JERSEY CITY, NJ – Impressive second half play by the Saint Peter's University men's basketball team led to a 66-52 victory over hOURglass Rival Rider on Friday afternoon at John Moore Athletics Center on the campus of NJCU. The win improved the Peacocks MAAC record to 9-6 on the year and the team's overall tally to 12-8, while Rider dropped to 4-11 in conference action and 4-14 overall.
KC Ndefo continued his offensive tear, leading all scorers with a career-high 22 points.
Matthew Lee was the other Peacock in double-figures with 14 points.
The Basics
Score: Saint Peter's 66, Rider 52
Records: Saint Peter's (12-8, 9-6 MAAC) | Rider (4-14, 4-11 MAAC)
Location: John Moore Athletics Center | Jersey City, NJ
How It Happened
- The opening stanza was the definition of a back and forth affair, producing an astonishing 11 lead changes in the first 20 minutes of play.
- Lee knocked down a mid-range jumper and converted the free throw to put SPU ahead 11-9.
- Through the first 12 minutes of action, there were already seven lead changes after Rider went up 12-11 by the media break.
- Saint Peter's mustered up a small 8-2 run with a pair of layups by the Drame Twins, coupled with back-to-back layups from Marty Silvera and Lee to take its largest lead of the half (19-14) with 6:01 on the clock.
- Four points would be all the Peacocks could score for the rest of the half, trailing by one-point at intermission (24-23).
- The teams continued to exchange points through the opening seven minutes of the second half, with SPU trailing 39-36.
- Over the tilt's next 4:48, Saint Peter's took full advantage of Rider, imposing its will offensively and defensively.
- During the almost five-minute stretch, the Peacocks ran up a 20-3 rally to take a commanding 56-42 advantage.
- Offensively, SPU scored seven of its nine field goal attempts, while adding six freebies at the line.
- On the defensive end, they forced the Broncs into five turnovers and only allowed one made field goal.
- Ndefo was the main catalyst during the run, leading the home side with 11 points.
- Also contributing to the rally were Fousseyni Drame, Silvera, and Noah Kamba, each scoring three points.
- The Peacocks kept the lead above 10 for the remainder of the contest, posting a 66-52 win.
Notes
- Ndefo scored 19 of his 22 points in the second half.
- It was the second time in the last four games that he surpassed 20 points and the fourth consecutive game that he has led the squad in scoring.
- Ndefo added six rebounds and blocked four shots as well.
- Additionally, Ndefo's second block of the game put him at 74 on the season, giving him the program's single season blocked shots record.
- Lee led the team with three assists and three steals in addition to his 14 points.
- In the second half, Saint Peter's outscored Rider 43-28 and shot 50 percent from the floor while holding the Broncs to 33.3 percent field goal shooting (9-for-27) and 18.2 percent three-point shooting (2-for-11).
- The Peacocks also won every in-game battle in the meeting, outdoing their New Jersey foe in rebounds (42-34), points off of turnovers (18-13), points in the paint (42-26), second chance points (17-7), and fast break points (4-3).
- Despite the early seesaw, SPU held a lead for over 28 minutes compared to just 7:07 for Rider.
- Saint Peter's home record this year improves to 8-2 overall and 7-2 in conference play.
Up Next
The Peacocks and Broncs will close out the series in Jersey City tomorrow night at 8pm.
