RIVERDALE, N.Y. -- Manhattan freshman Rashad Green was one of three Jasper players to record 21 points and added 11 rebounds to help lead Manhattan to a 97-87 win over Canisius in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action Sunday afternoon in Riverdale, N.Y. The win improved Manhattan to 9-15 overall and 3-11 in MAAC play, while the Golden Griffins slipped to 4-20 overall and 2-12 in conference play with the loss, the team's third straight.
Frank Turner scored a team-high 17 points for Canisius, while fellow sophomore Jovan Robinson (pictured) added 16 points off the bench, with 15 of those points coming in the second half thanks to five 3-point baskets. Rishawn Johnson posted 13 points before fouling out of the contest and Pawel Malesa added 12 points to the eforrt. Greg Logins led all Canisius players with 10 rebounds, the sixth time in the last seven games he's been the squad's top rebounder.
The Jaspers led by as many as 24 in the second half at 66-42 with 14:06 to play before the Blue and Gold made a furious push to cut the margin to just six at 83-77 with 2:06 left on the clock. During that run, Canisius hit six 3-pointers, with Robinson draining five, and the team's defense held Manhattan to five field goals in the 12-minute span.
After Turner hit a jumper from the middle of the lane to make the score 83-77, Manhattan ripped off the game's next eight points to pull away, keyed by an offensive rebounds and a put back by Green. Andrew Gabriel and Darryl Crawford came off the bench to post 21 points apiece in the win for the Jaspers, while teammate Devon Austin chipped in 16.
"We put ourselves in a pretty deep hole early, but I thought our guys showed a lot of determination to keep fighting and work us back into the game," Canisius head coach Tom Parrotta said. "We worked very hard to get the game within six points. Manhattan made shots and took a substantial lead which was tough to overcome.."
The Griffs shot 46.9 percent from the field and 44 percent from 3-point range for the game after hitting 63.3 percent of its shots in the game's final 20 minutes, including 60 percent of its tries from behind the arc in the second half. Manhattan shot better than 50 percent in both halves for the first time this season and was charged with five turnovers.
Canisius will return to action Saturday, Feb. 16, when the team plays host to Saint Peter's on Hall of Fame Day. Tip-off in the Koessler Athletic Center is set for 2 p.m.
Game Notes: Manhattan sweeps the season-series from Canisius with the win for the first time in three years... The 57-point effort in the second half was Canisius' highest scoring period this season... Julius Coles added 10 points in the losing effort for the Griffs... Frank Turner has been Canisius' leading scorer 36 times in his first 55 career games as a Griff... Pawel Malesa needs 10 more 3-pointers for 100 in his career.
