NEW ROCHELLE, NY – A season-best in points helped the Iona College men's basketball team upend NJIT by a final score of 94-80 earlier this evening. The Gaels move to 7-3 on the season behind the non-conference win inside the Hynes Center.

For the second straight game Jordan Washington led the Maroon & Gold in scoring with 27 points in just 18 minutes, aided by a season-best 11 made free throws. The Gaels converted 26-of-29 attempts from the charity stripe as a group to set a season-high for made free throws.

Also adding a season-high was Jon Severe with 21 points while Rickey McGill came away with a career-best four steals to go along with 10 points, five rebounds and four assists. Deyshonee Much picked up six steals for the third time in his career while adding six points, six rebounds and five assists. Sam Cassell Jr. matched Much for the team-high of five assists.

Damon Lynn led all players with 28 points for NJIT as seven of his eight made field goals came from beyond the arc. Lynn also totaled six assists in addition to Tim Coleman's double-double of 14 points and 15 rebounds.

After Anthony Tarke tied the game for the Highlanders at 17-17 less than nine minutes into the first period, Iona scored 11 unanswered points in just over a minute to jump ahead 28-17. The lead increased to as high as 16 points at 35-19 following a layup from Washington with 7:56 until halftime.

A 13-7 run from NJIT in the final seven minutes helped cut the deficit to 42-32 heading into the break as Lynn tossed in 10 points. Washington paced the Gaels with 13 points in the opening 20 minutes while Severe added 10 points.

Despite short runs from the Highlanders, Iona never allowed the lead to shrink below double-digits throughout the second half. The advantage grew as large as 20 points on back-to-back possessions with under six minutes left as Cassell Jr. and Much knocked down consecutive 3-pointers.

The two teams combined for 100 points in the second half as Iona added to its halftime advantage with a 52-48 margin in the final period to close out the 94-80 win. Washington notched 14 points in nine minutes during the half while McGill posted 10 and five rebounds. Lynn led all scorers in the final 20 minutes with 18 points, including five 3-pointers.

The Gaels enjoy a week off from competition before traveling to Las Vegas, NV for the South Point Holiday Classic. Iona is scheduled to face UC Santa Barbara at 3:15 pm Eastern Time on Wednesday, December 21 to start the two-day event.