Location: Koessler Athletic Center – Buffalo, N.Y.

Starters:  G - #1 Malcolm McMillan; G - #4 Keifer Douse, G - #5 Kassius Robertson, F - #22 Phil Valenti, C - #14 Kevin Bleeker

Game Recap
Iona sophomore Deyshonne Much scored a career-high 30 points on the power of eight 3-point field goals and senior guard A.J. English was good for 10 points, 14 assists and nine rebounds to help lead the visiting Gaels to an 84-66 win over Canisius Friday night in the Koessler Athletic Center. Iona improves to 13-9 overall and 10-3 in MAAC play with the victory, while the Golden Griffins slipped to 10-14 overall and 5-8 in conference action with their fourth-straight loss.

Much, a transfer from the University at Buffalo, went 10-for-15 from the field, 8-for-12 from 3-point range and 2-for-2 from the free-throw line for his 30 points in 30 minutes of game action. He also had three rebounds and two assists. English, who entered the game ranked No. 11 nationally in scoring average, was held to just 10 points, but set a new career-high with his 14 assists. Junior forward Jordan Washington added 13 points and six rebounds, while graduate transfer Aaron Rountree posted 12 points, four boards and three blocks off the bench for the Gaels, which ended the night shooting 50 percent from the field, 46.2 percent from 3-point land and 80 percent from the free-throw line.

For Canisius, senior Malcolm McMillan scored 18 points and dished out four assists in the loss, the team's fifth home MAAC defeat of the season. Sophomore Jermaine Crumpton came off the bench to chip in 18 points, four rebounds and two assists while junior Phil Valenti was good for 13 points and seven rebounds. Junior Keifer Douse scored a career-high 11 points for Canisius and senior Kevin Bleeker had a game-high 10 rebounds, but the Griffs shot just 36.5 percent from the field, 23.8 percent from behind the 3-point line and 75 percent from the charity stripe in the loss.

How It Happened:
• After a back-and-forth opening half to the first stanza, Canisius took a 21-20 lead with 10:39 left before intermission when McMillan scored a four-point play off a long 3-pointer and a made free-throw. That was the fourth four-point play of the year for McMillan, who was playing in his 115th career college game on Friday night.
• Iona pulled away for good moments later, as the Gaels used an 11-0 run over the span of 3:03 to turn a 23-21 Canisius lead into a 32-23 margin for Iona. In that run, Much drilled three 3-pointers, and Rountree added a lay-up off a pass from Much.
• Iona held a 43-29 lead at the break after the Gaels shot 56.7 percent from the field and 50 percent from 3-point land in the game's first 20 minutes. Of Iona's 17 field goals in the first half, eight were from behind the 3-point arc, with Much accounting for six of those eight first-half treys.
• In the second half, Iona led by as many as 16 points midway through the frame, but the Griffs were able to cut the Gaels' cushion to seven at 65-58 after McMillan hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 6:52 left on the clock. Canisius trailed 68-60 after a pair of made free-throws by McMillan with 6:14 showing on the clock, but the Gaels slammed the door shut with an 8-0 run over the next 1:28, capped by a bucket by Rountree off an assist from English.

Beyond the Box Score:
• Canisius outscored Iona 32-30 in the paint, but the Gaels scored 16 fast-break points against Canisius' six.
• Iona held a 39-35 margin on the glass, the 14th time this season Canisius has been out rebounded by its opponent. The Griffs are 3-11 in those 14 contests.
• Iona's 50 percent effort from the field for the game marks the third time in the last four contests where Canisius' opponent has shot 50 percent or better from the floor.
• The Griffs had 15 assists on 23 made field goals on Friday, with six different players recording multiple assists in the losing effort.

Quotes from Canisius coach Jim Baron
"Give Iona credit. They have a veteran team and they had other guys step up tonight. [Deyshonne] Much stepped up as a sophomore and he hit some big, big shots. He was obviously a big difference maker tonight."

"We told out guys how we wanted to play against them. We wanted to stay in front, but not help off the guys who can shoot the basketball because that's what they like to do. And that's exactly what they did."

"We got it close, but every time we did, we either fouled, or didn't get a rebound, or we just flat turned it over. You just can't do that against a good basketball team. A team like Iona really takes advantage when you make unforced errors."

"I thought we did a real good job of moving the ball against their zone in the first half, getting the open look off the extra pass, but at some point, we need to make shots against that zone. That's what they did to us. We'd guard them like crazy and then, bang, they'd hit a long one over the top of us and it forced us to switch up and go man-to-man."

"I want to thank the crowd tonight, especially the student body. There was a good energy level in the building. We just need to keep working, and getting better. This is what happens in league play. There's no time to feel sorry for yourself, you just need to regroup and keep moving forward."

Additional Game Notes:
• This was the 67th all-time meeting between the schools, with Iona holding a 37-30 lead in the series.
• Canisius' four-game home losing streak is the program's longest since 2011-12.
• Douse is averaging 6.0 points per game in the team's last five contests.
• Crumpton's 18 points gives him double-figures in the scoring column in 17 of the 21 games he's played this year.
• McMillan saw his string of 17-straight made free-throws come to an end in the loss on Friday, however he finished the night by going 7-for-8 from the stripe. He has made five or more free-throws in 12 games this seasons.
• Bleeker's 10 rebounds gives him double-digit boards in two games this season and four times in his career.

Up Next: Canisius will return to action Sunday, Feb. 7, when the team plays host to Rider, with game time set for 3 p.m. The game will mark the second meeting between the two schools in the last seven days, with the Broncs scoring a 79-68 win in New Jersey Jan. 31. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN3, and the radio call can be heard on Timeless WECK 1230-AM and 102.9-FM in Buffalo and through GoGriffs.com.