider University 74, Monmouth University 62
WEST LONG BRANCH--Cain and Able might have been the original rivals. The Hatfields and the McCoys was more of a feud than a rivalry. A rivalry between former Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton and Vice President Aaron Burr ended in a fatal duel not far from here in Weehawken, New Jersey.
The 1970s had Mohammed Ali and Joe Frazier, the 1980s had Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, in the 1990s it was Seinfeld and Newman, and the start of the Yankees and Red Sox rivalry wasn't long after Cain and Able.
In New Jersey collegiate athletics, the rivalry between Rider and Monmouth is as good as it gets.
The two field hockey teams have played 31 times, the last two years meeting in the conference championship game. The baseball teams have met 54 times, including nine times in the last six years. The two universities, separated by the 60 mile width of the Garden State, annually compete in track & field, tennis, soccer and softball as well.
The men's basketball teams renewed their annual rivalry Thursday night and senior Brandon Penn (Philadelphia, Pa./Paul Robeson) scored 26 points, tying his career high, and grabbed a career-high15 rebounds to lead Rider to victory at Monmouth.
"It's great to see Brandon be rewarded with the way he is playing," said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. "He's been an underrated player in our program since he's been with us, playing in the shadow of some good players. He has stepped up during the struggles we have had."
"There was no different feeling tonight," Penn said. "I was able to make a few shots early and that always gets me going. It gets me in a good rhythm."
Holding a 64-60 lead, Rider (3-10) out-scored Monmouth (2-10) 10-2 over the final 3:20 for its second consecutive win. Rider made six of eight foul shots in the final 2:54. "We kept attacking," Dempsey said about closing out the game. "When they cut the lead down we came right back at them."
"We've been having trouble closing the games out," Penn said. "Tonight we were concentrating on doing that."
Rider led 54-48 before going on a 7-3 run to take a 61-51 lead with 5:41 left.
Holding a 38-35 lead, Rider went on a 12-2 run, four points by senior Jeff Jones (Chester, PA/Monsignor Bonner), to take a 50-37 lead with 12:18 left to play. Jones finished with seven points.
The Hawks battled back with a 9-2 run, five points by Ed Waite, to cut the lead to 52-46 with 8:32 remaining. Waite finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds.
With the score tied at 21-21, Rider out-scored Monmouth 10-4 over the final 3:32 of the first half, five points by Penn, to take a 31-25 lead at intermission.
The first half saw five ties and two lead changes. The second half saw none.
Penn also set a career-high with six three-point field goals. Penn has compiled 46 points in his last two games.
Rider freshman Eddie Mitchell (Philadelphia, PA/La Salle) added six assists to go along with his five points. Mitchell had six assists without a turnover in his last game, at UMBC. "Eddie did not play like a freshman tonight," Dempsey said. "When things began to go against us tonight like they have this year I thought he really delivered."
Sophomore Daniel Stewart (Philadelphia, PA/Neumann-Goretti) added 17 points and junior Jonathon Thompson (Orlando, Fla./Jones) added six points and four assists.
Senior Novar Gadson (Philadelphia, Pa./John Bartram), still recovering from off-season knee surgery, played 24 positive minutes off the bench and added five points, five rebounds and three assists.
Rider out-rebounded Monmouth 38-34, the first time this year Rider out-rebounded an opponent. "We did a better job taking care of the glass tonight, especially in the second half," Dempsey said. Rider out-rebounded Monmouth 22-12 in the second half.
The Broncs now own a 22-15 advantage in the series with their New Jersey and former Northeast Conference rival. Rider has now won five in a row against Monmouth and seven of the last eight meetings with the Hawks.
Rider beat Monmouth in the 1994 NEC Title Game, but the Hawks came back to beat Rider in the 1996 NEC Championship Game. Since Rider left the NEC for the MAAC the Broncs are now 11-4 against Monmouth.
The last time Monmouth beat Rider was during the 2006-07 season (67-66).
Rider travels to Long Island for a game at Stony Brook December 30. "We're getting in a good rhythm right now," Penn said. "Hopefully we can keep it going."
"We're better than we were a couple of weeks ago," Dempsey said. "I think we still have our work cut out for us. Our focus has been on improvement and there has been improvement."
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