#10 OCC Men's Basketball Falls to #2 Brookdale CC, 95-88 in NJCAA Region 19 Championship Quarterfinals

Toms River, NJ - #10 OCC Men's Basketball fell to #2 Brookdale Community College, 95-88, in the quarterfinal round of the NJCAA Region 19 North Atlantic District Championship tournament on Tuesday (3/1).

The Vikings took the court in Lincroft facing a similar set of circumstances to those faced in their previous upset victory versus #7 Middlesex College. They were visiting an opponent who had beaten them twice in the regular season, and they were in their house to try to snap that streak. Brookdale, ranked 5th in the nation, posted a regular season record of 24-3 (14-1 at home), and as that record implies, hadn't lost a game since January 19. As they'd done all season, the Vikings focused on what was in front of them, and attacked the Jersey Blues from the opening tip-off, compensating for a height advantage down low by perimeter shooting, taking a slight lead early but ending the half trailing by 6. Brookdale made adjustments at the half and extended their lead to double digits before Ocean roared back to close the gap, ultimately falling by 7.

Ocean sophomores Ethan Paul, Josh Kline, Bryan Potter and Dylan McCann ended their Viking careers with the well-rounded games they were known for, with guard/forward Paul leading Ocean scoring with 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists, guard Kline with 19 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals, and 5 assists, forward Potter with 13 points and 6 rebounds, and point guard McCann with 4 points, 4 assists, and 2 steals. Ocean freshman guard Dallas Weisse scored 12 points, pulled in 7 rebounds, and dished out 3 assists in the loss. 

Following the tough loss, OCC Men's Basketball Head Coach Patrick Boylan was above all, proud of his team: "Although we fell short of beating Brookdale, the effort and the resiliency shown was what this team was all about," remarked Boylan. "This was an outstanding group of young men, on and off the court, and I could not be more proud of them. The sophomores will be greatly missed, but I know they have bright futures ahead. I'm excited to see them continue their academic and athletic careers at the next level."