ATLANTIC CITY, NJ — Facing an early deficit in Atlantic City, Manhattan men's basketball shifted the tide over the last 10 minutes of the first half and into the opening two minutes of the second half to take a six-point lead in a win-or-go home Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Quarterfinals match-up. However, Iona caught fire in the second half and Manhattan struggled to hit shots for long stretches, falling short by a 77-65 margin to No. 4 Iona.
HOW IT HAPPENED
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Iona came out swinging and took a 14-6 lead by the first media timeout (16:12).
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Masiah Gilyard notched the first six points of the game for Manhattan while bringing a spark of energy.
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Gilyard was relegated to the bench after picking up his second foul at the 13:43 mark of the first half.
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A driving reverse finish for Bender made the Jaspers deficit 12, but Iona continued its crisp offense with four straight points capped by a jumper from Dejour Reaves that pushed the Jaspers deficit up to 16.
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Manhattan turned the game around in the first half with a 16-3 run that spanned six-plus minutes.
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Bender canned back to back threes during that stretch to help give Manhattan new life.
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The Jaspers received a basket from Fraser Roxburgh, and one from Devin Dinkins on a tough finish inside, that shrunk Manhattan's deficit to 29-26 with 3:50 left.
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Roxburgh continued to work hard for points, drawing a foul with one second left and adding a pair of free throws from the line to send the Jaspers into the locker room with a minuscule deficit (33-31).
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Manhattan looked prime for an offensive explosion in the second half and gained momentum with a trio of three-pointers that helped establish its largest lead of the night (42-36).
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Iona's Reaves took control of the game with a stretch of seven straight points that regained a four-point lead for Iona.
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Reaves added four more threes the rest of the way to dig a hole that Manhattan was unable to get out of.
STATS AND NOTES
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Manhattan ends its season 17-13 and 12-9 versus MAAC opponents.
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The overall win total is the Jaspers highest since winning 19 games in 2014-15.
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With earning the fifth seed, Manhattan entered the MAAC Championships with its highest seed since getting fifth in 2017-18.
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Thursday's game was the Jaspers' first double-digit point loss of the season against a MAAC opponent.
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In the regular season series versus Iona, Manhattan outscored Iona by 32 points outside of the first half at Iona on February 21 when the Gaels led by 16 after one.
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Manhattan was +4 for points in the paint and +6 in rebounds in the first half.
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Manhattan outscored Iona in bench points 20-10.
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Dinkins and Robinson each tied the Jaspers' scoring high with 15 points.
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Bender contributed 12 points with two threes.
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Will Sydnor was held to just two points.
QUOTES FROM MANHATTAN
Head coach John Gallagher on the season-ending loss to Iona: "Tonight doesn't erase the steps we made this year. It doesn't erase the year we had. We'll take this pain to propel us forward."
Gallagher: "Just want to make a special note to our seniors, Shaquil Bender and Wesley Robinson, sitting to my right… The way they carried themselves this year and changed the program…This was our best year in ten years and they deserve a lot of the credit."
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