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Box Score

Iona Iona 6-9,5-6 MAAC

Saint Peter's SP 12-14,10-9 MAAC

Iona Iona

6-9,5-6 MAAC

Final

Mar. 11, 2021

Saint Peter's SP

12-14,10-9 MAAC

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	3	4	F
Iona Iona	6	18	5	21	50
Saint Peter's SP	10	9	24	18	61

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | 3/11/2021 4:56:00 PM | Jack Clark

No. 6 Iona WBB Eliminated in Quarterfinals by No. 3 Saint Peter's

ATLANTIC CITY, NJ – The Iona College women's basketball team lost in the quarterfinals of the 2021 Hercules Tires MAAC Basketball Championship to No. 3 Saint Peter's on Thursday.

GAME SUMMARY

Thursday's game began with a furious pace of play, resulting in poor shooting for both sides in the opening stanza. The two sides were a combined 2-23 from the field by the time the first media timeout of the day rolled around at the 3:54 mark. Iona and Saint Peter's turned it over four times apiece in the first six minutes. The Peacocks had already tossed up 15 shot attempts thanks to 15 rebounds, nine of which were on the offensive glass. Despite the sloppiness and the rebounding efforts by the Peacocks, Iona only trailed by four points.

Juana Camilion converted on a pair of free throw to get Iona on the board with 3:19 to play in the first quarter. Saint Peter's maintained its lead for the quarter, taking a 10-6 advantage into the second.

The Maroon & Gold snagged their first lead of the day after scoring the first nine points of the second frame. The Gaels got buckets from Ketsia Athias, Lucia Becerra Perez, Jenae Dublin and Olivia Vezaldenos during the 9-0 run. Becerra Perez's drive to her right and finish inside gave Iona its first lead of the day.

The Gaels held the Peacocks scoreless (0-10 FG) through five-plus minutes to begin the period before Tyara McQueen connected on a triple out of the media timeout. Saint Peter's made it a one-possession game three times down the stretch in the first half, but Iona's offense always had an answer to pad the lead. Athias scored twice in the final minute, turning a one-point lead into a five-point advantage for the Gaels heading into the half.

Saint Peter's came out of the locker room with a purpose. The Peacocks used a 12-0 spurt to start the second half and re-take the lead, 31-24. Iona stopped the run momentarily with a called timeout. Camilion ended it, officially, with a basket inside before the second media timeout of the quarter. Iona saw its five-point halftime lead evaporate in the first two-and-a-half minutes of the third quarter and found themselves down by seven after Camilion's layup.

Another basket by Camilion made it 31-28, but it would be Iona's final field goal of the period. Saint Peter's used another solid run to extend its lead to 14 points, 43-29, heading into the final frame. All in all, the Peacocks outscored the Gaels 24-5 in the third quarter.

Iona could not chip away at the double-digit deficit it was facing. The Gaels saw the Peacocks lead grow to 19 points, 54-35, with four minutes to play in the game. Iona did not give in however. They battled back after Saint Peter's had settled into the largest lead of the afternoon. Iona scored nine unanswered points in a 63-second span to make it 56-48 with 40 seconds to play. Unfortunately for the Maroon & Gold, the Peacocks were excellent from the line all day and iced the game at the charity stripe.

STATISTICAL LEADERS

Camilion and Binta Salawu finished with a game-high 14 points. Camilion added six rebounds, two assists and three steals. Salawu corralled eight rebounds herself.
Sky Castro had a monster game on the glass, pulling down 17 rebounds. 10 of Castro's 17 rebounds were on the offensive end of the floor. For Iona, Athias and Dublin matched Camilion's effort on the boards, securing six rebounds.
Becerra Perez doled out a game-high four assists.
Dublin swatted a game-high three shots. Athias added two blocks as well.

NOTABLE NUGGETS

Iona (35%) shot a better percentage from the field than Saint Peter's (28%), but the Peacocks held a huge advantage in free throws made (22-3).
Saint Peter's finished with 50 rebounds, the most by an Iona opponent this season. The Gaels allowed 18 second-chance points, thanks to 27 offensive rebounds for the Peacocks.
Sky Castro's 17 rebounds were the most by an Iona opponent, individually, this season.
Camilion (14 points) and Athias (10 points) were the two Gaels to finish with double-figure point totals. It marked the fifth straight game that Camilion scored 10+ points and it was the third double-digit effort for Athias this year.
The two sides shot a combined 6-32 from beyond the three-point arc, each making three shots apiece. Entering play, the Peacocks had allowed opponents to shoot 31% from three-point range. Iona's three trifectas made matched a season low.
Iona out-did Saint Peter's in the assist department, 13-8. The Gaels were 5-2 this season in games they finished with more helpers than their opponent and 70-17 in such games during head coach Billi Chambers' tenure.
The Maroon & Gold committed 20 turnovers, allowing the Peacocks to score 23 points via takeaways.