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Buffalo, NY (WGR550) -- The Canisius Golden Griffins bounced back from a tough loss on Thursday with a 73-64 win over the Marist Red Fox on Saturday night at Koessler Athletic Center. The team swept the season series 2-0 against Marist with the win, and advance their Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference record to 3-1. Canisius is 10-5 overall on the season also.
The Griffs got off to a better start than they did Thursday night, thanks to Billy Baron. The junior guard opened the night by hitting back-to-back three pointers to give Canisius a 6-0 lead. Isaac Sosa also hit an early three to help the offense. Baron led all scorers with 15 points in the first half, going 3-5 from behind the arc and 6-8 overall from the field. He also led the team in assists with 4, in 18 minutes of game action. Sosa added 7 points in 17 minutes of play as well. The team shot 14-25 (56%) from the field in the half, including 4-9 (44.4%) from three point range.
Canisius outrebounded the Red Fox 15-12, with 13 of the 15 coming in the defensive end. The Golden Griffins 2-3 zone defense in the first did not allow Marist any second chance points, while giving up just 3 offensive rebounds to their opponent. Chris Manhertz continued to dominate on the glass for the Griffs, with 5 rebounds and 4 points in the first. For Marist, Devin Price led the team in scoring with 9 points in 18 minutes. The Griffs led by as many as 12 in the first, before taking a 36-24 lead into the break.
Sosa picked up where he left off after halftime, knocking down four straight three pointers. The guard's hot start helped the home team open up a 50-34 lead early in the second. The 16 point lead with 16:26 to go was the largest of the game, but the Red Fox would chip away and narrow their deficit to single digits most of the half. Marist shot better than forty percent in the second half, going 14-32 (43.8%) from the field overall and 4-12 (33.3%) from behind the arc. The team had just 1 three point field goal in the opening twenty minutes.
Down the stretch Canisius' 2-3 zone defense did not give up much to the Red Fox. Marist scored just four points in the final 4:17 of the game, and was held scoreless the last 1:48 of the game. Harold Washington's free throw in the final seconds of the game made the score 73-64, where it would finish. The senior contributed 6 points and 3 assists in 34 minutes.
Manhertz finished just the night one point shy of a double-double. The forward scored 9 points and pulled down 14 rebounds, including 6 offensive rebounds. Canisius outrebounded their opponent 38-32 overall, with Manhertz leading the way. Despite 11 points, center Jordan Heath did not have any rebounds in the contest.
Baron notched his second double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 assists. Both of his double-doubles have come against the Red Fox. Sosa led the Griffs in scoring with 22 points, including five more made three pointers for his season total. For Marist, Lewis led the team, and all scorers, with 24 points in 40 minutes. Price scored 16 points and added 4 assists in the losing effort.
The Griffs can now rest up and prepare for a pair of road games, starting with Siena next Friday night. Canisius and the Saints tipoff at seven o'clock from Albany on our sister station WWWS AM-1400. Next Sunday the team travels to Iona for a 2 p.m. tip as well.
Twitter: @PatWGR
Twitter: @PatWGR