Rockford, Illinois, March 9, 2022 – The #12-seeded Monroe Express men's basketball team performed well in the program's first-ever NJCAA Division III Men's Basketball appearance going toe to toe with #5-seed Onondaga Community College for the majority of the afternoon. However, the Lancers pulled away in the final nine minutes 76-62 on Wednesday afternoon at Rock Valley College. The Express fall to 22-10 with the loss, and Onondaga Community College moves on to the Semifinals tomorrow, with the win improving their record to 26-3.
 
Isaiah Stone (Baldwin, New York) continues to rewrite the record books this season. This afternoon, he etched his name nationally into the NJCAA record books, hauling down a tournament single-game record 28 rebounds, which was also a game-high and single-game game program record. Stone's mark on the boards passes Steven Hernandez mark of 19 against Essex County College on February 1, 2018.

The Baldwin, New York native, recorded his sixth straight double-double and team-high 19th of the season with a team-best 22 points and three blocks while tying for another with two steals. Jasigha Barnes (Baldwin, New York) dished out a career-high tied nine assists and joined Chad Duke (Brooklyn, New York) with eight points in the contest. Jaiden Simon (Brooklyn, N.Y.) snagged a team-best tied two steals, scored seven points, and had six boards.

The Express dominated the paint and glass, outscoring the Lancers 36-28 and outrebounding them 53-38.
 
The Monroe Express proved from the opening tip that they were not intimidated by #2 nationally-ranked Onondaga Community College in their first-ever appearance in the NJCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship. The first half was a back and forth battle featuring six different lead changes and three ties. After the Lancers registered five of the first seven points, the Express roared right back with a 12-4 run, building a five-point lead, 14-9 at 13:22 on a Stone layup. The next seven points were dictated at the free-throw line with Johnson and Clinton Obi both going 1-for-2 at the charity stripe, then Jahki Lucas made both of his free throw attempts at 9:54 to cut the Express lead to three, 15-12 at the 9:54 mark.
 
Siddiq McNair (Philadelphia, Pennslyvania) went 1-of-2 at the line to give the Express their largest lead of the afternoon, six, 18-12 at 9:11 then Onondaga Community College responded with an 11-3 run to retake the lead at 6:23 when Jared Sammon converted on one of two free throws to make it 23-21. Both squads exchanged the lead four times and tied twice in the final 4:29 of the first half led off by Duke's three-point play to put the Express back in front. Latyce Faison and Stone exchanged jumpers thirteen seconds apart at 3:40 and 3:27 to give the Lancers the lead back 25-24 and help the Express retake the lead 26-25. Onondaga closed the period with the final three points capped off by a Jahki Lucas steal and Fastbreak Layin as time expired to give the Lancers a 28-26 halftime lead.
 
Onondaga Community College came out of the locker room in the second half with the intention of putting the Express away. After a Stone jump shot at 19:17 knotted the game up at 28, the Lancers went on an 8-0 run to push their lead to eight at 17:02 on a Latyce Faison and one making it 36-28. Stone's jumper at 15:48 made it a two-possession game 36-32 before Latyce Faison and Isaiah Warmack both recorded the following three points to increase the margin to nine, 39-32 at 14:35.
 
The Express would not go away putting up a 7-3 run to cut it to three, 42-39 at 13:22 on a Duke layup and get within two, 48-46 at 9:31 on a Stone jumper before the Lancers used a 9-0 to put the game away making it an 11-point game, 57-46 at 6:45 on a pair of Latyce Faison free throws. Monroe-Bronx got as close as eight, 57-49 at 6:02 on Jabnel Cordero (Vega Baja, Puerto Rico) jumper but wouldn't get any closer as Onondaga Community College coasted to the rest of the way to lead by a game-high 14 points, 76-62 with nine seconds to go. They kept it that way to advance to the NJCAA Division III Men's Basketball Semifinals.
 
Onondaga Community College had three players in double figures, with two posting 20-point games led by Latyce Faison's game-high 26 points while Jahki Lucas had 20 points. Isaiah Warmack had 15 points, and Faison brought down a team-best nine rebounds and tied for another with Lucas with four assists. Lucas led the Lancers defensively, gobbling up a game-high eight steals on the day.
 
The Monroe Express men's basketball season will look to add to a record-setting season with their 23rd win tomorrow, March 10, against Herkimer County Community College at 10 a.m. at Rock Valley College. For more information, please visit the Monroe Express Men's Basketball Schedule page. 


ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 36 teams competing across nine sports. There are 19 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, the Monroe College marching band, and the newly added esports program, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has 17 teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Express, please visit us at www.MonroeExpress.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Express), Twitter (@MonroeExpress), and Instagram (@MonroeExpress).