Men's College Basketball
Rider University 81, Binghamton University 73
LAWRENCEVILLE?Junior Harris Mansell (Cheltenham, Pa./Cheltenham) scored 23 points, including eight foul shots in the final minute, to lead Rider to victory over Binghamton Saturday afternoon. “I knew we had to hold the lead and to hold them off,” Mansell said. “They were making a run but it is a killer when you are trying to make a run and the team with the lead makes its foul shots. I just concentrated and knocked them down.”
Mansell made all 10 of his foul shots in the game. The rest of the Broncs were just 12 of 23 from the foul line Saturday. “Foul shooting has been a bit of an Achilles heel for us,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. “We have good foul shooters but some of them are not making their foul shots right now. The percentages will swing back into our favor.”
Senior Jason Thompson (Mt. Laurel/Lenape) compiled 15 points and 11 rebounds for the Broncs (5-3), who remain undefeated at home (4-0) this season. The ?double-double' for Thompson was his fifth of the season and 34th of his career.
Holding a 42-38 lead, Rider out-scored Binghamton 15-2, seven points by Thompson and six by junior Lamar Johnson (Scranton, Pa./Scranton), to take a 57-40 lead with 9:00 left to play.
With 6:14 remaining, Bearcat Richard Forbes was called for an intentional foul on Thompson. Thompson's response resulted in a flagrant technical foul and was ejected from the game. “I caught an elbow and it felt like an attack,” Thompson remembered, “so I was just trying to protect myself, to stop the attack. I wasn't trying to retaliate, just stop the attack on me.”
“I feel fortunate to get out of here with a win after things got a bit chaotic, to say the least,” Dempsey said. “We found a way to rally ourselves, get to the free throw line and knock down some big free throws.”
“We all knew Binghamton was going to come out with a lot of fire once Jason was gone,” Mansell said. “We had the game pretty much in hand (64-49) at that time.”
Johnson made a three-point field goal with 3:17 left to give Rider a 69-58 lead, stopping an 8-0 Bearcat run, and finished with 11 points.
Rider freshman Mike Ringgold (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic) compiled 11 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. Ringgold scored six of Rider's first eight points of the game and had 10 points at halftime. “I'm just an energy guy, out there to rebound and play defense, trying to get everybody going,” said Ringgold, who compiled his first collegiate ?double-double'. “Play my role and do my job, do the little things.”
“I have Mike in the starting line up for a reason,” said Dempsey. “I'm not trying to ease him into anything. I have a lot of confidence in him. He's a great athlete and his role will expand as his career goes on.”
Holding a 29-28 lead, Rider out-scored Binghamton 6-0 over the final 3:20 of the first half, four points by Thompson, to take a 35-28 lead at the half. Rider went on a 12-6 run, four points by Thompson, to take a 20-19 lead with 7:20 left in the first half.
Mansell made back-to-back field goals to give Rider a 27-24 lead with 5:50 left in the first half. That was the seventh lead change and Rider never trailed again.
The loss was the fifth straight for Binghamton (1-6). The Bearcats were led by senior guard Richard Forbes, who had 10 points in the first half and finished with a team-high 23. Lazar Trifunovic of Serbia compiled 14 points and eight rebounds.
“I have to take my hat off to Coach Dempsey and his team,” said Binghamton head coach Kevin Broadus, the former assistant at Georgetown. “Rider played well as a team and Tommy has done a great job here.”
Rider travels to Western New York to begin Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play at Niagara Thursday and Canisius Saturday evenings.
-RU-
