LEWISTON, NY – The comeback fell just inches short for the Iona Men's Basketball team on Friday night. The Niagara Purple Eagles defeated the Maroon & Gold 95-90 at the Gallagher Center, handing the Gaels their first loss of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference season.
 
Junior Asante Gist had a chance to tie the game with a three-pointer and just seconds remaining, but his effort fell just inches short. Iona had three players in score 20-plus points, but the Purple Eagles used 26 second chance points to defend their home court.

GAME SUMMARY

Iona trailed by as many as 16 with 8:16 remaining in the second half, the Gaels fought back and earned a chance to send the game into overtime. Junior Ben Perez hit one of his two three-point field goals to get the Maroon & Gold within eight with 6:40 on the clock. While Niagara's Greg Kuakumensah answered right away with a triple of his own, Iona saw the momentum beginning to tumble its way.
 
Junior E.J. Crawford hit a three with just under 4:30 remaining to once again get Iona within single-digits. And with under three minutes to go, senior Rickey McGill hit a trifecta from the left corner to cut the lead to six, 85-79. Trading free throws and buckets over the last two minutes, Crawford managed to score back-to-back buckets to get Iona within four, 91-87, with 29.7 seconds left.
 
Hope sprung for the Gaels as the forced a jump ball and gained possession with 22.5 on the clock. Niagara dashed damage away by forcing a turnover. Niagara rookie Marcus Hammond hit a pair of free throws to make it a six-point deficit for the Maroon & Gold. Gist hit a three to get within three and immediately the Gaels fouled Niagara's James Towns with 12 seconds left. He missed the first free throw, leading to the final possession for Iona that fell just short.
 
The contest was fast-paced from the get-go. Both teams began the game shooting 5-of-11 from the floor and McGill started red-hot scoring six points in the opening five minutes. The Gaels didn't commit their first turnover till 11:15 mark in the first, but the Purple Eagles always remained within striking distance with red-hot three-point shooting.
 
Niagara's Raheem Solomon scored a career-best 16 points in the first half. He hit three of his team's seven first half trifectas and also canonized a 13-4 Niagara run that put Iona behind 33-30 as the first half waned down. The Gaels lone field goal over the final 4:15 of the first half was Perez's buzzer beater from the left wing. The Purple Eagles led at halftime 45-38.
 
Solomon ended the game with 18 points. He led the Niagara bench which outscored the Iona subs in total, 47-6. Greg King had 10 off the bench and also had eight rebounds. The Maroon & Gold's six points off the bench were junior Isaiah Still's four points and Niksa Nikolic's two.

NOTABLE NUGGETS

• Gist's first start since the Providence contest on Dec. 15. Over the past four games off the bench he had been averaging 14 points in 26 minutes per contest. Was shooting 51.4% from the floor and 57.1% from beyond the arc. Against the Purple Eagles, he set a new Iona-best and tied his career-high with six assists.
• Crawford tied his season-best with 23 points on 10-for-15 shooting. His two other 23-point efforts came at Yale (Dec. 22) and against Fairfield (Jan. 5).
• Agee gathered his second straight double-double. He led the Gaels with 11 rebounds, all of which were defensive. He has four games with 20-plus points this season.
• McGill tied a career-high with five steals in addition to his 22 points and three assists.
• Iona's three offensive rebounds is its lowest total of the season. The previous low was four in a win against the Hartford Hawks (Nov. 21). Niagara's 18 offensive rebounds is a new opponent-high. Purple Eagle starting forward Dominic Rob had a team-best five offensive boards. Iona was outrebounded 51-29 overall.
• The Gaels assisted on 14 of its 35 made field goals. Their 35 field goals are a season-best. Iona attempted just 17 free throws after totaling 34 and 29, respectively, in its first two MAAC games against Monmouth and Fairfield.

UP NEXT

Iona's next game is on Sunday, Jan. 13 against Canisius at 2 p.m. The Maroon & Gold tip-off against the Golden Griffs on ESPN3.

MARK CALENDAR: IONA GOLF MAAC CHAMPIONSHIP RECOGNITION

The Iona College men's golf program will be honored for winning their fifth ever Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference at halftime of the men's basketball game on Friday, Jan. 24 against Rider University.  The opening tip is scheduled for 7 p.m.
 
This game against the Broncs has also been flexed to ESPNU.
 
Iona Golf supporters are invited to attend the game and Goal Club Reception following the game. For additional information, reach out to Sean Burke, Golf Coach at sburke@iona.edu or (914) 633-2071.

SOCIAL MEDIA

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