LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – Tyere Marshall (Philadelphia, PA/Martin Luther King/Putnam Science) and Dimencio Vaughn (New York, NY/Callaway/The Masters School) each posted double-doubles to lead five Broncs in double figures as the Rider University men's basketball team defeated hOURglass Rival Monmouth, 79-67, Friday night at Alumni Gymnasium. The Broncs move to 16-12 (10-8 MAAC), while the Hawks (16-12, 10-7 MAAC) sport the same overall record with a game lead in the loss column.

After Monmouth built an early 7-2 lead, the Broncs battled back to take their first lead of the game on a Vaughn putback slam at the 11:31 mark. After the Hawks rebuilt a 20-14 cushion, Rider responded with 24 of the next 28 points, capping the stretch with a 16-0 run to build a 13-point lead. The Broncs would not trail again, holding a lead of at least eight the rest of the way. The 24-4 spurt was truly a team effort, with six Broncs scoring, including five points each from Stevie Jordan (Bensalem, PA/Conwell-Egan/API) and Willy Nuñez, Jr. (Orlando, FL/Oak Ridge [Florida International]), four each from Marshall, Vaughn and Frederick Scott (Munster, IN/Simeon [DePaul]) and two from Kimar Williams (Philadelphia, PA/Constitution [Florida International]).

Marshall finished with a team-high 21 points and 15 rebounds, while Vaughn had 16 points and 11 rebounds. Jordan (14), Nuñez, Jr. (13) and Scott (12) also posted double-figure point totals.

Quotes & Notes
"Good effort. We needed the game. We needed it in the worst way. I'm proud of our guys. We made free throws. Give Monmouth credit. They didn't quit at all. We just did a good job. Our guys stepped up." – Rider Head Coach Kevin Baggett

- Rider leads the all-time series with Monmouth, 31-23. The two teams have now split the regular-season series in each of the last four seasons.
- With Friday's results around the MAAC, Rider remains in fourth place at 10-8 in the league. Siena (13-5) got a Jalen Pickett buzzer beater to beat Marist to stay atop the league standings, ahead of Saint Peter's (12-6), which lost last night at Niagara. Monmouth (10-7) is third, a game ahead of Rider (10-8) in the loss column, while the Broncs sit a game ahead of Iona (9-8) in the win column. Manhattan and Niagara, both at 8-9, are tied for sixth, with Quinnipiac (8-10), Fairfield (7-10), Marist (6-12) and Canisius (5-12) rounding out the league standings.
- Tonight's win could prove pivotal to league seeding, should the Broncs tie in the final regular-season standings with Monmouth. Having split the regular-season series, the next step in the tie-breaker would be comparing results against the top teams in the league, where Rider split with both Siena and Saint Peter's. The Hawks were swept by Saint Peter's and lost in their lone game to date against Siena. Monmouth ends the regular season with a home date against the Saints on March 6.
- The Broncs were playing their third nationally-televised MAAC ESPNU game of the season, taking their first win in those contests.
- Rider returns to action Sunday, when it travels to Fairfield. It will be the final game at the Stags' Alumni Hall prior to planned renovations to turn the current site into an 85,000-square foot convocation center with a 3,500-seat basketball arena with a projected opening set for 2021. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.   
 
Broncs by the Numbers
- Marshall's double-double was his team-leading sixth of the year, one ahead of Vaughn, who compiled his fifth of the year.
- It was the fourth time this season that Marshall has grabbed 15 or more rebounds.
- Marshall hit 6-of-11 attempts from the floor and 9-of-12 from the free-throw line.
- Vaughn was 4-of-8 from the floor and 8-of-8 from the free-throw line. He's now connected on 18-straight free-throw attempts over the last two games after going 1-for-3 in a one-point loss last Friday night at Iona.
- Vaughn also made a game-high four steals.
- Jordan made 6-of-13 from the floor, while also adding five rebounds, three assists and a steal.
- Rider outshot Monmouth, 44.4 percent (24-54) to 36.5 percent (23-63) from the floor, including a 27.8 percent (5-18) to 24.0 percent (6-25) margin from long range. Rider also took a 74.3 percent (26-35) to 62.5 percent (15-24) advantage from the free-throw line.
- Rider outrebounded Monmouth, 43-32. The Broncs have now outrebounded the opposition in 21-of-28 games this season.
- After George Papas and Ray Salnave each went for 21 points against the Broncs on Feb. 2 in West Long Branch, Rider held Papas to one point and Salnave to 10 tonight. The Broncs held Papas (0-9) without a field goal, while Salnave was 3-of-10 from the floor.  
- Rider outscored Monmouth, 34-24, in the paint.