ATLANTIC CITY, NJ (Mar. 13, 2024) – The opening round of the 2024 Hercules Tires Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Men’s Basketball Championship at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall tipped off on Tuesday night with three games. Victorious opening round teams were No. 9 Canisius University, No. 7 Iona University, and No. 6 Niagara University.
 
No. 9 Canisius – 77 | No. 8 Mount St. Mary’s – 61
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
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The Canisius Golden Griffins led from start to finish, in a dominating 77-61 wire-to-wire win over Mount St. Mary’s in the first game of the men’s opening round. Canisius scored 14 of the game’s first 19 points and never looked back. At the half, the Griffs lead grew to double digits, holding a 39-29 edge, before not allowing the Mountaineers to come within single digits over the final 20 minutes of the game.  
 
Canisius Notes and Notables

• Seven of the eight Griffs to log a minute scored at least two points and had at least one assist.
• Tre Dinkins scored a team-high 24 points and handed out a team-most four assists in the winning effort.
• The sophomore duo of Cam Palesse and Devean Williams tallied 19 points and 12 points, respectively.
• Frank Mitchell controlled the glass, pulling in 16 rebounds, while creating havoc on the defensive side of the ball with four steals and two blocks.
• As a team, Canisius shot 54.8 percent from the floor and scored almost half its points in the paint, recoding 36.
• Canisius moves to the next round and will meet No. 1 Quinnipiac in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, March 13 at 6:30 p.m.

 
Mount St. Mary’s Notes and Notables

• The duo of De’Shayne Montgomery and Dakota Leffew combined to score 49 points, while the rest of the team combined for 12 points.
• Montgomery scored a game-high 26 points and Leffew totaled 23 points.
• Leffew added four assists and five rebounds.

 
No. 7 Iona – 60 | No. 10 Manhattan – 57
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
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In a battle between MAAC rivals, Iona outlasted Manhattan, 60-57, in a tightly contested matchup. With four early ties and a trio of lead changes, the Gaels led by as many as seven and held the lead for 19:59 while the Jaspers largest lead of eight points occurred in the first half and the team held the advantage for 15:28. Late in the game, Iona led by five before a three-pointer from Manhattan’s Perry Cowan cut it to 59-57 with 35 seconds to play. The Jaspers would force a crucial turnover and be awarded a pair of free throws with 2.5 second remaining with a chance to tie the game, but ultimately missed both, sealing the Iona win.
 
Iona Notes and Notables

• Idan Tretout dropped a game-high 24 points, hitting 9-of-17 field goals and 5-of-10 shots from beyond the arc.
• Jerimiah Quigley added 17 points with six rebounds and four assists.
• The Gaels turned the Jaspers over 12 times and converted the mishaps into 16 points.
• Iona will clash with No. 2 Fairfield in the quarters on March 13 at 9:00 p.m.

 
Manhattan Notes and Notables

• Jaden Winston led Manhattan in scoring with 17 points
• He also added four rebounds and four assists.
• Shaquil Bender chipped in with 13 points.
• Seydou Traore posted a double-double with 11-points and 11 rebound while also making four steals.

 
No. 6 Niagara – 67 | No. 11 Siena – 65
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
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The opening round concluded with a back and forth thriller between Niagara and Siena, which ended with the Purple Eagles prevailing, 67-65. The lead changed hands 15 total times and there were seven ties. Down the stretch Niagara would hold Siena scoreless for almost four minutes, putting them ahead by a couple. With 10 seconds on the clock, Siena would cut its deficit to two before Niagara missed the front end of a one-and-one allowing the Saints to hoist up a three for the win which didn’t get off in time, resulting in the win for Niagara.
 
Niagara Notes and Notables

• Four Purple Eagles reached double figures with Quandre Bullock leading the way with 17 points, including a 4-for-6 mark from deep. 
• Harlan Obioha finished with 15 points and a team-best eight rebounds.
• Braxton Bayless followed scoring 14 and Yaw Obeng-Mensah added 12 points. 
• Luke Bumbalough recorded a team-high nine assists.
• Niagara won the battle of the boards, 27-26 and scored 38 points in the paint.
• Niagara will face No. 3 Marist in the first game of day two’s quarterfinals on Thursday, March 14 at 6:30 p.m.

 
Siena Notes and Notables

• Siena had a balanced attack, with five Saints scoring double digits, led by Michael Eley’s 15 points.
• Zek Tekin finished with 11 points and two assists.
• The trio of Giovanni Emejuru, Brendan Coyle, and Mason Courtney scored 10 points each.
• Siena led for 24:18 in the setback, more than 14 minutes longer than Niagara.

 
For all information regarding the 2024 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 43rd year of competition during the 2023-24 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius University, 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. Merrimack College and Sacred Heart University will join the MAAC as full members in the 2024-25 academic year, expanding the conference to 13 institutions.
 
Stay up to date with the MAAC on social media by following @MAACSports on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Threads or visit MAACSports.com for all the latest MAAC news.