Montclair, NJ - The men's basketball team took on the Red Hawks of Montclair State on Sunday in a non-conference showdown. Despite outscoring their opponents in the second half of the game, a slow initial 20 minutes proved to be the Hawk's downfall as they were defeated by a score of 78-69. With the loss, the Hawks skid to 0-7.

Gerard Carty posted a season best 18 points on 9-14 shooting from the field and led two of his teammates in double figures. Matt Franks posted 12 points and was one rebound shy of a double-double, grabbing nine boards while Amer Lukac chipped in with 12 points as well.

The Hawks shot 43.3% from the field but struggled from behind the arc, connecting on just four of 18 attempts. However, they were impressive in the paint with more than half of their points, 39, coming from down low. However, they were on the short end of a 10 point rebound differential and allowed 19 second chance points.

In the opening act, three of the Hawk's four made field goals came from three-point land which enabled them to stay within striking distance of their counterparts. With just under seven minutes left to play in the first, Hunter hit a three minute skid that included three turnovers and missing on four attempts from the floor; three of which were from downtown, and fell victim to an 11-0 run. At the conclusion of the first, Montclair State held an 11 point advantage, 40-30.

The deficit grew to as much as 15, but the Purple and Gold came to life in the second, shooting an impressive 15-29 (51.7%) from the floor and outscoring the hosts by a point. However, it was not enough to dig out of the hole. The squad managed to chop away at the lead over the course of the half and pulled within six with just under four minutes remaining, but ran out of time.

The Hawks return to action on Friday evening, December 4 at 8:30pm when they host downtown rivals Baruch College in a CUNYAC matchup in front of the homecoming crowd at the Sportsplex.