THROGGS NECK, N.Y. – The Monroe College – Bronx men's basketball team could not sustain its strong start to the game on Saturday, December 2, and ended up on the wrong end of an 83-77 score to NJCAA Division II Orange County Community College. The contest took place at Monsignor Scanlan Gymnasium.
 
The Express (5-5) had an 11-point lead in the opening minute of the second half, but then Orange County (7-2) went on 13-2 blitz in a span of 3:31 to tie it up at 46 points apiece. Monroe answered back with an 11-4 run to take a 57-50 benefit with 12:09 remaining in regulation time. Then, the Colts took the game over by scoring 22 of the game's next 24 points over the course of 5:41 to take a 72-59 hold with 5:39 left to play. The Express inched closer but could not generate a consistent run the rest of the game and the Colts went on to earn the come-from-behind victory.
 
Leading the way for the Express during the afternoon was sophomore forward Abubakar Kromah who generated 19 points and 10 rebounds for the double-double, while dishing out six assists and forcing three steals. Second-year guard Vashaun Wallace netted 13 points, clutched four boards, dished out just as many assists, and collected two steals. 
 
Rookie center Rene Williams had a near double-double for Monroe with 10 points and eight rebounds. Freshman guard Steven McGriff provided 13 points and seven caroms off the bench, while sophomore guard Jaream Eason scored 10 points, secured two rebounds, and registered a pair of assists.
 
Both teams were neck and neck for most of the opening half but then the Express surged late in the stanza by going on an 11-2 run, highlighted by a triple and a jump shot by McGriff, to give the Blue and Gold a commanding 42-31 advantage with 1:05 left to play before the break. Orange County snapped the run with 36 seconds left, thanks to a successful jump shot by freshman guard Mat Shea to decrease Monroe's lead to 42-33 and that would be the score after 20 minutes of play.
 
Sophomore forward Anthony Bannister opened the scoring in the second half with a jumper outside the paint to pad Monroe's lead to 44-33, just 32 seconds into the stanza. However, the Colts responded by scoring 13 of the contest's next 15 points, capped off by a pair of free throws from sophomore guard Daniel Lans, to tie the game at 46 with 15:09 remaining in regulation time. The Colts raised their defensive intensity by forcing six turnovers during their 13-2 blitz.
 
Williams got the Express back on track with a jumper to allow the home team to regain the lead. On Monroe's next possession after getting a stop, Williams missed a shot but then grabbed his own offensive rebound and successfully tipped the ball into the basket to extend the Express' lead. 
 
After Orange pulled to within two, Kromah took a feed from Wallace and drained a triple to inflate Monroe's vantage to 53-48 with 13:33 to go. Later in the period, Eason buried a jumper to make the score 57-50 in favor of the Express with 12:09 remaining.
 
From that point on, Orange completely took over the game with its 22-2 run to jump out to a commanding 72-59 hold, seemingly in a blink of an eye. That put the game out of reach for Monroe.
 
After the Express fell behind, 81-69 with 1:52 left, they finished the contest strong with an 8-2 run. But Monroe - Bronx ran out of time and Orange County hung on for the comeback victory.
 
Leading the way for the Colts was Shea who scored a career-high 26 points, grabbed six rebounds, dished out three assists, and blocked a trio of shots.
 
Monroe will return to Monsignor Scanlan Gymnasium on Tuesday, December 5 for a key Region 15 contest against Hostos Community College. The action is scheduled to begin at 8:00 p.m.

ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 31 teams competing across nine sports. There are 21 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 and men's volleyball programs, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven 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/X (@MonroeExpress), Instagram (@MonroeExpress), and Threads (@MonroeExpress).