Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

Canisius University Athletics

#Griffs The Official Home of the Canisius University Golden Griffins | #Griffs
Jibreel Faulkner
Andy Mead/YCJ
92
Winner Canisius CAN 3-6
91
Elon ELON 3-8
Winner
Canisius CAN
3-6
92
Final
91
Elon ELON
3-8
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Canisius CAN 38 54 92
Elon ELON 44 47 91

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Strong Second Half Leads Men’s Basketball Over Elon

Game Recap
Five Canisius players scored in double-figures, led by sophomore Takal Molson and his team-high 20 points, and the Golden Griffins scored 54 points in the game's second half en route to a 92-91 win at Elon Sunday afternoon in non-conference action. The win moves Canisius to 3-6 on the season, while the Phoenix dropped to 3-8 with the loss.
 
Molson scored 14 of his team-high 20 points in the second half, as Canisius shot 51.6 percent from the field and 43.8 percent from 3-point land after intermission, with the Blue and Gold draining 7-of-16 shots from behind the arc in the game's final 20 minutes. Senior Jibreel Faulkner scored a career-high 16 points to go with a career-best eight rebounds in the victory, and sophomore Scott Hitchon was also good for 16 points, which is his new career high. Junior Malik Johnson added 12 points and freshman Jordan Henderson chipped in 10 points as Canisius saw five players score in double-figures for the first time since the team's 2017-18 season finale win over Marist in the Koessler Athletic Center Feb. 25, 2018.
 
Elon also had five players score in double-figures on Sunday, led by Steven Santa Ana's game-high 25 points. The Phoenix, who entered the game ranked 12th nationally in 3-point field goal makes per game, drilled 15 3-point baskets in the contest, but Canisius used a 32-16 advantage in points scored in the paint to help earn the road win, the team's second of the season.
 
Elon came out of the gate to start the game on fire, and led the Griffs 21-10 just 4:52 into the contest after the Phoenix hit seven of their first eight shots from the field, including three-straight 3-pointers. Canisius rallied and eventually took its first lead of the game at 33-32 thanks to a 14-3 run over the span of 3:52, with Hitchon accounting for seven of the Blue and Gold's 14 points in the run. However, Elon answered back and took a 44-38 lead into the locker room at halftime, as the Phoenix outscored the Blue and Gold 12-5 in the closing 4:31 of the opening frame.
 
Elon's lead ballooned to as many as 11 points at 54-43 just 2:22 into the second half, but from there, Canisius used an 18-1 run over the game's next 4:43 to take a 61-55 advantage with 12:13 left in the ball game. In that run, Johnson scored seven points for the Griffs, including the team's first four-point play of the season after he hit a corner 3-pointer and the ensuing free-throw shot after he was fouled. Henderson scored four points during the run as well, and the freshman from Cincinnati, Ohio capped that spurt by grabbing an offensive rebound and putting the ball back in the hoop for the team's largest lead to that point of the game.
 
With less than 10 minutes left to play, 3-point field goals by senior Jonathan Sanks and Faulker pushed the Griffs' lead to a dozen at 74-62. Canisius led 88-81 with 48 seconds left to play, but two 3-point field goals from Elon in the span of 18 seconds trimmed the Griffs' margin to two points at 89-87. Canisius was able to seal the win with three makes at the free-throw line in the game's final 8.1 seconds, capped by Molson, who hit a pair at the charity stripe with 3.8 seconds showing on the clock.  
 
Head Coach Reggie Witherspoon's Postgame Comments
"I told the guys after the game, games are never easy, but they become easier if you play for your teammates. A sign of that is 18 assists and just nine turnovers, and we only had three turnovers in the second half. I thought we did a better job of rebounding the basketball in the second half and that allowed us to get out in transition and that forced them to have to guard us."
 
"I thought we got some good energy from our starters today, but we made some substitutions early and our bench really helped us pick up the intensity level after the first five minutes or so. We've been on a bumpy road here early in the season, and we're playing a lot of guys who are young and getting settled in their new roles, but I'm proud of the effort we got from everyone today. Elon is a team that can really shoot it, so for us to come here to their place and get a win, that's a step in the right direction for sure."
 
Game Notes
• This was the fourth all-time meeting between these two programs. Canisius has won all four games.
• The Griffs improved to 32-12 since the 2012-13 in games played in the month of December. Under Witherspoon, the team is 13-4 in the final month of the calendar year, with 11 of those wins coming in non-league play.
• The 92 points on Sunday are a season-high for the Blue and Gold. Canisius is 24-6 under Witherspoon when scoring 80-plus points in a game.
• Canisius made a season-high 12 3-pointers in the win. Sunday marks the 67th time since 2012-13 where the team has hit 10-or more treys in a contest.
• For the game, the Griffs shot a season-high 50.8 percent from the field. Canisius is 16-3 under Witherspoon when shooting 50 percent or better from the floor in a game.
• Canisius ended the game with 32 points off the bench, the most for the team this season.
• Sunday was the third 20-point game of the season for Molson, who has now scored in double-figures in 12-straight contests, dating back to last year.
• Johnson's five assists are a season-high for the junior. He now has 321 assists in his career, making him just the 14th player in program history to dish out 320-plus assists in his time on Main Street.
• Three of Faulkner's career-high eight rebounds came off the offensive glass. In the team's last three games, the Washington, D.C., native is averaging 2.3 offensive rebounds per outing.
• Senior forward Marcale Lotts made his first appearance of the season in the win on Sunday. He missed the team's first eight games with a knee injury.

Up Next
Canisius will travel to play at Holy Cross on Dec. 20, with game time in Worcester, Mass., set for 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast online through the Patriot League Network, and the radio call can be heard on WECK-Radio Buffalo, GoGriffs.com and the TuneIn app.
Print Friendly Version