Five Things to Know: Men's Basketball Plays Host to Rider Friday Night

Game No. 18 - Presented by Anderson's
Canisius (5-12, 1-5 MAAC) vs. Rider (5-11, 1-5 MAAC)
Date: Friday, Jan. 21, 2022
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Buffalo, N.Y. | Koessler Athletic Center
Video Broadcast: ESPN3
Talent: Jay Moran (pxp) and Richard Walsh (color)
Live Audio: Golden Griffin Broadcast Network; GoGriffs.com
Talent: Andy Helwig (pxp)
Live Stats: Through GoGriffs.com
Twitter: @Griffs_MBB | #Griffs; #MAACHoops

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1. Canisius Returns Home to Host Rider
The Canisius men's basketball team returns home Friday night at 7 p.m., when the Golden Griffins play host to Rider at the Koessler Athletic Center. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN3. Canisius is looking to end a three-game slide after the Blue and Gold fell to Saint Peter's on the road Tuesday afternoon, while the Broncs are on a three-game skid as well, following a 73-67 road loss at Quinnipiac Wednesday night.

2. Series History vs. Rider
Friday will serve as the 54th all-time meeting between these two schools in a series that dates back to the 1929-30 campaign. Rider leads the series 38-15, but in the last 16 games, dating back to 2012-13, Canisius and Rider each have eight wins. Last year, Canisius played Rider just one time - in the opening round of the 2021 MAAC Men's Basketball Championship in Atlantic City, N.J. Including that game, which Rider won 78-76, five of the last seven meetings between these two programs have been decided by two points or less.

3. Hitchon Hits 110
Graduate student Scott Hitchon is set to play his 110th career game as a Griff on Friday, which is the most among all active players on the Canisius roster. In his last five contests, Hitchon is averaging 11.6 points and 5.6 rebounds per game while shooting 47.5 percent from the field, 43.5 percent from 3-point land and 83.3 percent from the free-throw line.

4. Green Getting Back Into It
Senior Malek Green came off the bench to score 12 points in the road loss at Saint Peter's on Tuesday, his first game with double-digits in the scoring column since the team's road contest at Youngstown State Dec. 11. Green leads the Griffs and ranks 10th in the MAAC in scoring average at 13.9 points per game. Among the league's top-10 scorers, Green has played the fewest contests this season, having missed three of Canisius' 17 games to date.

5. Fritz Gets Offensive (Rebounds)
Junior Jacco Fritz grabbed six rebounds in the game at Saint Peter's on Tuesday, the 10th time this season where he pulled down five-or more rebounds in a game. Two of Fritz's six boards on Tuesday came off the offensive glass, the 31st time in his career where he grabbed multiple offensive rebounds in a game. Fritz is tied for the team lead in rebounding average with fellow front-court mate Malek Green, as the duo are tied for 14th in the conference with 5.9 boards per outing.

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Players Mentioned

#10 Jacco Fritz: F; 6' 10"; Junior

#2 Malek Green: F; 6' 7"; Senior

#21 Scott Hitchon: F; 6' 8"; Graduate Student

Players Mentioned

#10 Jacco Fritz
: 6' 10"; Junior
: F

#2 Malek Green
: 6' 7"; Senior
: F

#21 Scott Hitchon
: 6' 8"; Graduate Student
: F

Players Mentioned

#10 Jacco Fritz

#2 Malek Green

#21 Scott Hitchon

Players Mentioned

#10 Jacco Fritz

#2 Malek Green

#21 Scott Hitchon