ATLANTIC CITY, NJ (Mar. 8, 2023) – The opening round of the 2023 Hercules Tires Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Men’s Basketball Championship at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall began on Tuesday evening with a trio of contests that featured two games ending with the lower seeded side earning upset wins. No. 8 Mount St. Mary’s University edged No. 9 Canisius College in an overtime thriller to tip off the championship, defending MAAC Champion, No. 10 Saint Peter’s used a dominating second half to upset No. 7 Fairfield University, while Marist College became the fifth 11 seed in league history to secure a win in the championship field.
 
No. 8 Mount St. Mary’s – 67 | No. 9 Canisius – 66 OT
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
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The opening men’s game was nothing less than a thriller, with MAAC newcomer Mount St. Mary’s starting its tenure in the MAAC 1-0 in the league championship following a 67-66 overtime win over Canisius. The two sides went toe-to-toe in the first half and played close in the early goings until midway through the half when the Golden Griffins opened up an 11-point advantage after Xzavier Long hit a three-pointer off a dish from Tahj Staveskie. By the half, Canisius would lead the Mountaineers 33-26. After falling behind by nine to start the second half, Mount St. Mary’s compiled a 27-11 rally which featured a 9-0 run, taking a 53-46 lead with 10:04 to go. With just over three minutes left and the Mount ahead by seven, the Griffs would ratchet up their defense and hold the Mount to just two points over that timeframe, scoring nine of their own, including a game-tying triple by Jordan Henderson with 24 seconds remaining. In the extra period, Canisius built its lead to three, using a 5-0 spurt, but the Mount closed out the contest with back-to-back baskets in the paint, while the Griffs missed on a go-ahead layup and a three at the buzzer. Leading the Mountaineers was Dakota Leffew with his team leading 15 points, Jalen Benjamin added 13 points, and George Tinsley recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. For Canisius, Henderson led all scorers with a game-high 20 points, Staveskie finished with 14 points, and Long posted a 12 and 12 double-double. Mount St. Mary’s moves on to the quarterfinals earning a matchup against Regular Season Champion and No. 1 Iona University at 7:00pm on Wednesday night.
 
No. 10 Saint Peter’s – 70 | No. 7 Fairfield – 52
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
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Defending MAAC Champion, the Saint Peter’s Peacocks continued its postseason MAAC success, picking up a 70-52 upset victory over Fairfield in the first round on Tuesday night. The Stags never trailed in the opening stanza, gaining a lead as high as nine points on two separate occasions. With less than five minutes on the clock, the Peacocks outscored Fairfield 11-2, powered by an 8-0 run to close the half, knotting the game at 28-28. Saint Peter’s Jaylen Murray would score all eight of the Peacock’s points during the run, hitting a pair of triples along the way. The Peacocks would carry that momentum right into the second half, scoring 15 of the first 20 points over the course of nine minutes, taking a double-digit lead at 43-33. Nine would be the closest Fairfield could get the rest of the night as Saint Peter’s built leads as large as 17 points twice, before its largest advantage of night (18 points) with the final score. Murray finished with a season-high 23 points, to lead all other players. Isiah Dasher scored 13 points and Kyle Cardaci added 11 in the victory. Fairfield had two players surpass double-figures, with Chris Maidoh leading the way with 12 points and Allan Jeanne-Rose totaling 10 points. Saint Peter’s will advance to Wednesday’s quarterfinal round, with a meeting against No. 2 Rider on the docket at 9:30pm.
 
No. 11 Marist – 61 | No. 6 Manhattan – 50
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
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Marist used a strong first half effort to knock off Manhattan, 61-50. Marist become the fifth 11 seed in the men’s field in MAAC history to advance pass the opening round, joining Quinnipiac (2022), Rider (2021), Marist (2015), and Niagara (2014). The Red Foxes were red hot in the opening 20 minutes, leading to a wire-to-wire triumph. With 6:38 on the clock, Marist led by a slim 18-17 margin, but from that moment on, the team did not surrender a single point, holding Manhattan scoreless the rest of the way. In addition to holding Manhattan without a basket, Marist scored 18 points of their own over the six plus minutes to take a commanding 36-17 lead into the locker room. The Red Foxes made 42.4 percent of their field goals and 46.2 percent of their shots from beyond the arc, compared to 25 percent and 21 percent for the Jaspers, respectively. Manhattan battled back in the second half, as the team has done so often recently. The Red Foxes put themselves ahead by 20 (39-19), but the Jaspers responded with a 25-9 run right up until the 4:42 mark of the game, trailing 48-44. Despite the valiant effort from the Jaspers, four points would be the closest the team got, as Marist pulled off the upset victory. Patrick Gardner put together a double-double, scoring 22 points and grabbing 11 rebounds to lead Marist. Manhattan’s duo of Ant Nelson, who scored 15 points, and Josh Roberts, who totaled 11 points and 14 rebounds, led the way for the Jaspers. Marist plays next in the quarterfinals on Thursday, March 9 at 7:00pm facing No. 3 Quinnipiac University.
 
For all information regarding the 2023 Hercules Tires MAAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships, please visit MAACSports.com/basketball and by following @MAACHoops and #MAACHoops on Twitter.
 
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 11 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 42nd year of competition during the 2022-23 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius College, Fairfield University, Iona University, Manhattan College, Marist College, Mount St. Mary’s University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.
 
Stay up to date with the MAAC on social media by following @MAACSports on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram or visit MAACSports.com for all the latest MAAC news.