NEW ROCHELLE, NY – Despite a 51-day layoff, the Iona College men's basketball program extended its winning streak to four games with an 85-67 win over the Manhattan Jaspers. The Gaels defended home court in the Hynes Center and improved to 4-1 in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play behind strong games from junior
Berrick JeanLouis and freshman
Ryan Myers off the bench.
GAME SUMMARY
It did not take very long for the Maroon & Gold to work off the rust. The Gaels and Jaspers traded the lead for the first four minutes but a pair of back-to-back threes by JeanLouis and
Isaiah Ross put Iona ahead early, 10-7. The Gaels would not trail for the remainder of the game.
Iona got a surprise when
Osborn Shema entered the game for his first minutes as a Gael at the 12:55 mark. The difference was two possessions between the MAAC rivals through the under 12 and under eight media timeouts. Iona took firm command of the game with 6:42 left in the first half.
Nelly Junior Joseph turned on the jets with an and-one bucket that put his team ahead by eight, 29-21. It sparked an eight-point run and with 4:29 on the clock before intermission, the Maroon & Gold led Manhattan 36-21.
The Gaels made their final six shots from the floor to close out the first half. They entered the locker room at the break ahead, 49-29. Six different Gaels had at least one assist in the opening frame. Junior Joseph led Maroon & Gold with 12 points in the first half. Manhattan's Elijah Buchanan scored 11 points in the opening frame.
Iona started out the second half like it ended the first half. JeanLouis had a steal and score, as well as a three-pointer, to help the Gaels built its largest lead of the game, 57-29. But credit the Jaspers, they did not go down quietly into the night. Manhattan used an 8-0 run to get back within 20. It got as close as 14 points when Buchanan hit a jumper to make the score 65-51. That'd be the last basket netted by Manhattan's scoring leader as he fouled of the game with 9:31 remaining. Upon his exit, Iona's lead quickly vaulted back up to 75-55 with exactly six minutes to go.
Ryan Myers played a large part in the cooling of Manhattan's momentum with seven points in a sprint-like nine minutes of action in the second half. He and Gist tag-teamed for 11 straight points when the Maroon & Gold most needed it. The margin never got closer than 14 points over the final stretch of the game. JeanLouis put a stamp on the contest with a fast break dunk to send the Jaspers packing by a final score of 85-67.
STATISTICAL LEADERS
- Berrick JeanLouis led all scorers with a career-high 16 points while also gathering a team-high eight rebounds. JeanLouis shot 6-for-11 from the floor and 3-of-4 from deep.
- Ryan Myers and Asante Gist each had 13 points. They combined to shoot 7-for-18 from the floor and 9-for-11 from the free throw line. Gist had a team-high five assists.
- Dwayne Koroma and Nelly Junior Joseph each fouled out of the game, but they combined for 13 rebounds before exiting. Junior Joseph had 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting.
- Isaiah Ross scored 11 points in limited minutes due to foul trouble.
- Manhattan's leading scorer was Buchanan with 15 points. Warren Williams and Samba Diallo each had eight rebounds.
NOTABLE NUGGETS
- Friday night's game was Iona's first game since December 23 against Coppin State. The program did not play a competitive basketball game for 51 days, which was the longest layoff of any NCAA Division I basketball team this season.
- Iona shot an even 50.0% from the floor and 47.6% from beyond the arc. It shot 61.54% from the floor in the first half and 58.33% from deep.
- Parker Weiss scored his first three-pointer of his Maroon & Gold career in the first half. The sophomore walk-on has appeared in six games this season after appearing in five games all of last season.
- Osborn Shema saw his first minutes as a Gael against the Jaspers. He played 12 minutes and collected two points and two rebounds. Colton Cashaw also saw his first action of the 2020-21 campaign. The senior guard appeared in the second half and played five minutes.
- There was a total of 49 fouls in the game. Iona was called for 26 fouls in the game; 17 of which came in the second half. It is the second time this season an Iona game came up just shy of the half-century mark in terms of total fouls; Iona and Rider also had 49 fouls on December 19.
- Iona attempted a season-high 30 free throw attempts and made a season-high 23.
- Iona's 49 points in the first half is its highest first half total this season and tied for best half; the Gaels also had 49 points in the second half against Coppin State. With 51 days in between, the Gaels scored 118 points in back-to-back halves across the two games.
AROUND THE MAAC
- Canisius College overcame a 44-day layoff and 15-point deficit on way to earning a 74-67 win on the road at Quinnipiac. The Golden Griffins shot 51.5% from the floor on way to their third straight win.
UP NEXT
Iona and Manhattan square off again tomorrow, Saturday, February 13. Tip-off from the Hynes Center is at 5 P.M. The game is being aired on ESPN+. Fans can also follow along via live stats and social media.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Be sure to follow Iona College athletics on all social media platforms:
ICGaels: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube (Email Updates)
Iona Men's Basketball: Twitter, Facebook. Instagram and YouTube (Email Updates)
