ALBANY, NY – Breath. Everyone take a deep breath. In heart-wrenching and nausea inducing fashion, the No. 1 Iona College men's basketball program advanced to the 2019 MAAC Championship semifinals with a 73-71 win over No. 9 Saint Peter's.

GAME SUMMARY

Saint Peter's' All-MAAC performer Davauhnte Turner earned a trip to the free throw line and had a chance to either tie the game of give the Peacocks the lead with 2.0 seconds on the clock. Fortunate for the Gaels, Turner missed the front end of the one-and-one opportunity. Junior E.J. Crawford pulled down the crucial rebound and a jump ball was called with the possession arrow pointing fatefully towards the Maroon & Gold.
 
Iona led by as many as nine with 2:59 remaining in the second half. Saint Peter's didn't go away. It made four straight three-point field goals and forced the game to get within one with 35 seconds remaining. The Gaels maintained a lead during that surge courtesy of buckets by junior Tajuan Agee, senior Rickey McGill and Crawford.
 
Following Turner's fourth trifecta of the game, the Gaels had possession with 35 seconds left up 72-71 with a chance to increase its lead. However, a contested Crawford runner fell into Peacock arms, leading to the breath-holding final moments.
 
Iona's trio of All-MAAC performers combined to score 70 of Iona's 73 total points. Agee and Crawford each netted 26 points and McGill collected 18. They shot 24-for-44 from the floor. The rest of the Gaels shot 0-of-10. The remaining three points came from juniors Asante Gist and Ben Perez on the free throw line.
 
The Gaels shot 44.4% from the floor and 33.3% from beyond the arc. They made 79.2% from the free throw line. Saint Peter's began the game shooting lights out, and maintained it throughout the game shooting 56.5% from the field and 43.8% from deep.
 
Iona's defensive pressure increased during a crucial 10:21 stretch in the second. From the 13:44 to 2:59 mark, the Gaels went on a 23-9 run that gave themselves the 68-59 lead which almost slipped away. The Maroon & Gold forced 17 Saint Peter's turnovers in the game and had 14 points of the opportunities. Conversely, Iona committed just five turnovers in the contest.
 
With the win, the Gaels have advanced to the MAAC Championship semifinals in each of Head Coach Tim Cluess' years with the Maroon & Gold.

NOTABLE NUGGETS

• Saint Peter's out-rebounded Iona 32 to 18. Iona's 18 rebounds is a season-low this season. The previous low was 26 in a win against Hartford on Nov. 21.
• Friday's night win against the Peacocks is the Maroon & Gold's first win with the margin of victory being two points or less. The Gaels are 1-4 in such contests.
• The Gaels assisted on eight of its 24 made field goals. It is the Maroon & Gold's lowest assist total since Jan. 27 in a loss to the Fairfield Stags when they had just six dimes.
• Iona's five turnovers is its second lowest total of the season. It had just four miscues on Feb. 8 in a one-point loss to Quinnipiac.
• Agee has seven 20+ scoring games this season. Crawford has 15 such games, ranking second in the MAAC behind Quinnipiac Cameron Young.

UP NEXT

The top-seeded Iona Gaels will face the winner of the final quarterfinals contest between the No. 4 Rider Broncs & No. 5 Siena Saints. Interested fans can watch those two MAAC rivals clash at 9:30 p.m. on ESPN3.
 
Iona plays in the 2019 MAAC Championship semifinals on Sunday, Mar. 10 at 6 p.m. on ESPN3.

SOCIAL MEDIA

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