ATHENS, GA – Mervin James (St. Thomas, USVI/Pebblebrook [North Alabama]) had 14 points and eight rebounds in his return to the state where played his high-school ball, but the Rider University men's basketball team's comeback from down 20 came up just short in a 78-72 loss at the University of Georgia Wednesday night at Stegeman Coliseum. With the loss, the Broncs fall to 5-6, while the Bulldogs reached 10 wins at 10-3 for the fifth time in their 118-year history.

The Broncs absorbed the Bulldogs' initial punch, a 10-0 run to start the game, and saw the lead swell to 12 at 18-6, before whittling the deficit all the way down to five on back-to-back Tariq Ingraham (Philadelphia, PA/Bonner-Prendergast [Wake Forest]) buckets in the final minute of the half. Georgia scored just prior to the halftime buzzer to make it a 37-30 deficit heading into the second half. Ingraham led the Broncs, who committed just four first-half turnovers and were +6 (21-15) on the glass, with eight points.

After Rider again drew to within six, 40-34, early in the second half, Georgia went on an 18-4 run to open a 20-point cushion, 58-38, with 13:53 remaining. The Broncs scored 13 of the next 16 points to cut the deficit in half. After Georgia rebuilt the lead to 15, the Broncs still wouldn't go away, going on a 9-0 run with four different Rider players scoring, capped by two Ingraham free throws. Following a Georgia free throw, the Broncs' run continued to 13-1 to draw to within three at 71-68 with 3:30 remaining. Georgia pushed the lead back to six on a third-chance three-pointer from Jabri Abdur-Rahim with 2:43 remaining, before consecutive James putbacks cut the Georgia lead to just two, 74-72, with 1:01 left.

On the ensuing Georgia possession, the Bulldogs misfired on a deep three, but the long rebound went out of bounds. Initially called Georgia ball, the officials stuck with the call, saying video review was inconclusive. Rider forced another miss, but again, Georgia got the offensive rebound and hit two free throws to extend to a four-point lead. The Broncs misfired on the other end and two more Georgia free throws accounted for the final tally.
 
Quotes & Notes
"I just believe in our guys. I believe that they're going to compete. I believe that they're going to do the things we're asking them to do. We had some breakdowns, but no one dropped their head. Guys just kept competing and battling and we just said, 'four minutes at a time. Play in four-minute segments.' Those guys did it. DJ, Ajiri, Mervin and those guys did a good job of leading the guys and keeping everybody together on the court."

(On Tariq Ingraham) "Tariq was great. He's been practicing a lot better. I think he's getting more comfortable with what we're asking him to do. He needed to get into better shape. You're talking about a young man who hasn't played for two years because of injuries and heart issues. He's finally starting to get his legs up under him. It was great to see that tonight. We're going to need all three of those guys (Ajiri Ogemuno-Johnson, Tyrel Bladen)." – Rider Head Coach Kevin Baggett

- The Broncs and Bulldogs were meeting for the first time on the hardwood.
- Dwight Murray, Jr. (Austell, GA/Pebblebrook [Incarnate Word]) and James were playing their first games as Broncs in Georgia, where they both played for Pebblebrook High School in Mableton, GA.
- Rider is now 2-12 all-time against opponents currently in the SEC. The Broncs' last win came Nov. 13, 2009 at Mississippi State.
- Nine of the 10 Rider players who saw court action scored points, including all nine who attempted a field goal.
- Rider never led for the first time in 11 games this season.

Broncs by the Numbers
- Ingraham scored a team-high 15 points and grabbed seven rebounds. His 15 points are his season high, four off his career high of 19 points (for Wake Forest, Nov. 25, 2020 vs. Delaware State). He made 5-of-7 attempts from the floor and all five of his free-throw attempts.
- Ingraham was the lone Bronc with a positive plus-minus rating, with Rider outscoring Georgia by 13 points in his 20 minutes.
- James added 14 points and a game-high eight rebounds, including four on the offensive glass. He made 6-of-11 attempts from the floor and both of his free-throw attempts.
- Allen Betrand (Philadelphia, PA/Roman Catholic [Towson/Rhode Island]) also scored in double figures for the second-straight game with 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting, including 2-of-5 from long range. He also had a steal and a block.
- Allen Powell (Philadelphia, PA/La Salle College HS) just missed double figures with nine points. He also had five assists and a blocked shot.
- Murray was held below 17 points for the first time this season, contributing eight points, seven assists and two steals in 38 minutes. He didn't commit a turnover in the game.
- The Broncs had nearly a 2-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, with 17 assists to just nine turnovers. However, Georgia also committed nine turnovers and took an 18-9 edge in points off turnovers.
- Rider outrebounded Georgia, 41-35, including a 14-10 edge on the offensive glass, and took advantages of 44-22 and 19-8 in points in the paint and second-chance points, respectively.
- After Georgia took a 56.0 percent (14-25) to 33.3 percent (12-36) edge from the floor in the first half, Rider outshot the Bulldogs, 54.5 percent (18-33) to 36.4 percent (12-33) in the second half. For the game, the Bulldogs (44.8 percent (26-58)) narrowly outshot the Broncs (43.5 percent (30-69)).
- The Bulldogs outshot the Broncs, 52.0 percent (13-25) to 23.5 percent (4-17) from long range.

Up Next
The Broncs return in earnest to MAAC play Saturday, when they begin the league's Western New York weekend against Canisius. With facility concerns at Koessler Athletic Center following this past weekend's blizzard, the game will be played at Niagara's "Taps" Gallagher Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. on ESPN3.