Rider is pushed aside by Iona in home opener
LAWRENCEVILLE » The one positive about the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference’s back-to-back scheduling is when you lose the first game, you get to try and write the wrong the very next night.
Rider certainly has a lot to think about after Iona came into an empty Alumni Gymnasium and beat the Broncs, 70-56, in the home opener on Friday night.
“If we don’t come out and play with energy, they’re going to walk away with a sweep,” coach Kevin Baggett said. “We have to play with effort — that’s not a skill. We got to be ready to go. We weren’t ready to go.”
Now under the direction of Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino, the Gaels (3-3, 2-1) dominated the game with their defense — something you wouldn’t always say about them even when they were in the midst of their four straight MAAC titles — and cruised to the finish line after building a 17-point second half lead.
Rider (1-4, 1-2) has lost five straight to Iona and 15 of the last 19 dating back to the 2012-13 season.
Nelly Junior Joseph scored 17 of his game-high 19 points in the first half, Isaiah Ross finished with 18 and Asante Gist had 17 for the Gaels.
But it was Iona’s defense that really won it the game. The Gaels’ length gave Rider problems, holding the Broncs to 42% shooting and forcing 16 turnovers.
“If we can play that type of defense and keep our turnovers down,” Pitino said. “We shoot 4-for21 from the 3-point line and 10-for17 from the free throw line, so despite all of that, if you play great defense … you’re going to have your rewards.”
Leading scorer Dwight Murray
Jr. was held to four points on 2-for-9 shooting and although Rodney Henderson Jr. had 13, all of them were in the first half.
“We do have good guards, but we just didn’t play well today,” Baggett said. “None of our guards played well.”
Junior Joseph, a 6-9, 230-pound freshman, did most of his damage during a first half in which he scored 17 points and grabbed five rebounds.
“We came out slow on him and gave him a lot of respect,” junior forward Ajiri Ogemuno-Johnson said. “I’m going to front him as much as I can and play harder than I did today. It’s just heart and pride. He had a lot of points in the first half, but only had two in the second half. That should not be the case in the first half, so tomorrow is going to be a little different.”
Ogemuno-Johnson, to his credit, upped the effort in the second half and finished with a team-high 16 points and eight rebounds.
Still, the Broncs need more from one of their few returning players.
“It’s kind of new to us, but this is
where the maturity comes into play,” Ogemuno-Johnson said. “(Me and Tyrel Bladen) didn’t really play much the last two years, and it’s a big challenge for us. I think we’re up for the challenge, but we got to hurry it up. That’s what maturity is all about, really picking it up big time.”
Rider trimmed a 17-point deficit to nine (55-46) with an 8-0 run at the 7:04 mark, but never got any closer.
“We’re still trying to figure this thing out,” Ogemuno-Johnson said. “It’s a weird season and we’re trying to come together as a team. We’ve played five games now, so it is time for us to go, but at the same time, we’re trying to figure out all the guys.”
NOTES » Baggett said junior guard Malachi de Sousa, who transferred in from Albany, will be eligible to play on Feb. 1 after he makes up credits. De Sousa appeared in 58 games and made 26 starts over two years with Albany. The NCAA announced this week that all transfers are eligible to play this season without sitting out. … Saturday night’s game tips off at 7 p.m.