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Cam Palesse looks to find an open teammate in a home men's basketball game against Brown on Nov. 23, 2024.
Anthony Militello
83
Winner Brown BRN 3-3,0-0 Ivy League
76
Canisius Canis 0-7,0-0 MAAC
Winner
Brown BRN
3-3,0-0 Ivy League
83
Final
76
Canisius Canis
0-7,0-0 MAAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Brown BRN 35 48 83
Canisius Canis 25 51 76

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Men’s Basketball Comes Up Short in Loss to Brown

Brown guards Kino Lilly Jr., and Lyndel Erold combined to make eight of the Bears' 11 3-point field goals to help lead their team to an 83-76 victory over Canisius in non-conference men's basketball action Saturday afternoon at the Koessler Athletic Center.
 
Brown improved to 3-3 on the season with the victory, while the Golden Griffins fell to 0-7 on the year.
 
Canisius junior Paul McMillan IV scored a game-high 25 points in the losing effort for the Blue and Gold, while redshirt-sophomore Cam Palesse posted a career-high 22 points after he became the first player in school history to go a perfect 9-for-9 from the field. Of his nine makes on Saturday, three came from 3-point land, and he was also succesful on his one free-throw chance. As a team, Canisius shot a season-high 50.9 percent from the floor and made 8-of-19 tries from behind the arc, but Brown closed out the game by shooting 54.0 percent from the floor while outscoring the Blue and Gold by a 13-5 clip on second-chance points.
 
Brown held a 35-25 lead at halftime after the visiting Bears shot 50.0 percent (13-for-26) from the floor in the game's opening 20:00, with five of those 13 baskets coming from 3-point land. In the second half, Canisius cut into Brown's lead with the first five points of the second stanza to make the score 35-30 in favor of the visiting team, but the Bears answered with eight of the contest's next 11 points to stretch their margin back to 10 points at 43-33 with 17:22 left to play.
 
Brown's lead never dipped below eight points until Palesse nailed a 3-pointer from the right corner with 2:08 left in the ball game to get Canisius within seven at 77-70. After forcing a turnover, the Griffs got within five points at 77-72 with 1:16 remaining after senior Tana Kopa hit a one-handed runner on the baseline off an assist from sophomore Anthony Benard. Kopa finished the day with seven points, while Benard also scored seven points to go along with a game-high eight assists.
 
Canisius took advantage of Brown missing the front-end of a 1-and-1 free-throw opportunity, as McMillan drove to the bucket and scored off the glass with 39 seconds remaining, to make the score 77-74 in favor of the Bears. But that would be as close as the Griffs would get on the day, as Lilly Jr., hit six free-throws in the game's final 32 seconds to seal the win for Brown. Lilly Jr., posted a team-high 21 points in the win for Brown after he went 5-for-13 from the field, 5-for-9 from 3-point land and 6-for-7 from the charity stripe.
 
Brown's Aaron Cooley recorded a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds, as the Bears out-rebounded the Griffs by a 31-25 count. Landon Lewis also added 17 points and eight boards to the Brown cause.
 
HEAD COACH JIM CHRISTIAN'S POSTGAME COMMENTS
   
GAME NOTES
• Saturday marked the ninth all-time meeting in the series between Canisius and Brown, and the Griffs lead the series 5-4, with Brown now having won three straight over Canisius, dating back to the 2018-19 campaign.
• Canisius shot 61.3 percent (19-for-31) from the floor in the game's second half. This marks the first time the Griffs have shot 60 percent or better from the field in a half at home since the team shot 65.2 percent in the second half in an 81-68 victory over Niagara on March 4, 2023.
• The Griffs were able to turn 11 Brown turnovers into 13 points, and Canisius outscored Brown 34-28 in the paint.
• McMillan IV is the first Canisius player since Larry Fogle in 1973-74 to score 25-or more points in each of his first two home games with the program. McMillan IV had a career-high 31 points in the team's home opener against St. Bonaventure Nov. 9. Fogle scored 35 against Gannon and 28 points against Catholic to open the home portion of the 1973-74 slate.
• Palesse is the fifth different player to go 9-for-9 or better from the field in an NCAA Division I men's basketball game this season.
• Benard's eight assists match his career high, set previously on Nov. 9, in the team's home opener against St. Bonaventure.
• Graduate student Jasman Sangha made his first start as a Griff, and his ninth career start as a college player.
 
UP NEXT
Canisius will head back on the road for a game at Robert Morris on Wednesday, Nov. 27. Game time in Moon Township, Pa., is set for 4 p.m., and the contest will be broadcast live on ESPN+. The Griffs' radio call will be available through the Golden Griffin Broadcast Network at GoGriffs.com and the Varsity Sports Network APP.
 
SUPPORT THE GRIFFS
Support Canisius men's basketball in conjunction with the "More Than A Game" campaign. Your donation to the men's basketball program helps our student-athletes continue to be champions in the community, in the classroom and in competition. To donate, CLICK HERE.

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