NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, NY – Senior Mike Glover posted 27 points and junior Lamont Jones added 20 as the Iona College men’s basketball team handled Niagara 98-62 at the Gallagher Center. The 36-point win was the sixth-largest for the Gaels in their Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference history.
Iona (6-1, 2-0 MAAC) earned its sixth straight win, scoring 90 points for the fifth time in seven games. The Gaels shot 63.3% for the game including a remarkable 72.0% from the field in the second half. Iona’s all-around effort translated to the defensive end as well limiting Niagara to just 34.9% from the field. The Gaels out rebounded the Purple Eagles 39-25 and had 25 assists in the win.
The Maroon & Gold jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the first 93 seconds of the game and never looked back. Iona led 13-2 at the 13:59 mark of the first half after two Glover free throws. A three-point play by Glover at 11:44 put the Gaels ahead by double digits the rest of the way. The squad ended the half on a 10-0 run over the final 4:26 to double up the Purple Eagles 44-22 at halftime.
The second half began as the first ended as Iona extended its run to 15 straight points, leading 49-22 less than 90 seconds into the frame. Niagara ended a 6:29 scoring drought on a Joseph Thomas layup at 17:57. The Gaels cruised and led by 40 points after another Glover free throw at 9:51. Junior Ra’Shad James’ alley-oop from senior Trinity Fields at 1:25 and freshman Josh Gomez’ first collegiate field goal with 48 ticks remaining gave Iona its largest lead of 41 points.
Glover shot 7-for-11 from the field and 13-for-16 from the line to account for his 27 points. He added six rebounds in 29 minutes of play. Jones was 6-for-10 with four first half three-point field goals. He scored his 20 points in 23 minutes. Junior Taaj Ridley added 12 points, shooting 5-for-5 from the field. For the weekend, he was a perfect 11-for-11 on field goal attempts vs. Canisius and Niagara. Sophomore Sean Armand added 10 points in the final 11 minutes, hitting all four shot attempts including two long distance connections.
Senior Scott Machado had seven points, seven rebounds and 12 assists in the win. He took just four shots in the win. Machado’s 12 assists could have easily been more as several times in the game a pass attempt to Glover or Ridley resulted in a pair of free throws.
Freshman Juan’ya Green led is team with 25 points including 10 in the final eight minutes of the game with the Gaels ahead by 35 points. He also added five assists in the loss. Freshman Antoine Mason pitched in 12 rebounds for Niagara.
The Gaels return to non-conference play on the road on Wednesday when they take on Denver University for a 9:00 pm ET tip off.
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