Men's College Basketball

Rider University 63, University of Hartford 61

WEST HARTFORD, CT— One of Hartford's most famous alums was astronaut Jack Swigert, who uttered those famous words from Apollo 13, “Houston, we've had a problem here.”

The Rider men's basketball team had a problem winning on the road this year, beginning the season 1-6 away from its home Alumni Gymnasium.

On Saturday, the Broncs are happy to say that problem has been solved, and all systems are Go.

Rider junior Teddy Okereafor (London, England/VCU) made a jump shot with 10 seconds left to give Rider a victory at Hartford Saturday night.

Here in West Hartford there is a statue of one of its most famous residents, lexicographer Noah Webster.

If you look up the word ironic in Webster's dictionary, you just may find a reference to the end of Saturday's game.

Okereafor made just one of his first seven shots, but nailed a jumper from the corner to give Rider the lead when it counted the most.  

Rider  made just five of 13 foul shots, while the host Hawks were 22 of 26 from the foul line, but it was Hartford who missed two foul shots with 2.8 seconds left, allowing Okereafor's shot to be the game-winner.

“We're still struggling from the perimeter (4 for 17 three-pointers) but when we needed to make a big shot we did,” said Rider head coach Kevin Baggett.

Okereafor finished with four points and a career-high seven assists.

Rider (5-6) tied the score at 61-61 with 50 seconds left on a lay-up by senior Matt Lopez (Erial, NJ/Washington Twp.), who finished with 14 points, 10 in the second half. “We kept trying to go inside and “Lopes” played very well,” Baggett said of his seven-foot center.

Hartford (6-5) out-scored Rider 7-0 to take a 61-59 lead, the Hawks' first lead since 2-0.

Hartford out-scored Rider 13-6 to start the second half, five points by Corban Wroe, to tie the score at 37-37 with 15:20 left to play. Wroe finished with 11 points.

Rider used a 15-5 run to take a 29-17 lead, and Rider led 31-24 at the half.

Rider jumped out to a 14-5 lead, four points each by graduate student Anthony D'Orazio (Camden, NJ/Camden Catholic) and sophomore Kahlil Thomas (Parkway, Fla./Blanche Ely). 

D'Orazio finished with 13 points. “D'Orazio gave us another great game,” Baggett said. “He has a high basketball IQ and he's very energetic. I trust him.”

Thomas finished with nine points and eight rebounds. “It was a great team effort tonight,” Baggett said.

Hartford was picked to finish second in the America East Conference this year. “They are a good team,” Baggett said of Hartford. “They will do well in their league this year. This was a big win for us.”

Rider and Hartford have now met three times in men's basketball. The first time was December 29, 2004, in the first round of the Oneida Bingo and Casino Classic, hosted by Wisconsin Green Bay.  Hartford won that game 68-57.  The last time was March 19, 2013, in the first round of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament. Rider won that game 63-54.

Rider returns home to host Morgan State on Thursday, December 18 at 7:30pm. That game is the second game of a doubleheader, with the Rider women hosting UMBC at 5pm.

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