NIAGARA UNIVERSITY, NY – Allen Powell (Philadelphia, PA/La Salle College HS) scored a team-high 15 points as the Rider University men's basketball team held off Canisius, 66-64, Saturday afternoon at the "Taps" Gallagher Center. With the win, the Broncs move to 6-6 (3-0 MAAC), while the Griffs are now 2-10 (0-3 MAAC).

After a sluggish start that saw Canisius take an 8-2 lead, the Broncs battled back with valuable contributions from their bench. Tyrel Bladen (Coatesville, PA/Coatesville) got things started with a driving bucket, before Nehemiah Benson (Streetsboro, OH/Lutheran East) grabbed five quick rebounds, completed a three-point play and later knocked with a triple to give Rider the lead, 16-13. Consecutive buckets from Corey McKeithan (Windsor, CT/Windsor) and Allen Betrand (Philadelphia, PA/Roman Catholic) put Rider on top, 22-18, with just over six minutes remaining in the period.

The Griffs tied the game once and kept it close, before Tariq Ingraham (Philadelphia, PA/Bonner-Prendergast [Wake Forest]) scored in the post and Allen Powell (Philadelphia, PA/La Salle College HS) hit a pair of free throws to put Rider on top, 33-28, at the break. Ingraham led Rider with eight points in the period, while Benson and Powell had six apiece. Benson also grabbed five first-half rebounds.

The Broncs built the lead to nine points, 43-34, in the opening minutes of the second half, in large part due to six points from Mervin James (St. Thomas, USVI/Pebblebrook [North Alabama]) on 3-of-3 shooting after James had spent most of the first half on the bench due to foul trouble. Canisius gradually whittled away at the Rider lead until using a 7-0 run capped by a Jordan Henderson three to take its first lead, 54-52 with 10:19 remaining, since 13-11 at the 10:21 mark of the first half. But Rider would score the next four points and never trailed again. James tied the game with a putback of his own miss at the 9:41 mark, before Dwight Murray, Jr. (Austell, GA/Pebblebrook [Incarnate Word]) gave the Broncs the lead with layup after Ingraham found him on a backdoor cut at the 7:23 mark.

Rider pushed its lead to six, before Canisius got it down to two on a Henderson three with less than a second remaining. The Broncs sent a pass the length of the court to James, who caught it and ran out of the clock for the victory. 

Quotes & Notes
"I thought our guys did a good job coming off the Georgia game, where it was a tough loss and then responding and having a day and a half to recover. I'm glad we had the extra day. It was a benefit for us as well. It was good to see some guys step up again. Tariq had another big day. With DJ struggling and Mervin in foul trouble in the first half, AP stepped up. Corey did some good things. Nehemiah Benson came off the bench. Zahrion Blue did some good things. Our bench is starting to come into their own and form the way that we had hoped that they would." – Rider Head Coach Kevin Baggett

- The Broncs lead the all-time series with Canisius, 40-16. The two teams split last season and Kevin Baggett's teams are now 11-9 over the last 11 years vs. Canisius.
- Seven of the last 10 meetings between Rider and Canisius have been decided by two points or less, with the Broncs posting a 4-3 record in those contests.  
- Rider moved to 3-0 in MAAC play for the third time under Baggett. The Broncs' best league start under the 11^th-year Head Coach came in 2018-19, when Rider won its first five league games. Rider also started 3-0 in MAAC play in 2013-14.
- In 26 years in the MAAC, the Broncs have started 3-0 in league play six times (2000-01, 2004-05, 2008-09, 2013-14, 2018-19, 2022-23).
- The game was moved to Niagara due to the ongoing clean-up efforts in and around the Canisius campus due to last weekend's blizzard.

Broncs by the Numbers
- Powell finished with a team-high 15 points. He hit just 4-of-12 attempts from the floor, but made 6-of-7 at the free-throw line.
- James added 12 points on 6-of-7 from the floor to go along with seven rebounds. He made us for his only misfire on the day, grabbing the offensive rebounds and laying it back in.
- Ingraham also had 12 points and five rebounds, hitting all five of his attempts from the floor and hitting a pair of free throws to make it a two-possession game with 13 seconds remaining.
- Benson matched his season high with six points, while grabbing a season-high seven rebounds. He made 2-of-3 attempts from the floor, including a conversion on his only three-point and free-throw attempts. Five of his rebounds came on the offensive glass as Rider took a 14-10 edge on the offensive boards.
- Ajiri Ogemuno-Johnson (Delta State, Nigeria/Bonner-Prendergast) chipped in with seven points and four rebounds.
- Murray and McKeithan led the Broncs with three assists apiece.
- Zahrion Blue (Princeton, NJ/Princeton [Lincoln]) was a team-best +13 in his 12 minutes, contributing two points and five rebounds, including three on the offensive glass.
- The Broncs outshot the Griffs, 43.1 percent (25-58) to 40.6 percent (26-64) from the floor.
- The Griffs took a 29.7 percent (11-37) to 13.3 percent (2-15) edge from long range, while Rider easily outshot the Griffs, 77.8 percent (14-18) to 12.5 percent (1-8) from the free-throw line.
- The Broncs finished +15 on the glass at 46-31.
- Rider outscored Canisius, 42-30, in the paint.
- The Broncs turned the ball over an uncharacteristic 15 times, leading to a 16-6 Canisius edge in points off turnovers.
- Rider's bench outscored that of Canisius, 26-10.

Up Next
The Broncs wrap up their week-long road trip Monday afternoon at Niagara. Opening tip from the Gallagher Center is scheduled for noon.