JERSEY CITY, NJ – Despite a late comeback push for the second straight night, the Saint Peter's University men's basketball team dropped a narrow 51-50 decision to Marist College on Saturday night at John Moore Athletics Center on the campus of NJCU. With the defeat, the Peacocks' MAAC record dropped to 8-6 and the team's overall record fell to 11-8. Marist improved to 10-8 overall and 8-8 in the MAAC.
KC Ndefo,
Doug Edert, and
Daryl Banks III all scored in double-figures to lead Saint Peter's. Marist was led by Jordan Jones who scored 15 points.
The Basics
Score: Saint Peter's 50, Marist 51
Records: Saint Peter's (11-8, 8-6 MAAC) | Marist (10-8, 8-8 MAAC)
Location: John Moore Athletics Center | Jersey City, NJ
How It Happened
- Saint Peter's struggled to find its rhythm in the opening half, taking almost six minutes to score the team's first basket.
- Ndefo slammed an emphatic dunk off a feed from Banks to get the team on the board before he made a layup on the ensuing possession to put the team behind 9-4.
- With eight minutes to play in the half, Marist upped the score to 15-4 over SPU.
- The Peacocks found a modest amount of offense over the next 2:24, having Banks lead the charge with four points, which produced a 6-0 run to pull the deficit to 15-10.
- To close the half, the Red Foxes scored 10, compared to the Peacocks six, to put SPU in a 25-16 hole at the break.
- Saint Peter's sluggish offensive half produced a 5-for-26 field goal output and 0-for-9 shooting from long range.
- The second half comeback push started with a pair of baskets in the paint for Banks.
- After hitting no three-pointers in the first 20 minutes for the second consecutive game, Edert drained a long three to cut SPU's deficit to 29-23.
- Right before the under 12 media break, Edert knocked down another triple, pulling the Peacocks to within four points (34-30).
- Saint Peter's would remain within a two-possession score through the next media, but Marist would eventually take a 46-39 lead with five and a half to play.
- At the 5:11 mark, SPU made a late push at a rally when Fousseyni Drame made a layup, followed by Edert's third trifecta, and a pair of freebies by F. Drame, which tied the game for the first time since 0-0.
- The 7-0 run lasted for 3:13 and knotted the meeting at 46-46 with just over two minutes remaining.
- Marist went up by two after a pair at the charity stripe, but SPU responded with a jumper by Ndefo to tie it at 48-48.
- With 18 seconds left, the Red Foxes connected on a basket, to put the Peacocks behind 50-48, forcing an SPU timeout with 16.3 reading on the clock.
- Out of the timeout, SPU drew up a play which had Matthew Lee finding a cutting Ndefo who threw down a beautiful dunk to even things up again.
- On the game's final possession, Marist was able to draw a foul with 1.2 seconds, converting on the front end of the free throws to take a 51-50 lead.
- Despite having an opportunity to win, Lee's half court heave, hit the right side of the backboard ending the game in a heartbreaking one-point defeat.
Notes
- Ndefo led the Peacocks for the third straight game, scoring a game-high 15 points.
- Edert followed with 13 points on 3-for-7 shooting from deep and pulled in five rebounds.
- Banks scored 12 points, putting him over double-figures for a team-leading fifth consecutive game and led the squad with three assists, and grabbed seven boards.
- It was another night of quality defense between the two defense minded units, both forcing the other into 19 turnovers, holding the other to field goal shooting percentages in the 30's (SPU 34%, Marist 36%) and forcing the opposition to well under 25 percent shooting from behind the arc (SPU 16%, Marist 23%).
- The Peacocks won the battle of the boards (38-32), points in the paint (26-24) and bench points (17-15), while the Red Foxes had the edge in points off of turnovers (14-4) and fast break points (10-4).
- Although the final score was close and the meeting was a tight battle, Saint Peter's never led in the game, only tying the contest three times.
- The Peacocks, Siena, and Marist all sit tied for second place in the MAAC standings with eight wins, but based on tiebreakers, Siena ranks second, the Peacocks remain in third and Marist fourth.
Up Next
After three straight home series, Saint Peter's will head to Hamden, CT for a single contest against Quinnipiac on Wednesday, Feb. 24. The 2020-21 schedule, however, remains fluid and is subject to change.
