FAIRFIELD, CT (December 7, 2025) — The Iona University men’s basketball team bounced back from its league opening defeat with an 81-69 road victory over Sacred Heart in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action at the William H. Pitt Center.
Iona withstood a fast Sacred Heart start that saw the Pioneers take a 13-4 lead less than six minutes into the contest. The Gaels opened just 1-for-9 from the floor and 1-for-7 from long distance before a pick-and-roll finish by Toby Harris off a CJ Anthony feed sparked a surge.
Iona rattled off 17 of the next 19 points to grab a 21-15 lead at the midway point of the half, shooting 7-for-7 during a blistering three and a half minute stretch that featured three triples.
Although Sacred Heart briefly reclaimed the lead, back-to-back threes by junior Chase Cormier pushed Iona in front for good at 29-26.
After the cold start, the Gaels converted 14 of their final 24 attempts in the half to take a 36-32 advantage into halftime.
The Pioneers scored on the first possession of the second half, but Iona answered with a decisive 15-4 run to extend its lead to 51-38 just over four minutes into the period. The Gaels were perfect from the field during that burst, going 6-for-6 with a three and two free throws in just 3:21.
Sacred Heart battled to within 59-55 at the midway point, but the Gaels responded with 11 of the next 13 points, including seven from the free throw line, to rebuild a double digit margin.
The Pioneers’ final push brought them within seven with 5:17 remaining, but a quick five point response by the Gaels, capped by a dagger three from Harris, restored a 12 point cushion with under three minutes left and sealed the road victory.
Graduate CJ Anthony led Iona with 15 points, eight assists and three steals on 5-for-8 shooting in 29 minutes with one turnover. He scored three of Iona’s first seven field goals and assisted on the other four.
Senior Lamin Sabally added 11 points on 4-for-5 shooting with six rebounds and three assists.
Graduate Toby Harris contributed 11 points and six rebounds off the bench, hitting two timely threes.
Junior Denver Anglin tallied 11 points with three steals, two assists and two rebounds on 4-for-8 shooting.
Graduate Keshawn Williams posted nine points with six rebounds, two assists and three steals, scoring seven of Iona’s first nine points of the second half.
Junior Chase Cormier scored nine points in nine minutes off the bench on three three-pointers.
Six players reached at least nine points, and all 11 who saw the floor scored for Iona.
For Sacred Heart, Nyle Ralph-Beyer and Yann Farell each scored 16 points with four three-pointers apiece.
Dashon Gittens had 11 points.
Anquan Hill recorded 10 points and eight rebounds.
Abdou Yadd added 10 points.
Mekhi Conner contributed six points and nine assists.
Iona shot 45.9 percent from the field after opening 1-for-9, making 27 of its final 52 attempts for 51.9 percent.
Sacred Heart shot 41.4 percent.
Sacred Heart hit 13 three-pointers, while Iona reached double digits from deep for the sixth time in 10 games.
Sacred Heart held a 35-33 rebounding edge with 11 offensive boards to Iona’s 10, but Iona led 11-8 in second-chance points.
Both teams recorded 17 assists.
Iona forced 20 Sacred Heart turnovers, a season high, while committing 10.
Iona’s bench outscored Sacred Heart’s 34-10.
Iona improved to 7-3 overall and 1-1 in the MAAC, while Sacred Heart fell to 3-6 overall and 1-1 in the MAAC.
This article was drafted with the aid of Grok, an AI tool by xAI, under the direction and editing of Robert Cox to ensure accuracy and adherence to journalistic standards.
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