JERSEY CITY, N.J. – The Saint Peter's men's basketball team (3-4) started conference play with a 69-57 victory over Canisius (4-5) Friday night at Run Baby Run Arena. The Peacocks opened the second half with a 20-4 run, helping them secure their first conference win of the season.
"That was a hard-fought battle against a much, much, much improved Canisius team from a year ago," head coach
Bashir Mason said after the conference opener. "I'm really proud of my guys tonight on the defensive side of the ball. I thought we did a great job of executing our game plan, understanding what their sets were and trying to take them out of it. We did a good job of switching from man to zone which kept them off balance a little bit. So I'm happy about the win."
The Saint Peter's defense was all over Canisius from start to finish tonight, serving as the difference maker in the matchup. The Peacocks held the Griffs to just 57 points, which is the lowest output by a Saint Peter's opponent all season.
Guards
Bryce Eaton and
TJ Robinson dropped a team-high 14 points each, with
Brent Bland right behind with 12. While Bland struggled from the field, he made his impact felt by grabbing eight boards and four steals.
Another pair of impactful players for the Peacocks were
Elijah Perkins and
Zaakir Williamson who both returned from injuries tonight. Perkins made several plays on both ends of the floor and his experience helped calm the team. Williamson finished the day with eight points on 4-for-6 shooting from the field.
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST HALF: The beginning of the game was extremely competitive as both teams fought to a 15-15 tie, with the largest lead for each team being three points. The Peacocks began to gain some separation with under eight minutes to go after a layup by
Lucas Scroggins put them up 24-18. Canisius ended the half on a positive note, outscoring Saint Peter's 9-2 as the Griffs tied the game 32-32 going into halftime. The Peacocks outshot Canisius from the field 40.7 percent (11-for-27) to 33.3 percent (10-for-30) over the first 20 minutes.
SECOND HALF: Saint Peter's opened the second half returning the favor of a 9-2 run with the help of two 3-pointers by Bland. The run put the Peacocks up 41-34 after the first four minutes of the half. Another Saint Peter's 3-pointer, this time by Eaton, gave the Peacocks a 10-point advantage. With just under 12 minutes left, the Peacocks turned their 9-2 run into a 20-4 run to open the half. Saint Peter's defense suffocated the Griffs and turned Canisius errors into 17 points off turnovers. The Peacocks held on for a 12-point win, 69-57.
UP NEXT
The Peacocks continue conference play on Sunday against Niagara at 2 p.m. ET.
NOTES
Saint Peter's moves to 42-52 all-time vs. Canisius and 19-25 against the Griffs at home…with his four steals, Bland entered the top 10 in the nation in steals per game this season…Eaton scored a season-high 14 points…Saint Peter's led for 73.6 percent of the game…the Peacocks scored 17 points off turnovers and 18 fastbreak points.
