NEW ROCHELLE, NY — The Iona College men’s basketball team completed an unbeaten three-game road stretch in an 86-73 win over Manhattan in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action at Draddy Gym. The Gaels erased an early 15-point deficit and led by as many as 18 in the second half to earn its fourth straight win overall and sixth straight win on the road. With the victory, and by virtue of Monmouth’s win, the Maroon & Gold will be the No. 2 seed in next weekend’s MAAC Championship in Albany. Iona, however, can still claim a share of the regular season title with a win on Sunday vs. Canisius and a Monmouth loss at home against Niagara.
Senior A.J. English scored 16 of his team-high 23 points in the second half, connecting on four three pointers in the final 20 minutes and six for the game. He added six assists, four rebounds and two steals for the Maroon & Gold. Four other Gaels recorded double-digit point totals. Junior Jordan Washington posted 16 points and five rebounds. Sophomore Deyshonee Much had 15 points, senior Isaiah Williams posted 13 points, and six rebounds and graduate Aaron Rountree just missed a double-double with 11 points and nine boards. Senior Ibn Muhammad had five assists in the win while rookie Rickey McGill posted six points, two rebounds, two assists and three steals off the bench.
Manhattan’s Rich Williams posted a career-high 27 points but was limited to just three in the second half after a torrid first 20 minutes. Sophomore Zane Waterman had 18 points and 10 rebounds and senior Shane Richards added 17 in his final home game at Draddy Gymnasium.
The Jaspers jumped out to a 20-5 advantage just under six minutes into the game. Over the first 7:12, Iona turned the ball over nine times and trailed 22-9. A key factor in the Gaels 28-point scoring swing was that they committed just eight times over the final 33:48, including an intentional shot-clock violation taken in the final minute of the contest.
Iona cut the deficit to within two points on an English free throw with 28 ticks left in the first half. Williams drained a three from the wing as time expired to make the halftime score 48-43 in favor of the home team.
The Gaels quickly took the lead with eight straight points to start the second half in the first 2:25. The Jaspers briefly regained a one-point advantage on two occasions, the last coming on an alley oop from Waterman to Williams at the 13:17 mark. A 9-1 run midway through the period led to Iona’s first double-digit advantage. Washington’s second chance layup put the visitors ahead 70-60 with 8:53 remaining. Another key stretch was a 13-0 run where Iona held Manhattan scoreless over five and a half minutes. A conventional three-point play by Washington as the shot clock was expiring with 2:31 to play gave the Maroon & Gold its largest advantage at 83-65. Manhattan scored eight of the game’s final 11 points to make the final margin 86-73.
After allowing Manhattan to shoot 53.1% in the first half, Iona limited its opponent to just 33.3% in the second. The Gaels outshot the Jaspers 49.2%-45.3% for the game and held a 34-29 rebounding edge.
Iona completes the 2015-16 regular season at the Hynes Center Sunday afternoon when it hosts Canisius. The Gaels will celebrate senior day and honor the program’s five seniors: English, Muhammad, Rountree, Williams and four-year manager John Kiggins.