INDIANAPOLIS, IN – The Iona College men's basketball program saw its season come to an end on Saturday afternoon in the first round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament. No. 15 Iona battled but bowed out to No. 2 Alabama by a final score of 68-55 at legendary Hinkle Fieldhouse. The Gaels trailed by only one at halftime and had a lead in the second half before the Crimson Tide shifted the current and took control over the final 10 minutes. Alabama went up early 7-2 less than two minutes into the game. Withstanding the initial wave, Iona responded with a seven-point run of their own and took a 9-8 lead just prior to the first media timeout.

The Crimson Tide took a 17-11 lead with a seven-point run and the Gaels called a timeout with 13:43 remaining before halftime. The Maroon & Gold offense was on a scoreless drought from 15:23 till 11:47 until Asante Gist hit a three-pointer to bring the Gaels within three, 17-14. At the midway point of the second half Iona was trailing by two possessions and battling foul trouble. Both Berrick JeanLouis and Dylan van Eyck picked up their second personal fouls and had to sit down on the bench till intermission.

Trailing 22-14 with 9:06 on the clock, the Gaels got a spark and whipped themselves up a seven-point spurt to get back within one, with 5:24 remaining. Alabama rolled Iona's rock back up the mountain and went back up eight with 1:39 ticking on the clock. Rather than whimper into halftime, the Gael senior backcourt of Gist and Isaiah Ross combined to go on a seven-point spurt in 40 seconds, and at halftime the No. 15 Maroon & Gold trailed No. 2 Alabama by only one, 33-32.

Ross led Iona with 15 points at halftime. Gist had nine points in the first half. The Gaels defense kept them in contention in the first half. Alabama had 10 first half turnovers and the Crimson Tide shot 41.4% from the floor and 20.0% from deep. In limited minutes in the first half, Nelly Junior Joseph had three blocks. Alabama's leading scorer at the break was Herbert Jones with 12 points.

The Gaels and Crimson Tide traded seven lead changes in the first six minutes of the second half. Trading buckets back-and-forth, each team was trying to muster up the catalytic moment. Alabama found that moment at the 10:47 mark. Alex Reese hit a three-pointer from the top of the key to put his team ahead 45-42. It was the Crimson Tide's first three-pointer since 14:39 in the first half.

Gist hit a free basket on Iona's next possession; the wave of momentum had begun to swing against the Maroon & Gold. From 8:55 till 6:36 the Crimson Tide went on an 11-0 run and took a 58-46 lead. Alabama got another three-pointer from Reese and a pair of dunks from Herbert Jones and Juwan Gary to help push distance between itself and Iona.

The Gaels mustered one last push in the final three minutes to get the margin back down to single digits. Gist hit a long two-pointer with 2:03 left to make it 62-55. That was the last basket Iona would make in the game as Jahvon Quinerly and Jaden Shackelford iced it for the Crimson Tide.

Alabama was able to find the creases in the Iona defense in the second half. The Crimson Tide shot 54.2% from the floor over the final 20 minutes and hit three of their six shots from beyond the arc. The Gaels were 1-for-9 from deep in the second half. After forcing 10 turnovers in the first half, the Maroon & Gold only forced four in the second half.

Iona's 2020-21 season came to an end as a fifteen seed in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the hands of No. 2 Alabama by a final score of 68-55.

• Isaiah Ross scored a team-high 19 points on 8-for-18 shooting. He scored 15 of his points in the first half.
• Asante Gist scored 16 points and shot 6-for-16 in the game.
• Berrick JeanLouis and Nelly Junior Joseph each scored six points. JeanLouis finished with a career-best and game-high four blocks. Junior Joseph led the Maroon & Gold with six rebounds.
• Ryan Myers, Gist and Junior Joseph each distributed two assists.
• Alabama's leading scorer was Herbert Jones with 20 points on 8-for-15 shooting. Coming into the game he was averaging only 11.2 points per game.
• The Crimson Tide's weapon in the second half was Jahvon Quinerly. Probing the Gaels lanes, he scored 11 points in the game and was a perfect 3-for-3 from the floor in the second half.
• John Petty Jr. led Alabama in rebounding with seven boards. Keon Ellis had a team-high three assists for the Crimson Tide.

• Alabama out-rebounded Iona in the game, 42-26. The minus-16 rebounding margin is a season-low for Iona this season and it's the first time the Gaels lost the rebounding battle since February 13 against Manhattan.
• The Crimson Tide edged the Gaels in points off the bench, 23-8.
• The Maroon & Gold finished the season hitting below 30% from beyond the arc in three of their last four games.
• Iona is the first Crimson Tide opponent to hold Alabama below 70 points in the month of March.
• The Gaels held Alabama to five three-pointers. It is the Crimson Tide's lowest amount of field goals from long range since December 12 against Clemson.
• Iona is now 0-14 all-time in the NCAA Tournament after its 1980 appearance was vacated due to NCAA violations.
• Saturday's result is Iona's lowest margin of defeat in the NCAA Tournament since 2016 when the Maroon & Gold lost 94-81 to Iowa State.

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