By: Terry Smith
The Manhattan Jaspers took on the The Canisius Golden Griffins, led by head coach Reggie Witherspoon on Sunday Afternoon at the Koessler Athletic Center.
The last time these two teams met, Canisius took the victory over the Jaspers at Manhattan 64-57.
In the first half, both teams started off slow but quickly picked up the pace. Despite the outpour of three point attempts, the shooting percentage between both teams was lackluster, totaling 32%.
As action got underway, the game got out to a fast pace. The Griffs jumped out to an early lead, with a good mix of aggressive play on both ends, in addition to a strong shooting performance.
However, the Jaspers were not going to give up easily, and they soon began to chip away at the lead, using their size and strength to battle for every rebound and loose ball.
Despite the Jaspers' efforts, the Golden Griffins managed to maintain their lead throughout the first half, and they went into halftime with a comfortable margin.
The Jaspers did however, came out strong in the second half, and they quickly closed the gap, setting up a nail-biting finish.
Towards the end of the second half the Griffs had a comfortable lead, but the Jaspers came back and went on a run to tie the game. In Overtime, the Jaspers took advantage and would close out the Griffs with the final score of 81-74. Their balanced attack and relentless defense proved too much for Canisius, and they claimed a well-deserved win.
Jordan Henderson finished with 22 points, knocking down three 3-pointers, alongside Xzavier Long, who contributed 18 Points and 10 Rebounds to the effort.
The Griffs will return to action on Friday, Feb. 3, when the team travels north to meet long-time rival Niagara at the Gallagher Center in Lewiston, N.Y. Game time is set for 8 p.m., and the contest will be broadcast live on ESPN+.