Men?s Basketball Practice Starts Friday Night

Men's Basketball 1/5/2009 5:00:00 AM Canisius College Athletics

Manhattan Storms Back to Drop Men's Basketball

Manhattan's Darryl Crawford hit a jumper from just outside the lane with 3.3 seconds left in regulation time to lift the visiting Jaspers to a 59-57 come-from-behind victory over Canisius College Monday night in the Koessler Athletic Center. The win snapped Manhattan's three-game losing streak and improved the team to 8-6 overall and 2-2 in MAAC play, while the Golden Griffins slipped to 5-9 overall and 0-4 in league play.

Crawford scored all four of his points in the game's final 43 seconds to help the Jaspers overcome a seven point deficit in the contest's closing 3:17. Canisius led 57-55 with 53 seconds to play before Crawford stripped the ball away from a Canisius player and raced in from the half court line to tie the game with 43 ticks left on the clock with a layup. After the Griffs failed to score on the ensuing possession, Manhattan grabbed the rebound and took its final timeout, where the team set up a play for the junior guard to drive down the right hand side of the lane, where he pulled up and hit nothing but net to give Manhattan its first lead since the 4:23 mark of the first half.

For Canisius, junior guard Frank Turner finished the night with 18 points and four assists, while sophomore Julius Coles added 11 points. Fellow sophomore Tomas Vazquez-Simmons was credited with seven points, 12 rebounds and eight blocks for the Griffs, which as a team set a school record for blocked shots in a game with 13. Greg Logins added eight points and three rebounds to the losing cause.

“This is a tough lesson to learn,” Canisius head coach Tom Parrotta said. “Our guys played their hearts out for 39 minutes, but we're still learning how to win. I take 100 percent of the responsibility for this. It's my job to put the kids in position to win.”

Canisius took a 26-25 lead into the halftime intermission and stretched its lead to 34-29 by scoring the first eight points of the second half. Manhattan was able to knot the game at 40-40 with 10:05 left to play before the Blue and Gold pushed the lead back to four after layups by Coles and Logins. Moments later, Canisius led 44-43 and pushed the margin to 53-45 with a 9-2 run over a span of 2:52, with Turner accounting for four of the team's nine points during the stretch.

The Griffs, who entered the game ranked No.1 in the MAAC in field goal percentage defense, held Manhattan to 33.3 percent from the field and forced 18 turnovers while shooting 42.6 percent from the floor and 40 percent from 3-point range. Senior Devon Austin had a team-high 13 points for Manhattan, with teammate Andrew Gabriel posting a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

Canisius will return to action Friday, Jan. 9, when the team travels to Iona. Tipoff in New Rochelle, N.Y., is set for 7:30 p.m.

Game Notes: Vazquez-Simmons' eight blocks matches a school record and his career-high... Those eight blocks by the sophomore forward also set a new program record for blocked shots by a Canisius player in the Koessler Athletic Center... Elton Frazier was credited with three blocks as well on the night for Canisius... Turner has led the team in scoring six times this season and 23 times in his career... Manhattan now leads the all-time series between the two schools by a 45-29 count.

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Players Mentioned

#15 Julius Coles: G; 6' 4"; Sophomore

#24 Elton Frazier: F; 6' 6"; Sophomore

#00 Greg Logins: F; 6' 7"; Sophomore

#2 Frank Turner: G; 5' 10"; Junior

#42 Tomas Vazquez-Simmons: F; 6' 7"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#15 Julius Coles
: 6' 4"; Sophomore
: G

#24 Elton Frazier
: 6' 6"; Sophomore
: F

#00 Greg Logins
: 6' 7"; Sophomore
: F

#2 Frank Turner
: 5' 10"; Junior
: G

#42 Tomas Vazquez-Simmons
: 6' 7"; Sophomore
: F