ATLANTIC CITY, NJ - The Iona College women's basketball team took down No. 9 Rider, 74-58, in the Opening Round of the 2022 Hercules Tires MAAC Basketball Championship on Tuesday morning. All-MAAC Second Teamer
Juana Camilion poured in a game-high 21 points, adding seven rebounds, seven assists and four steals in Iona's first MAAC Tournament victory since 2019.
Iona jumped out to an early 5-3 advantage in the opening minute of action in the early morning at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall. Rider responded with three straight baskets, two of which were Jessika Schiffer trifectas. The Broncs wound up scoring 13 of the next 15 points after the Gaels had grabbed the early 5-3 advantage.
The script was flipped from that point on. The Gaels went on a 23-7 run that spanned 11 minutes, turning a nine-point deficit into a 10-point lead with three minutes remaining in the first half. The Gaels hit five shots from beyond the arc during the course of the aforementioned run, three came from Shyan Mwai. Schiffer cut the Iona lead down to seven points with a triple of her own, but Mwai answered with her fourth three-pointer of the quarter to push the lead back to double figures with two minutes to play. The Maroon & Gold entered the halftime break with a 40-28 lead, the largest of the afternoon for either side.
The foot never came off the pedal for the Gaels, expanding their lead to 18 points after a pair of free throws from Camilion with less than two minutes in the third quarter. Five straight points by Rider to end the frame, plus the opening basket in the fourth quarter made it a 10-point game once more, but not for long. Iona took control once more and never let Rider get any closer than 10 points, dominating on both sides of the ball to earn the program's first postseason victory in Atlantic City and set up a date with the 2022 Regular Season Champion Fairfield Stags tomorrow afternoon.
NOTABLE NUGGETS
- Camilion's game-high 21 points marked the second-best postseason scoring output of her career. She scored 26 points in Iona's upset win over Siena in her freshman season. Camilion stuffed the stat sheet today with seven rebounds, seven assists and four steals.
- Athias pulled down a career-best 16 rebounds in the victory. She chipped in 12 points to notch her sixth double-double of the season. Nine of Athias' 16 rebounds came on the offensive glass.
- Mwai lit it up from beyond the three-point arc, knocking down four of her six attempts from downtown. Her 16 points and six field goals matched a season best.
- Thoranna Hodge-Carr set a new career high with seven assists. The Gaels matched their season high as a team with 20 dimes.
- Iona scored a season-high 74 points, eclipsing 70 points as a team for the first time since December 22, 2020 against Sacred Heart. The Gaels' 29 field goals matched a season best effort as well.
- The Maroon & Gold entered tournament play averaging five three-pointers made per game. The Gaels buried five in the second quarter alone and seven total in the first half. Iona's 11 threes made matched a season best for as a unit.
- The Gaels earned its first MAAC Tournament win since March 7, 2019 when Iona defeated Siena at the Times Union Center.
- Iona's win over Rider is the third this season and fifth straight overall. The Gaels are now 3-1 against the Broncs at the MAAC Championships and 32-24 all time.
UP NEXT
No. 8 Iona advances to face No. 1 Fairfield on Wednesday, March 9 at 1 p.m. in the quarterfinal round. Stay up to date with everything Iona basketball related by visiting our Championship Central page.
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