Men's College Basketball
La Salle University 82, Rider University 70
PHILADELPHIA, PA--The Broncs lost to La Salle in the Hoop Group Classic, held at the Palestra Saturday afternoon. "Today was a step in the right direction," said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. "We are nowhere near where we need to be, but it was a step in the right direction."
Holding a 51-50 lead, La Salle (3-3) out-scored Rider 19-3, seven points by Ramon Galloway, to take a 70-53 lead mid-way through the second half. Galloway finished with 31 points and eight rebounds.
Rider (1-6) began the second half with a 9-6 run, six points by sophomore Daniel Stewart (Philadelphia, PA/Neumann-Goretti), to cut the lead to 51-50 with 15:39 left to play. "We needed some second half energy," Stewart said.
Trailing 76-57, Rider went on a 10-2 run, eight points by Stewart, to cut the lead to 78-67 with 1:51 remaining. Stewart finished with 22 points, making 12 of 12 foul shots.
Rider was led by senior Jeff Jones (Chester, PA/Monsignor Bonner), who finished with a career-high 24 points, making five of seven three-pointers. Jones had 15 points in the first half. "It's always a team effort on this team," Jones said. "On any given night there will be a different high scorer. In order for us to win everybody has to do their part and play at a high level."
The game was Rider's seventh game in 15 days. "November has been a nightmare," Jones said. "We can either hang our heads or keep fighting, keep practicing hard, and move on."
Trailing 32-18, Rider went on a 17-5 run, four points by Stewart, to cut the lead to 37-35 with 3:00 left in the first half, and La Salle led 45-41 at intermission.
La Salle jumped out to a 12-2 lead, six points by Earl Pettis. Pettis played just eight minutes due to a finger injury and finished with 11 points. "They (La Salle) played very well to start," Dempsey said.
Rider never led in the contest. "We're fighting through a tough time right now," Dempsey said.
Also for the Broncs, freshman Eddie Mitchell (Philadelphia, PA/La Salle) compiled a career-high eight assists and five rebounds as well as two points. "I'm trying to get comfortable in my role," Mitchell said. "It is always fun playing in Philadelphia, and the Palestra."
"When Eddie takes care of the ball and plays good defense he's going to play a lot of minutes," Dempsey said of Mitchell, who played 22 minutes Saturday.
Rider defeated La Salle last year at the Tom Gola Arena in Philadelphia. The Broncs and Explorers are former East Coast Conference rivals (1974-75 to 1982-1983) and Middle Atlantic Conference rivals (1966-67 to 1972-73).
Rider and La Salle have now met 31 times since the series began in 1932-33, with Rider winning seven. Before Rider's win at La Salle last season the Explorers had won the last three meetings, 69-60 in 2009-10, 92-75 at La Salle in 2008-09 and in the 1983 ECC playoffs in Easton, PA (at Lafayette). The last time Rider defeated La Salle before last season was January 31, 1983 at La Salle's Hayman Hall, the first time the Explorers ever lost in the old campus gym (playing most of their games at the Palestra or Civic Center).
The Broncs went 0-4 in the Hoop Group Classic.
"This was a great tournament, especially as far as the field goes," Dempsey said. "There wasn't a bad team in the tournament. We played very good teams every night. We were happy to come here and play at the Palestra. We just wish we played a little bit better."
In the first Hoop Group game Rider led Pitt with 5:00 left before falling to the 10th ranked Panthers by eight points in Pittsburgh November 13. In the second game Rider took Penn to overtime before losing its fourth game in seven days. In the third game Rider ran into a 'buzz saw' in James Madison, as the Dukes made 15 of 21 three-pointers.
Rider returns home for the first Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference game of the season, hosting Manhattan December 2. "We're committed to this process and I'm confident things will change soon," Dempsey said.
"With league play starting we're 0-0," Jones said.
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