LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – Despite leading for the bulk of the contest, the Saint Peter's men's basketball team squandered the lead late, resulting in a 70-66 defeat to hOURglass Rival Rider on Friday night.
Matthew Lee and
Doug Edert led the Peacocks in scoring with 12 and 10 points, respectively, as Saint Peter's Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) record drops to 3-4 on the season.
What Went Down
- Lee started the game a perfect 3-for-3 from behind the arc, scoring Saint Peter's first nine points as the team jumped out to a 9-6 advantage.
- Quinn Taylor and Hassan Drame followed up with back-to-back triples of their own, helping to extend the Peacock lead to 15-9 eight minutes into the game.
- Ahead 15-11, the Peacocks used a quick 7-0 burst to take the largest lead of the night (22-11) with 9:56 reading on the clock.
- Saint Peter's maintained the lead, with Edert connecting on a pair of threes and a pair of free throws, that would put the Peacocks up 34-30 by halftime. The Peacocks shot over 40 percent from the field and from three in the opening half.
- The Peacocks lead went back up to nine (44-35) points after Lee forced a steal at halfcourt and Edert finger rolled a fast break layup.
- Rider slowly cut into Saint Peter's lead and with 9:53 left in the game, Daryl Banks III made a three-pointer that put Saint Peter's up 56-48.
- By the under eight-minute media break, Rider had cut the game to a single possession, before Saint Peter's relinquished the lead and the game was tied at 58-58 (5:53).
- Although the Peacocks allowed the Broncs to knot the game, the team regained the advantage when Cameron Jones scored on a tough layup through contact, followed by two free throws from Jones that made it a 62-58 lead for the visitors.
- The Broncs would use a 5-0 run and take their first lead since the first half at 63-62.
- Deadlocked at 64-64, Fousseyni Drame grabbed an offensive rebound and laid in the go-ahead shot with 2:31 remaining.
- The Peacocks would go 0-for-2 from the field and turn the ball over three times down the stretch, while Rider scored six points to seal the home victory.
Inside the Numbers
- All 11 Peacocks that saw action, scored at least two points in the game --- the 10th time this season that at least 10 players scored for the team.
- In addition to Lee and Edert, F. Drame scored eight points and grabbed a game-high nine rebounds.
- Taylor and KC Ndefo each scored seven points and Taylor handed out a team-best five assists.
- Saint Peter's led in the game for 31:59, compared to just 5:13 for Rider.
- The Peacocks won the rebounding battle, 33-22, including 10 offensive rebounds which led to 11 second chance points.
Up Next
- Succeeding the three-game road stretch, the Peacocks will remain home for the next four games from Jan. 26 through Feb. 2.
- The four-game home stanza tips on Sunday, Jan. 26 with Niagara.
