WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. – Monmouth took control of the game with a 24-8 run over the first 10 minutes of the second half and defeated Colgate 77-66 Sunday afternoon at OceanFirst Bank Center.
 
The game was tied 36-36 at the intermission. Tucker Richardson connected on four 3-balls, including three straight late in the half, to bring the score level after 20 minutes. But Colgate missed six of its first seven shots of the second half, while Monmouth scored the first seven points and never looked back.
 
Monmouth's lead grew to as many as 19 at 68-49. The Raiders twice trimmed the deficit to 10 on a layup by Sam Thomson and 3-pointer by Nicolas Louis-Jacques, but that's as close as they would get. Colgate was never within single-digits after the slow start to the second half.
 
Richardson scored 14 points in the first half and finished with 17 to lead the Raiders. Jack Ferguson had 11 and a trio of players finished with nine points, including Louis-Jacques, who set a career-high behind three 3-pointers.

Colgate (4-8) shot just 36% (12-of-33) in the second half and 42% (25-of-60) for the game. After connecting on 8-of-12 from distance in the opening 20 minutes, the Raiders were 5-of-14 in the second half to finish with a 50% clip (13-of-26). Perimeter shooting was a highlight but Colgate's 11-for-28 mark on layups hampered the momentum all afternoon. 
 
Ferguson got the Raiders going with a corner 3-pointer and Colgate led 5-4 after a jumper from Richardson but four turnovers over a four-minute span led to an 8-0 Monmouth run and 15-7 deficit at the first media timeout.
 
After the Hawks knocked down 7 of their first 10 shots to build a 19-12 lead, a steal on defense and then an and-one on the offensive end by Keegan Records turned into a short burst for the Raiders. Ferguson swished another trey from the top of the key to close the gap to 19-16 midway through the stanza.  
 
Louis-Jacques joined the perimeter shooting and made it 24-20 with his first points of the game. Hard post work from Thomson withstood back-to-back Monmouth treys and a driving layup by Ferguson snapped a three-minute scoring drought for both teams to make it 30-24 with 3:39 left.
 
The final three minutes of the half belonged to Richardson who caught fire from the perimeter. The senior guard buried three 3-pointers on three straight possessions and carried Colgate out front 36-34 late in the half. Monmouth got off the final basket in the closing seconds and it was tied 36-36 at the break.
 
The Hawks (10-2) took control with a 13-4 run to start the second half. Ryan Moffatt had all four of Colgate's points during that stretch but a 1-of-7 start from the field turned into a double-digit deficit the rest of the way.
 
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Matt Langel
 
"Monmouth is a good team. They execute well and have defined roles with a great deal of experience. Obviously we're a bit banged up but that's part of sports. We made shots in the first half to keep us in it. Turnovers were crucial. At halftime we talked about preventing the turnovers and then in the first three minutes of the second half we gave up three more for uncontested baskets. When we turn the ball over 17 times no matter who we're playing it's going to be hard to win. I expect our guys to learn from this and move forward. We have another good team to play on Wednesday. We'll have our hands full with the circumstances but we have a chance to play."
 
UP NEXT
Colgate closes out non-conference action Wednesday, Dec. 22, when the Raiders head to Vermont for a 2 p.m. tipoff against the Catamounts.