ATLANTIC CITY, NJ (Mar. 9, 2023) – The 2023 Hercules Tires Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Men’s Basketball Championship at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall quarterfinal round opened up on Wednesday with a pair of contests. No. 1 Iona University handled No. 8 Mount St. Mary’s University and defending champion, No. 10 Saint Peter’s scored the biggest upset of the championship by knocking off No. 2 Rider University.
 
No. 1 Iona – 74 | No. 8 Mount St. Mary’s – 54
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
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Top-seeded Iona continued its tear in the MAAC, earning a dominating 74-54 win over Mount St. Mary’s in the quarterfinals. The Gaels led for over 35 minutes in the lopsided victory, their 12th straight win dating all the way back to Jan. 29. In the first half, the Mountaineers scored six of the games’ first nine points, going ahead 6-3. That would be the last lead for the Mount as the Gaels put together a 16-3 run, which then turned into a 27-11 rally, taking a 13-point lead. Mount St. Mary’s would manage to cut the deficit to 33-28 at the half. The Mount stayed within striking distance, trailing by five with 13:34 to play, but from that point on, Iona outscored Mount St. Mary’s 30-15, cruising to the semifinals. Iona had four players in double figures, two of which recorded double-doubles. MAAC Player of the Year, Walter Clayton Jr. led the Gaels with a team-high 21 points and 11 rebounds, while the MAAC leader in double-doubles, Nelly Junior Joseph added another one to his resume with 10 points and 11 rebound of his own. Also reaching double digits were Osborn Shema (17) and Daniss Jenkins (15). Jalen Benjamin was the lone Mountaineer in double figures, scoring a game-high 27 points. Iona moves into the semifinal round on Friday, March 10 and will face the winner of No. 4 Siena and No. 5 Niagara at 6:00pm.
 
No. 10 Saint Peter’s – 70 | No. 2 Rider – 62
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
Box Score (XML)
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Saint Peter’s magic in March carried over into 2023, with the defending MAAC champion upsetting second-seeded Rider, 70-62 on Wednesday night. The first half was all about runs, with the Peacocks scoring the first seven points of the night to jump out to a 7-0 lead. The Broncs responded by using their own 7-0 run to take a 12-11 edge. Rider would then piece together 12 straight, taking its largest lead of the half (32-23) with three and a half to play, before Saint Peter's closed the half outscoring Rider 12-2 to give the Peacocks a one-point lead at the half. Saint Peter's extended its lead to nine at the midway point of the second and maintained a healthy lead until Rider got themselves within one point with 3:56 to play. An 11-4 edge down the final stretch of the game would help the Peacocks pull off the upset. Jaylen Murray dropped another 20-point championship performance, scoring a game-high 22 points, while Jayden Saddler added 11 points and Mouhamed Sow tallied 10 points. For Rider, Mervin James led the way with 13 points, Zahrion Blue contributed 12 points and Dwight Murray Jr. chipped in with 10 points. Saint Peter’s awaits the winner of No. 3 Quinnipiac and No. 11 Marist in the semifinal round on Friday, March 10 at 8:30pm.
 
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.