WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. – On the back of a stellar defensive effort, the Monmouth men's basketball team grinded out a victory over Princeton, 63-58, on Wednesday night inside the OceanFirst Bank Center.
 
The Hawks, who were led by Jason Rivera-Torres' third consecutive 20-point performance, maintained a narrow lead throughout the second half and used a strong defensive possession in the final minute to earn their third win in a row at home to begin the season.
 
With the game tied early, Monmouth went on a quick 7-0 spurt to go up by four, prompting a Princeton timeout. The Tigers scored 10 of the game's next 13 points coming out of the break to knot it up at 16 with nine minutes to play in the first half. Cornelius Robinson III scored six of the next 10 points for the Hawks, helping the home side build a seven point edge, 26-19.
 
After a three-minute scoring drought, Princeton hit a three to cut the lead to four. Rivera-Torres hit a midrange jumper on the Hawks' final possession of the first half, giving Monmouth a 31-27 edge after 20 minutes, capping off a half where it held the Tigers to just 40 percent from the field.
 
Princeton came out of the locker room on a 5-2 run to get back within one, but four straight from the Hawks extended the lead back to five, 37-32. The Tigers scored seven in a row to take the lead back, 39-37, with 13 minutes to play. Collins fed Dok Muordar on an alley-oop to bring Monmouth level, before Robinson III finished through contact to put the Hawks back in front at the under-12 timeout, 41-39.
 
After the Tigers tied it again at 42, Collins hit a three to cap a 5-0 spurt to force another Princeton timeout with under 10 minutes to go. Rivera-Torres took over for the Hawks after the break, scoring the team's next six points to maintain the team's five point edge. Justin Ray and Stefanos Spartalis made layups to extend the lead to nine, but the Tigers responded with five in a row to cut it back to four with 3:16 on the clock.
 
A Princeton layup at the 1:45 mark made it a one possession game, 58-55, but Robinson III hit a reverse layup as the shot clock expired on the ensuing possession to put Monmouth back up five. The visitors hit a three as the clock ticked under a minute before Collins went one-of-two from the free throw line, giving the Hawks a 61-58 edge with 30 seconds to play. Rivera-Torres sailed high to corral the rebound off a Tiger miss with eight seconds left and iced the game at the charity stripe, clinching Monmouth's first win over Princeton since 2021.

Notes

• Jason Rivera-Torres scored 20 points, scoring double figures for the seventh game this season and third contest in a row. He has 20 points in three straight games
• Jack Collins started his 105th career game tonight, one short of matching Corey Albano for 10th on the program's all-time starts list.
• Cornelius Robinson III scored 13 points and grabbed five rebounds off the bench. It is the third game this season he has reached double figures.
• Collins has hit a three pointer in seven straight games, his longest streak since connecting from deep in 14 straight games to finish the 2023-24 season.
• Justin Ray has at least one three pointer in eight of the team's nine games.
• Monmouth improved to 3-0 this season at home and 5-2 when leading at the half.
• The Hawks picked up their first win of the season when scoring less than 70 points
• Monmouth held Princeton to 43 percent from the field, the fifth time this season the Hawks have held their opponents under 45 percent.
• This is the first time this season Monmouth has held an opponent under 60 points.
• The Hawks forced 19 Princeton turnovers, the most giveaways by an opponent in a game this season.
• Monmouth beat Princeton for the first time since 2021.

 
Up Next
Monmouth will head to Atlanta for a Saturday tilt against ACC foe Georgia Tech. Tipoff is set for 12 p.m. on ACCNX.