Box Score RIVERDALE, N.Y. - The Manhattan College men's basketball team took a 68-63 defeat to Siena, in a conference affair at Draddy Gymnasium Saturday evening.
"Give credit to Siena. They were down 10 in both halves," said Coach Gallagher. "As for us, we need to be more mature and find ways to put teams away. We look forward to getting better this week."
Manhattan (6–16, 3-10 MAAC) was led by Seydou Traore who scored 16 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Daniel Rouzan scored 12 points for the Jaspers, while Logan Padgett added nine points and seven rebounds.
Siena (3-21, 2-11 MAAC) was led by Michael Eley who recorded a double-double, scoring 24 points and recording 16 rebounds. Sean Durogordon added 13 points for the Saints.
Manhattan came out of the gates hot, storming to an early 12-2 lead, taking the ball to the hoop with ease. Siena responded with an 11-2 run of their own, making the score 14-13 Manhattan with 11:16 to play in the half. The Saints maintained momentum taking a 22-20 lead with 6:10 remaining. The Siena lead would grow to as large as six, where it remained at halftime, as the Jaspers trailed 37-31.
The Jaspers came out in the second half with a focus on defense, only allowing seven points in the first 11 minutes of second half action, including a 4:30 minute scoreless streak for the Saints. This allowed Manhattan to slowly come back, finally taking back the lead 45-44 with 11:08 remaining. Momentum continued as the Jaspers stretched the lead, all the way up to 57-47 with 7:09 to play.
However, the momentum would flip as the Jaspers went cold, allowing Siena to cut back into the lead, making it a one point game with under three minutes to go. The following Jasper possession resulted in a Siena steal, resulting in a coast-to-coast, and-one layup for Siena, giving them a 60-58 lead with 2:16 to go. Siena continued to pick up big stops, allowing them to raise their advantage to 64-58 with under a minute to play. In the end, Siena connected on enough free throws to secure the victory, 68-63.
Manhattan shot 32.4% from the floor and 20.8% from three-point. They recorded 28 points in the paint and 11 bench points.
Siena shot 41.5% from the floor and 37.5% from three-point. They recorded 26 points in the paint and 21 bench points.
The Jaspers next take the court Friday, February 16th, when they go to New Rochelle to take on conference rival Iona at 7 p.m.
Tickets: To purchase season or individual tickets, visit gojaspers.universitytickets.com. For any questions call 718-862-7297 or email tickets@manhattan.edu.
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