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Paul McMillan IV looks to drive in the second half of a game at Marist on Feb. 21, 2025
Kira Crutcher
81
Canisius Canis 2-24,2-13 MAAC
89
Winner Marist Marist 19-5,12-3 MAAC
Canisius Canis
2-24,2-13 MAAC
81
Final
89
Marist Marist
19-5,12-3 MAAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Canisius Canis 38 43 81
Marist Marist 48 41 89

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Marist Outlasts Men’s Basketball

Sophomore Justin Pascarelli scored a career-high 31 points to lead five Marist players in double-figures, as the host Red Foxes held off Canisius for an 89-81 victory in MAAC men's basketball action Friday night at McCann Arena in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
 
Pascarelli went 11-for-16 from the field in the win for Marist (19-5, 12-3 MAAC), with six of his field goals coming from 3-point land. Fellow guard Elijah Lewis was good for 15 points, while Jaden Daughtry added 11 points and six rebounds. Jaden Collins-Roberts had 10 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Marist, while forward Jason Schofield posted a double-double for the home team with 10 points and 10 boards.
 
For Canisius, junior Paul McMillan IV posted a team-high 26 points in the losing effort for the Golden Griffins (2-24, 2-13 MAAC), with 19 of those points coming in the second half. Sophomore Dylan Godfrey added a career-high 22 points, with 15 of those coming on the power of five makes from 3-point land, and sophomore Anthony Benard matched a career-high with 11 points to go with eight assists on the night. Senior Tana Kopa scored 13 points for the Blue and Gold, which ended the night shooting 61.7 percent from the field, 53.3 percent (8-for-15) from 3-point range and 71.4 percent (15-for-21) from the free-throw line. The difference in the game, however, was in the rebounding battle, as Marist out-rebounded Canisius 35-15, with 15 of those Marist rebounds coming off the offensive glass for 14 second-chance points.
 
In the first half, the two teams combined to shoot 64.6 percent from the field and 57.1 percent from 3-point range in the opening 20 minutes. Pascarelli scored five of the final nine points in the opening stanza to send the Red Foxes into the locker room at intermission up 10 at 48-38. In the second half, Marist led by as many as 13 points, but the Griffs' offense would not go away. Trailing 76-63 with 7:35 remaining, Canisius went on a 14-2 run over the game's next 4:25 to make the score 79-77 with 2:56 remaining in the contest. In that run, McMillan IV scored six of Canisius' points, while Godfrey added five, including a fade-away jumper from just outside the paint that made the contest a one-score game.
 
But on their next trip down the floor, the Red Foxes pushed their lead back to four points at 82-77 after Pascarelli hit a turn-around jumper in the lane with 2:34 remaining. That field goal would be Marist's final make from the field until 3.8 seconds left on the clock when Collins-Roberts scored a lay-up after a Canisius turnover, as five of Marist's final seven points in the win in the closing 1:17 came from the free-throw line.
 
McMillan IV went 10-for-17 from the field and made 6-of-7 tosses from the free-throw line for the Griffs, as he posted his MAAC-leading 16th game of the season with 20-or more points scored. Godfrey finished the night by shooting 8-for-12 from the field, while going 5-for-7 from 3-point range, making him the first Canisius player other than Kopa to make five-or more 3-pointers in a game this season. The Griffs turned the ball over just nine times in the game, and the Blue and Gold recorded eight steals in the contest, with McMillan IV and Benard each recording a pair.
 
HEAD COACH JIM CHRISTIAN'S POSTGAME COMMENTS
   
GAME NOTES
• Friday marked the 62nd all-time meeting between Canisius and Marist. The Griffs lead the all-time series 35-27, as Marist has now won six straight in the series.
• Friday marked the second time this season where the Griffs shot better than 60 percent from the floor for the game. Canisius shot a season-high 62.3 percent from the field in the team's home win over Rider on Jan. 10.
• The Griffs scored 30 points in the paint, the ninth time this season the team had 30-or more points in the paint for a game.
• As a team, Canisius matched a season-high with 15 made free-throws, while attempting a season-best 21 shots from the stripe.
• McMillan IV became the ninth junior in school history, and the first since Jermaine Crumpton in 2016-17, to reach 500 points scored for the season.
• Friday marked the fourth time this year where McMillan IV has made 10-or more field goals in a game.
• Benard has now recorded eight-or more assists in three different contests this season. He had a career-high nine assists in the team's home win over Rider.
• Kopa's two makes from behind the 3-point arc on Friday gives him a team-leading 79 treys on the season. His next 3-point make will make him just the seventh player in school history to have 80-or more 3-point makes in a single season.
• Canisius used the same starting line-up (Benard, McMillan IV, Kopa, Godfrey and Gianni Thompson) for the fifth-straight game. This is the team's first starting line-up combination this season that started five consecutive contests.
 
UP NEXT
Canisius will close out its weekend road trip through New York State on Sunday when the Griffs travel to play at Siena. Game time at MVP Arena in downtown Albany is set for 2 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+. The Canisius radio call will be available at GoGriffs.com through the Golden Griffin Broadcast Network, on the Varsity Network APP and on X through the @GoGriffs handle.
 
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