LYNCHBURG, VA - Senior Alejo Rodriguez and juniors Mike Glover and Scott Machado each recorded double-doubles in leading the Iona College men's basketball team defeated Liberty 77-57 in a Sears Bracketbusters matchup at the Vines Center. After 280 games transpired after the last time that the Gaels (18-10) had three-double doubles in a game prior to this season, the squad has accomplished the feat twice in its last five games.

For the fifth straight game during its five-game winning streak, Iona jumped out to a quick lead on its opponent. Sophomore Kyle Smyth's first of five three-pointers on the day gave Iona a 15-7 advantage at the 13:28 mark. After Flames (19-10) junior David Minaya's jumper got the home team to within six points a possession later, the Gaels scored 11 straight points, taking a 26-9 advantage on an Rodriguez layup with 7:43 to play. Liberty never got within 10 points the rest of the way after Iona's run. Iona ended the half on a 29-9 run over the final 12:57 of the frame and took a 44-18 advantage into the break.

Smyth led Iona with 17 points, shooting 6-for-10 from the field with his five trifectas. His lone assist came on a nifty alley-oop pass from the top of the key to Glover in the first half. Rodriguez shot 7-for-7 from the field with four dunks on assists from Machado. He had 14 points and 11 rebounds in his second double-double of the year. Glover had his team-leading 15th double-double of the year with 12 points and 11 boards and Machado posted his ninth of the year with 10 points and 11 assists converting two free throws with 1:58 remaining to reach the double-digit point mark. Junior Trinity Fields and freshman Sean Armand tallied eight points a piece.

Junior Jesse Sanders was the Flames' leading scorer with 13 points. Sophomore Evan Gordon added 12 points while Minaya scored 10 off the bench. Junior John Brown had nine points and a team leading 12 boards.

The Gaels out shot 54.4% from the field and 50.0% from behind the arc converting 11-of-22 attempts. Iona also out rebounded Liberty 38-26 in the win.

The Maroon & Gold returns to MAAC play for the final weekend of the regular season when they travel to Jersey City, NJ to face Saint Peter's on Friday (Feb. 25). With an 11-5 conference record, the Gaels are tied with the Peacocks and Rider for second place. Iona controls its own destiny for seeding in the MAAC Championship and with two wins they will earn the No. 2 seed.

Score by Periods                1st  2nd   Total
Iona College..................   44   33  -   77
Liberty.......................   18   39  -   57