BUFFALO, NY — The Iona University women's basketball team's comeback bid fell short on Thursday evening, falling to Canisius, 66-63 in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action at the Koessler Athletic Center.
The Maroon & Gold had three scorers finish in double figures against the Golden Griffins. Sophomore
Mya Zaccagnini led the Gaels with a career and game-high 16 points on the night. She scored 14 of her 16 points in the second half. Senior
Erin Leary totaled 15 points to go with two steals and two blocks on the defensive end. Sophomore
Zoey Ward registered 12 points and four rebounds.
THE RUNDOWN
The two teams traded blows in the opening minutes of action with Leary leading the charge for Iona with two baskets. From there Canisius created separation with a 9-0 run over the next four minutes to take an 11-4 lead. Leary kicked off a 5-1 closing stretch for Iona that was capped by a knock down triple from Ward to bring the score to 12-9 in favor of the home side after the opening 10 minutes.
Iona matched the Golden Griffins intensity to start the second quarter with both sides scoring two buckets each to start the frame. Sophomore
Emma Donnelly picked up the two baskets for the Gaels in the paint to make it a one-point game. Canisius went on a 7-2 run to create some separation as the quarter neared the halfway mark. Iona countered with an 8-2 run of its own with four scorers contributing buckets as a jumper from senior
Ella Fajardo tied the game at 23-23 with 3:31 left to go. It was a 6-0 closing run for Canisius to take a 29-23 lead into halftime.
The Golden Griffins used a 11-5 start to begin the third frame to take their largest lead of the game 40-28 with 5:41 left to play. Iona countered shortly thereafter chipping away at the Canisius lead in the final five plus minutes with a 12-6 closing stretch led by five points from Zaccagnini. A layup by junior
Ale Civera in the final minute capped the period and brought the deficit to six at 46-40.
A jumper from Leary opened a 7-3 starting run for Iona in the fourth quarter that was capped by two free throws from Zaccagnini to cut the deficit to two, 49-47 with 7:15 left to play. Canisius would stretch the lead back to six on a 6-2 run with 5:02 remaining. Iona used back-to-back threes from Ward and Donnelly to make it a one-point game with just under four minutes to go. A 5-0 spurt from the Golden Griffins forced Iona to call timeout with 2:12 remaining. Iona would battle back down the stretch, getting within one possession twice in the final minute on a layup from Zaccagnini with :29 left to play and a putback from Fajardo with 14 seconds left. Canisius was there to answer at the charity stripe. The Gaels had a look to tie with three seconds left but just missed off the mark to drop the 66-63 decision.
IONA PERFORMERS
- Zaccagnini bested her previous career-high of 14 points with a 5-of-10 evening including a 5-for-5 mark at the foul line to finish with 16 points. She posted double figures for the third time this season and chipped in two assists and two steals.
- Leary posted double figures for the third time in conference play, finishing with 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting. She added three rebounds, two assists, two steals and her 10th multi-block game with two blocks.
- Ward recorded 12 points for the second straight game and finished in double figures for the sixth time this season.
- Fajardo also finished the game with four rebounds and a team-high three assists and two steals to go with nine points.
THE OPPONENT
Shariah Gailes tied the game-high with 16 points to lead Canisius. Gailes went 8-of-10 from the foul line and grabbed a game-high five rebounds.
Jaela Johnson totaled 11 points for the Golden Griffins.
Mariam Sanogo finished the game with 10 points to go with four rebounds.
TEAM STATS
- Canisius shot 45.1% from the field while Iona shot 44.6% as a team.
- It was a tough night from beyond the arc as both teams shot 27.3% from distance. The Gaels made six triples while Canisius only made three.
- Iona was held to a season-low 25 rebounds as Canisius won the battle on the glass, 33-25.
- The Gaels forced 19 turnovers leading to 12 points while the Golden Griffins forced 15 turnovers leading to 18 points.
UP NEXT
The Gaels are back in action on Thursday, January 23 for Kids Day with an 11:00 a.m. tip off at the Hynes Athletic Center against Rider.
