Powell’s late shot, OT flurry leads Rider past Fairfield
Broncs rally to win 5th straight game
FAIRFIELD, CONN. >> Allen Powell doesn’t get many offensive rebounds, but he was in the right place at the right time to get the biggest one of his career.
Not only did Powell force overtime with a putback at the buzzer, he then scored the Rider men’s basketball team’s first seven points in the extra sessions as it went on to beat Fairfield, 78-67, for a fifth straight win on Sunday afternoon at Leo D. Mahoney Arena.
“Once we got to overtime,” coach Kevin Baggett said, “we felt pretty good about things from there.”
With momentum at their back, the Broncs — Powell specifically — jumped all over the Stags in the overtime period. Powell recorded seven of his 16 points to get them going and the defense smothered Fairfield into 2-of-8 shooting and forced a key turnover.
Getting to the OT was the tricky part.
Rider trailed for over 35 minutes and by as many as 11 in the second half, but this team has a knack for hanging around. Even when it looked bleak down by five with 32 seconds left, the Broncs kept pushing.
Dwight Murray Jr. (18 points) hit a 3-pointer to pull them within two, and after Caleb Fields missed the front end of a one-andone, Powell tied the game on Rider’s third attempt at the basket.
“They are always harping on me about getting rebounds,” said the 6-foot-2 Powell. “I was just in the right spot at the right time and was able to get the ball and make the shot.”
Powell has been in a shooting funk after connecting on at least 36% from 3 in each of the last two seasons. He entered play on Sunday averaging 9.7 points on just 27.7% from beyond the arc, and started slowly again.
But a 3-pointer that bounced high off the rim and through the hoop in the second half seemed to get him going. He made a tough reverse layup shortly after that.
The shot at the buzzer and overtime belonged to him.
“Just staying aggressive,” said Powell, who finished 6-of-13 from the field and hit a big 3 in overtime after the teams exchanged baskets to start the period.. “Not trying to lose, wanting to win.”
With nine regular-season games remaining, Rider (119, 8-3) is one game behind first-place Siena and a legitimate contender for the MAAC title.
To stay there, it needs Powell to be the best version of himself.
“He’s not focused on scoring because I asked him to focus on the other things: assists, defending, talking, being a leader,” Baggett said. “If you can do all of those things, then the scoring will take care of itself because we know what he’s capable of. He’s not just a shooter, he’s a complete player coming from where he was three years ago.”
Ajiri Ogemuno-Johnson gave the Broncs big minutes
despite four fouls — he had a putback jam late in overtime and a big block in overtime — to finish with 15 points and eight rebounds and Mervin James added 14 points.
Rider goes for a sixth straight victory on Friday when it hosts Saint Peter’s.
“We got a lot of confidence right now and we believe in ourselves,” Powell said. “We’re just trying to keep it going.”