LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. – Host Rider University used a 15-2 run in the first 4:35 of the second half and the Broncs' defense forced Canisius to turn the ball over a season-high 19 times en route to a 59-46 victory Saturday night in Alumni Gymnasium. The win improved Rider to 13-8 overall and 7-3 in MAAC play while the loss ended the Golden Griffins' three-game winning streak and dropped the Blue and Gold to 11-8 overall and 6-4 in league action.
For Canisius, sophomore Zach Lewis scored a game-high 14 points in the loss, as the Griffs scored the fewest points in a game since Jan. 3, 2013. Redshirt-freshman Kassius Robertson scored nine points to go with six rebounds and sophomore Phil Valenti added seven points to the losing effort for Canisius, as the Griffs ended the contest shooting 29.5 percent from the floor, 19 percent from 3-point land and 64 percent from the free-throw line.
"Rider is a good, athletic team, and they did enough to win tonight," Canisius head coach Jim Baron said. "We didn't help ourselves much, shooting as poorly as we did all night. And we turned it over way too much. I thought there were times we didn't play with confidence on offense, and when you do that, you're going to make mistakes and give the ball away and that's what we did tonight."
Rider led 22-16 at the halftime intermission after Canisius shot just 33.3 percent from the field in the game's opening 20 minutes. At the start of the second half, Rider scored the first nine points to jump out to a 31-16 lead with 17:19 left in the contest. After a pair of made free-throws by junior Jamal Reynolds made the score 31-18 in favor of the Broncs, Rider scored six-straight points to take a 37-18 lead with 15:25 left to play, capped by a traditional 3-point play by Rider center Matt Lopez.
Canisius was able to whittle Rider's lead to 11 points at 41-30 with 8:30 left on the clock after Valenti posted a traditional 3-point play of his own, but Rider answered with a 3-point field goal from Jimmie Taylor with 8:18 left to play to drive the lead back to 14 at 44-30. That would end up being Rider's last made field goal of the night, as the Broncs sealed the win by scoring their final 15 points at the free-throw line.
Four Rider players scored in double-figures in the win, led by Lopez and his team-high 12 points. He also added eight rebounds in the victory. The Broncs shot just 37.2 percent from the floor and 23.5 percent from 3-point land in the win, but turned Canisius' 19 turnovers into 28 points, while holding an 18-12 advantage on points scored in the paint.
Canisius will return to action Friday, Jan. 30, when the team plays host to Quinnipiac. Game time in the Koessler Athletic Center is set for 7 p.m.
Game Notes: This was the 41st all-time meeting between Canisius and Rider, with the Broncs holding a 31-10 lead in the series… The 46 points are the fewest for Canisius since Jan. 3, 2013, when the team lost at home to Fairfield by the score of 66-45… Canisius is now 3-16 all-time on the road against Rider… Freshman Jan Grzelinski had a team-high four assists for Canisius, but the Griffs were credited with a season-low seven assists as a team…  Lewis scored in double-figures for the 27th time in his career… Robertson matched his career high with the six rebounds… The Canisius defense failed to block a shot for the first time this season.
