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Canisius University Athletics

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Siem Uijtendaal pulls up for a 3-point field goal attempt in a home game against D'Youville at the Koessler Athletic Center on Nov. 20, 2023.
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69
Iona Iona 12-11,7-5 MAAC
73
Winner Canisius Canis 9-14,4-9 MAAC
Iona Iona
12-11,7-5 MAAC
69
Final
73
Canisius Canis
9-14,4-9 MAAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Iona Iona 23 46 69
Canisius Canis 42 31 73

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Gritty Effort Leads Men’s Basketball Past Iona

Canisius senior Siem Uijtendaal scored a game-high 25 points, junior Tre Dinkins added 21 and sophomore Cam Palesse recorded his first career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds to help lead the Golden Griffins to a 73-69 win over Iona in MAAC men's basketball Saturday afternoon at the Koessler Athletic Center.
 
The victory ended Canisius' three-game losing skid and improved the Blue and Gold to 9-14 overall and 4-9 in MAAC play, while the Gaels saw their four-game win streak come to an end with the loss. Iona is now 12-11 overall and 7-5 in conference action.
 
With just eight players in uniform due to injury and illness, four Griffs played more than 35:00 in the win, led by Uijtendaal, who was on the floor for all 40:00 of the contest. Uijtendaal scored his 25 points after he went 9-for-17 from the field, 5-for-8 from 3-point land and 2-for-3 from the free-throw line to go along with six rebounds and two assists, a steal and a blocked shot. Dinkins went 7-for-14 from the floor, made 5-of-9 tries from behind the arc and also went 2-for-3 from the free-throw line in the victory, as the Griffs ended their 10-game losing streak to Iona, which dated back to 2018-19 campaign.
 
Palesse scored all 10 of his points in the game's final 12:54, capped by a pair of free-throws with 19.1 seconds left that put Canisius up four at 73-69. Sophomore Youri Fritz added eight points and seven rebounds, while fellow sophomore Devean Williams was good for five points, five assists, four boards, a career-high three blocked shots and two steals in his first collegiate start. For the game, Canisius shot 46.3 percent from the field, made 10-of-22 3-pointers and knocked down 13-of-21 free-throw attempts. Canisius, who was without junior Frank Mitchell, the fifth-leading rebounder in the nation, ended the contest with a 39-35 advantage on the glass while outscoring the Gaels 12-9 in second-chance points.
 
GAME RECAP
Iona scored the game's first basket 1:08 into the contest, and the Gaels held that lead for 1:02 before Dinkins made the first of his four first-half 3-pointers to put Canisius up 3-2, a lead the Blue and Gold would never relinquish. Midway through the opening half, Canisius stretched its lead to 15 points thanks to a 12-2 run over the span of 3:20, with Dinkins and Uijtendaal accounting for nine of Canisius' points in that surge. A step-back jumper by Dinkins with 3:05 left before the halftime break put Canisius up 40-19, and Iona needed back-to-back buckets in the closing 1:43 of the opening stanza to keep the Griffs' lead to 19 points, as the teams went into the locker room at halftime with Canisius in the lead at 42-23.
 
A fastbreak lay-up by Iona's Joel Brown with 5:30 remaining in the game cut the Griffs' lead to eight at 66-58. That bucket by Brown started an 11-1 run over the contest's next 3:30 that allowed Iona to knot the game at 69-69, the only tie of the contest. But that would be the final points of the day for Iona, as the Griffs switched their defense to zone, and then outscored the Gaels 4-0 in the closing 1:39 thanks to a pair of free-throw makes from Dinkins and Palesse.
 
Iona ended the day by shooting 29-of-66 from the field, but only three of those 29 field goals came from 3-point range. The Gaels scored 44 of their 69 points in the paint, and the team was led by reserve guard Jean Aranguren, who posted a team-high 21 points in the loss for Iona. Greg Gordon recorded a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Jeremiah Quigley added 17 points, four boards and three assists to the Gaels' effort.
 
HEAD COACH REGGIE WITHERPSPOON'S POSTGAME COMMENTS
"I told the team before the game, if you can win, not only with four starters out, but against a team like [Iona] that's going to press us like crazy, this will be a game you remember for the rest of your life. You'll be telling your grand kids about this – 'Nobody gave us a chance, guys played 37 minutes, you're not supposed to have a chance' – they took that to heart and just came out and played hard."
 
"Our guys were really resilient today. I mean, this was a miraculous effort, really. For us to be that depleted with injuries and illness – and not just the number of guys we were missing, but who we were missing. Our guys stepped up and fought from beginning to end."
 
"I was concerned because we were running out of gas late in the game. I wanted to save that timeout for the end in case we couldn't get the ball in bounds. I could see our guys were drained out, but they just kept fighting."
 
GAME NOTES
• Saturday marked the 84th all-time meeting between Canisius and Iona in a series that dates back to 1954-55. The Gaels lead the series 50-34.
• The Griffs improved to 6-3 at home this season, with four of those wins coming against MAAC opponents.
• Canisius has now made 10-or more 3-point field goals in a game eight times this season. Saturday's 10 makes are the most for the Griffs in a game since the team had 11 baskets from long-range in an overtime loss at Rider Jan. 7.
• Uijtendaal and Dinkins both scored 20-or more points in the same game for the second time this season. The previous occasion came on Dec. 1, when Canisius defeated Quinnipiac in the MAAC-opener for both schools.
• Palesse's 10 rebounds on Saturday are a career high. Canisius has had a player with 10-or more rebounds in each of the last seven contests.
• Williams' five assists are a career high, and his 39:40 of game action was a career high, as well.
• Canisius was without the services of juniors TJ Gadsden (upper-body) and Frank Mitchell (illness). Both players are listed as "day-to-day". Canisius has now lost 78-man games to injury or illness, the most for any team in the MAAC.
 
UP NEXT
Canisius will head back on the road next weekend for a pair of MAAC road games, starting at Marist on Friday, Feb. 16. Game time in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., is set for 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+. The Canisius radio call will be available for free through the Golden Griffin Broadcast Network at GoGriffs.com and the Varsity Network app, with the M&T Bank Pregame Show starting at 6:40 p.m.
 
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