The Saint Peter's University men's basketball team managed to overcome an eight-point half-time deficit and grab a one-point lead mid-way through the second half before, a 13-3 Canisius run erased the Peacocks' lead and led to a 68-59 defeat.
Today marked the first meeting of the year between the Peacocks and the Griffs. Last year, Saint Peter's swept Canisius by identical scores of 65-61 at home and on the road.
Desi Washington finished with 20 points in the loss, marking the fifth time this season the red-shirt sophomore has finished with 20+. Washington added 5 boards and 2 assists.
Darius Conley recorded his first double-double of the season (10 points, 10 rebounds) in his final contest in the Yanitelli Center.
Fellow senior Yvon Raymond contributed 9 points, going 4-6 from the floor before fouling out with 56 seconds remaining in the contest.
Chris Burke also finished in double-figures for the Peacocks, adding 10 points on 4-8 shooting.
Saint Peter's trailed the visiting Golden Griffins by 8 points at the half-time break; failing to attain a lead at any point in the stanza. The hosts shot just 30% in the half, going 9-30 from the floor and 2-11 from long distance.
An 8-0 Peacock run made it a one-point contest with 6:07 remaining in the first half (21-20), but the Griffs responded with a 10-1 run to enter the half-time break with an eight-point cushion
Chris Burke led Saint Peter's with 8 points in the first half, while Canisius was led by Harold Washington's 10.
While Conley opened the scoring for both teams in the second half to make the score 30-24, the Griffs were able to net five quick points to create an eleven-point advantage (35-24).
The Peacocks chipped away at the deficit over the following eight minutes of play, until back-to-back treys in transition by Washington gave Saint Peter's their first lead of the game (46-45 @ 10:11).
The lead proved to be short lived however, as a free-throw by Canisius' Freddy Asprilla knotted the score at 46 and sparked a 6-0 spurt for the visitors to reopen a six-point lead (52-46).
Canisius expanded their run to 13-3 to get ahead 58-49, until five straight Peacock points brought the hosts within 4 (58-54). A jumper by Canisius' Billy Baron reestablished a six-point edge for the visitors, but a thunderous fast break dunk by Raymond once again made it a four-point game with 1:23 to play.
Raymond would foul out ten seconds later, followed by Chris Burke with 36 seconds to play.
The Golden Griffins closed out the win with a 6-1 run that reopened a double-digit advantage before Chris Prescott scored the last basked of the game.
Overall, Saint Peter's shot 38.6% from the field, 30.4% from three-point range and 66.7% from the line. Canisius shot 40.7%, 23.8% and 57.6%, respectively.
Canisius also had the edge on rebounds; grabbing 39 caroms to the Peacocks' 38. The Griffs committed just 9 turnovers while Saint Peter's made 17.
32 of Saint Peter's points came off the bench, and 26 came in the paint.
Senior Chris Prescott contributed 6 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists.
The Golden Griffins were led Harold Washington's 16 points.
