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Canisius University Athletics

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Paul McMillan IV drives to the basket in the second half of a MAAC game at Sacred Heart on Jan. 5, 2025.
Josh Gee
82
Canisius Canis 0-14,0-3 MAAC
99
Winner Sacred Heart SH 6-8,2-1 MAAC
Canisius Canis
0-14,0-3 MAAC
82
Final
99
Sacred Heart SH
6-8,2-1 MAAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Canisius Canis 43 39 82
Sacred Heart SH 48 51 99

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Men’s Basketball Takes Road Loss at Sacred Heart

Sacred Heart's 5-0 run over 44 seconds early in the second half turned a two-possession game into an 11-point deficit for Canisius, as the host Pioneers posted a 99-82 victory over the Golden Griffins in MAAC men's basketball action Sunday afternoon at the Pitt Center in Fairfield, Conn.
 
With the victory, Sacred Heart improved to 6-8 overall and 2-1 in league action, while Canisius fell to 0-14 overall and 0-3 in conference play. The 14-straight losses to open the season are the most in program history.
 
Six Sacred Heart players scored in double-figures in the victory, led by Tanner Thomas, who posted a double-double with a game-high 24 points and 11 rebounds. Anquan Hill also had a double-double for the Pioneers with his 13 points and 11 boards, and he added six assists. Griffin Barrouk was good for 19 points after making five 3-pointers, and Mekhi Connor dished out a game-high nine assists, as Sacred Heart shot 53.6 percent from the field, made 10-of-28 3-point attempts and hit on 15-of-22 tosses from the free-throw line in the victory.
 
For Canisius, junior guard Paul McMillan IV led six Griffs in double-figures with his team-high 21 points, his MAAC-leading ninth game with 20-or more points this season. Sophomore Dylan Godfrey scored 14 points, as did senior Tana Kopa, who also dished out a career-high seven assists in the losing effort. Graduate student Jasman Sangha had 11 points, his sixth-straight game in double-figures in the scoring column, while junior Gianni Thompson and freshman Evan van der Plas both posted a career-high with 10 points off the bench for the Blue and Gold.
 
Sacred Heart took a 48-43 lead into the locker room at halftime after the Pioneers made 18-of-30 shots from the floor in the game's first 20 minutes, with five of those baskets coming from behind the 3-point arc. In the opening moments of the second half, Canisius got back-to-back buckets from McMillan IV and Kopa to cut the Sacred Heart lead to six at 53-47 with 18:12 left on the clock. But that would be as close as the Blue and Gold would get for the rest of the game, as Barrouk scored five-straight points in 44 seconds to push the home team's cushion back to 11 at 58-47 with 17:30 left to play, forcing a Canisius timeout. A 3-point make by McMillan IV, one of Canisius' 11 3-pointers on the day, with 17:03 trimmed Sacred Heart's lead to eight at 58-50, but the Pioneers put the game away with a 12-1 run over the next 2:22, with Barrouk leading the charge thanks to a pair of makes from behind the 3-point line.
 
For the game, Canisius shot 45.2 percent from the field, and the team's 11 3-point field goals are the most for the Griffs since the team made 14 treys against St. Bonaventure back on Nov. 9. The Griffs, who entered the game ranked fifth nationally in team free-throw percentage, went 15-for-18 from the stripe in the game, the eighth time this season the team shot 80.0 percent or better from the free-throw line.
 
HEAD COACH JIM CHRISTIAN'S POSTGAME COMMENTS
   
GAME NOTES
• Sunday marked the first meeting between Canisius and Sacred Heart in men's basketball. Sacred Heart joined the MAAC before the start of the 2024-25 academic year.
• The 82 points scored by the Griffs are the most for the team in a game this season.
• Sunday marked the first time Canisius had six players score in double-figures since Nov. 25, 2023, when the Griffs beat Western Kentucky.
• The team's 17 assists are the most for the Blue and Gold in a game this season.
• McMillan IV is the first Griff to have nine-or more games with 20-or more points scored in the same season since former Griffs Jermaine Crumpton and Isaiah Reese did it 12 times during the 2017-18 campaign.
• van der Plas made a season-high three 3-pointers in the game and he also recorded his first career blocked shot.
• Thompson, who played a career-high 29:01 off the bench, matched a career-high with his three assists.
 
UP NEXT
Canisius returns home for the first time in the 2025 calendar year on Friday, Jan. 10, when the Griffs play host to Rider. Game time at the Koessler Athletic Center is set for 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+. The Griffs' radio call will be available through the Golden Griffin Broadcast Network on GoGriffs.com and the Varsity Network APP.
 
Tickets for the Griffs' next home game and all remaining home contests can be purchased online by CLICKING HERE.
 
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