ATHENS, OH – The Iona College men's basketball program fell on the road for the second straight game on Tuesday night. Ohio took down the Gaels, 89-65. It is the first time the Maroon & Gold have lost to the Bobcats in the all-time series history.

GAME SUMMARY

There were seven lead changes and five ties in the first half. The Bobcats led by as many as seven and Iona held its largest lead of five.
 
Iona trailed 43-37 at halftime. 11 first half Gael turnovers resulted in 13 points for Ohio. The discrepancy in style of play was evident in the paint. The Bobcats had 26 first half points between the blocks compared to 12 for the Maroon & Gold.
 
Junior Tajuan Agee had 10 points in the first half on 4-of-8 shooting. Senior Rickey McGill played all 20 minutes in the opening frame and ended with 11 points, four rebounds and four assists. He also had nine steals.

The Gaels shot 8-for-19 (42.1%) from three-point range in the first half. Eight if its first 14 field goals came from deep.
 
Ohio opened the second half on an 8-3 run, including keeping the Gaels scoreless for a three-minute stretch which resulted in a 51-40 lead with 14:17 left. The run was accented by a dunk from Tayvlon Kirk and forced head coach Tim Cluess to call timeout.
 
Following the timeout, Iona began to attack the rim with more frequently. After having just two free throws in the first half, the Gaels had six in the first six minutes of the second half. However, the rest of the offense was struggling to get going. Iona missed its first five three-pointers in the second half and made just 2-of-9 shots in the first eight minutes.
 
The shooting woes continued in the second half. Iona shot 7-for-29 (24.1%) from the floor and 1-for-14 (7.1%) from deep. Over a six-minute stretch, the Gaels missed 11 straight shots while Ohio hit 6-for-10. Agee had 13 of the Maroon & Gold's 28 points in the second half. He was the only played to shoot over 50% from the floor in the frame.
 

NOTABLE NUGGETS

• Iona scored a season-low 28 points in the second half. The previous low was 39 at New Mexico (Nov. 13). The Gaels also shot season-worst 24.1% in the second half and 32.3% for the entire game.
• Ohio outrebounded the Gaels 53-39. It's the highest total that Iona has allowed the season with the previous being 41 against the Lobos.
• The Gaels tied a season-high with 16 assists on its season-low 21 made field goals. McGill led the Gaels with five helpers. Junior Asante Gist set a new Iona-high with four assists.
• Agee scored a career-best 23 points on 8-14 shooting. McGill had a season-best 16 points.
• Junior E.J. Crawford had a season-low four points but led the Maroon & Gold with a career-high nine rebounds.
• Freshman Payton Hudson played a career-high 13 minutes and had his first career assist.

UP NEXT

The Maroon & Gold's next game is against VCU in Richmond, VA on Saturday, Dec. 1. Tip-off from the E.J. Ward Arena is set for 7 p.m. and the game is being broadcasted on ESPN+.

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