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Canisius University Athletics

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TJ Gadsden pulls up for a 3-point shot at FGCU in Fort Myers, Fla., on Dec. 21, 2023
Ken Morey
82
Canisius Canis 5-14,3-7 MAAC
87
Winner Quinnipiac QU 15-5,6-3 MAAC
Canisius Canis
5-14,3-7 MAAC
82
Final
87
Quinnipiac QU
15-5,6-3 MAAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Canisius Canis 31 51 82
Quinnipiac QU 42 45 87

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Second-Half Push Comes Up Short for Men’s Basketball

In a game that featured 22 lead changes and 10 ties, Quinnipiac's Ike Nweke scored 24 points to lead all scorers, as the host Bobcats defeated Canisius 87-82 in MAAC men's basketball action Sunday afternoon at M&T Bank Arena in Hamden, Conn. The win, Quinnipiac's sixth straight, improved the Bobcats to 15-5 overall and 6-3 in MAAC play, while the Golden Griffins fell to 5-14 overall and 3-7 in league play with their second-straight loss.
 
Nweke was one of five Quinnipiac players to record double-figures in the scoring column on the day, as the Bobcats shot 53.2 percent (33-for-62) from the field. Paul Otieno had 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Luis Kortright came off the bench and added 11 points. Both Matt Balanc and Dezi Jones chipped in 10, apiece, as Quinnipiac ended the Griffs' four-game win streak in the series, dating back to the 2020-21 season.
 
For Canisius, sophomore TJ Gadsden scored a career-high 22 points in the loss, with 19 of those coming in the game's second half. He also grabbed 11 rebounds on the day, with eight of those coming off the defensive glass. Fellow sophomore Tre Dinkins was good for a career-best 19 points to go with four assists, while graduate student Jordan Henderson and senior Jacco Fritz scored 12 points, each. For the game, Canisius shot 45.3 percent from the field, went 11-for-28 (39.3 percent) from 3-point land and 59.1 percent from the free-throw line, making 13-of-22 chances from the stripe.
 
Quinnipiac held a 42-31 lead at halftime after the home team outscored the Blue and Gold 17-6 in the final 6:00 of the opening stanza. After Nweke scored 52 seconds into the second half to give Quinnipiac a 13-point lead at 44-31, Canisius mounted its charge, and eventually tied the game at 50-50 thanks to a 19-6 scoring spurt over the span of 5:36. In that run, which was capped by a pull-up 15-foot jumper by Henderson, Gadsden accounted for 11 of the Griffs' points, fueled by three 3-point field goals. A 3-pointer by Dinkins with 12:18 remaining gave Canisius its first lead since the scoreboard read 26-25 in the first half, and moments later, another three-ball from Dinkins put the Griffs up five at 57-52 with 11:17 showing on the game clock.
 
In the game's final 10:36, the score was tied four times, with the last tie coming at 70-70 with 5:21 left on the clock after Dinkins drilled a corner-three off a pass from Fritz. Canisius would take its final lead of the contest with 3:39 remaining after junior Bryce Okpoh hit a hook-shot in the paint to make the score 74-73 in favor of the visiting squad, but the Bobcats answered with the game's next five points to take a 78-74 lead with 2:37 remaining. A traditional three-point play by Gadsden got the Griffs within one at 78-77 with 2:09 showing on the game clock, but Quinnipiac answered once again with four-straight points to make the score 82-77 with 1:08 left in the contests.

Postgame Comments from head coach Reggie Witherspoon:  
GAME NOTES
• Sunday was the 20th all-time meeting between the two schools. Canisius now leads the series 13-7.
• Sunday's game also marked the ninth time in series history where the final score was decided by five points or fewer. Quinnipiac leads that portion of the series 5-4.
• Canisius' 51 second-half points are the most for the team in a 20-minute stretch since the team had 58 points in the first half against Fredonia Nov. 20.
• Sunday's game marked the eighth time this season the Blue and Gold made 10-or more 3-point field goals in a game.
• All nine of the Griffs' offensive rebounds came in the game's second half. Canisius entered the game ranked third in the MAAC with 12.1 offensive rebounds per contest.
• Gadsden is the first Griff to score 20-or more points in a game since Henderson had 24 points at Cornell on Nov. 22.
• Dinkins is averaging 15.3 points per game in the last three games, where he is shooting 57.7 percent (15-for-26) from the floor and 52.6 percent (10-for-19) from 3-point land.
• Fritz's 12 points gives him double-figures in the scoring column seven times this season and 26 times in his career.
• By playing Sunday, Henderson became just the 14th player in the program's 119-year history to play 119-or more career games.
 
UP NEXT
Canisius will close out the month of January at home, when the Griffs play host to Manhattan at the Koessler Athletic Center on Sunday, Jan. 29. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m., and the contest will be broadcast live on ESPN3, with the radio call available exclusively through GoGriffs.com. Tickets for next Sunday's "Country Day", presented by The Cowboy, and all other remaining Canisius home games, can be purchased online through GoGriffs.com, or by calling the ticket office at (716) 888-TIXX.
 
For the most up-to-date information on Canisius men's basketball, follow @Griffs_MBB on Twitter and Instagram.
 
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