LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – Mervin James (St. Thomas, USVI/Pebblebrook [North Alabama]), Allen Betrand (Philadelphia, PA/Roman Catholic [Towson/Rhode Island]) and Zahrion Blue (Princeton, NJ/Princeton [Lincoln (Pa.)]) each scored 15 points, but the Rider University men's basketball team was edged by Iona, 80-78, Saturday night at Alumni Gym. With the loss, the Broncs finish the regular season at 16-13 (13-7 MAAC), while the Gaels improve to 24-7 (17-3) with their 11^th-straight win.

A back-and-forth first half ended with Iona leading, 34-32. After the Gaels built a 22-17 cushion on an Anton Brookshire three at the 8:46 mark, the Broncs responded with a 10-0 run, including a pair of Allen Betrand (Philadelphia, PA/Roman Catholic [Towson/Rhode Island]) three's. But Iona scored eight of the final 10 points in the period to take a 34-32 lead into the break. Betrand led the Broncs with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting, including 2-of-3 three-point attempts.

Consecutive buckets from Blue and Allen Powell (Philadelphia, PA/La Salle College HS) gave the lead back to the Broncs just over a minute into the second half, and after Walter Clayton, Jr. hit a three to give the lead back to Iona, Tariq Ingraham (Philadelphia, PA/Bonner-Prendergast [Wake Forest]) scored in the paint to give Rider a 40-39 lead. Another Clayton three-pointer and a Zahrion Blue (Princeton, NJ/Princeton [Lincoln (Pa.)]) lay-up later, the score was tied at 42-42. Clayton scored at the 15:27 mark and the Gaels didn't trail again.

The Broncs kept the game within arm's reach, never trailing by more than six for the remainder of the game, cutting the deficit to one on three occasions. Trailing by two, Rider got a defensive stop on Iona's final offensive possession, but Murray's heave from beyond half court wouldn't fall. Rider shot 74.1 percent (33-61) in the second half. But the Gaels took advantage of nine offensive rebounds in the period to create second chances, where they took an 18-12 edge for the game.

Quotes & Notes
"Good game. MAAC game. I think I might've mismanaged the end of the game, because we didn't foul. That's on me."

(On outlook on the game with seeding already secured) "If (Rick Pitino) was going to throw blow-to-blow, we were going to throw blow-to-blow. I guess they wanted to set a tone and we wanted to send a message back that, if this is going to be the two teams that could potentially play next week, this is what you're going to see again." – Rider Head Coach Kevin Baggett

- The Gaels lead the all-time series, 46-28. The Broncs had won the prior two meetings with a 2022 MAAC Quarterfinal win and a dramatic 71-70 win over the Gaels this past Jan. 15 in New Rochelle to snap Iona's 21-game home winning streak. The loss was the Gaels' only home setback this season. 
- Prior to the game, the Broncs honored their six-member senior class of Betrand, Tyrel Bladen (Coatesville, PA/Coatesville), Blue, James, Murray and Ajiri Ogemuno-Johnson (Delta State, Nigeria/Bonner-Prendergast) on Senior Day.
- The Broncs clinched the No. 2 seed in the MAAC Championships on Thursday night, setting up a meeting with the winner of Tuesday night's second Opening Round game between No. 7 Fairfield and No. 10 Saint Peter's on Wednesday night at 9:30 p.m. from Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.
- Ogemuno-Johnson added a game to his program-record games-played mark, pushing it to 136 career games played.
- The Broncs finish the regular season 8-5 in home games.
- 13 of Rider's 20 MAAC games were decided by five points or less this season, including 11 by three points or less.

Broncs by the Numbers
- James made 6-of-10 attempts from the floor, including 1-of-2 from long range, and connected on both of his free-throw attempts for 15 points. He also added five rebounds, two blocked shots, a steal and an assist.
- Making his second start of the year, both against Iona, Blue scored a season-high 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the floor and 3-of-5 from the free-throw line. His previous season high was seven, accomplished twice.
- Betrand did his damage on 6-of-8 shooting, including 3-of-4 from long range. He hit three three-pointers for the third time this season, but the first since Nov. 18 against Stetson.
- Powell and Ogemuno-Johnson added eight points apiece. Ogemuno-Johnson also grabbed six rebounds.
- Dwight Murray, Jr. (Austell, GA/Pebblebrook [Incarnate Word]) scored seven points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out three assists.
- Ingraham chipped in with six points and six rebounds.
- Rider outshot Iona, 54.1 percent (33-61) to 44.6 percent (29-65) from the floor.
- Iona took a 47.8 percent (11-23) to 38.5 percent (5-13) advantage from long range and a 78.6 percent (11-14) to 63.6 percent (7-11) edge from the free-throw line.
- The Gaels outrebounded Rider, 33-29, including a 16-10 margin on the offensive glass.
- Rider enjoyed a 12-5 edge in points off turnovers, a 44-28 advantage in points in the paint and a 27-9 margin in bench scoring.
- Iona outscored Rider, 18-12, on second chances.
- Iona led for 28:21 of game time to Rider's 5:55 with the lead.
   
Up Next
The second-seeded Broncs will face the MAAC Championship Opening Round winner between No. 7 Fairfield and No. 10 Saint Peter's on Wednesday night at 9:30 p.m. from Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, NJ.