Feb. 13, 2011
Box Score | Video: Postgame Press Conference
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - Despite sophomore guard Sam Prescott (Philadelphia, Pa.) having the highest-scoring game for a Marist men's basketball player in nearly eight years, the Red Foxes suffered an 85-70 home loss to Iona on Sunday in a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) game. Prescott tallied a career-high 34 points.
Prescott shot 11-for-19 from the field, 5-for-7 from three-point range and a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line in 31 minutes. In addition to scoring 23 of Marist's 37 second half points, he also grabbed four rebounds and blocked two shots on the afternoon. His point total is the highest for a Marist men's basketball player since David Bennett had 42 against Saint Peter's on Feb. 17, 2003.
Sophomore point guard Devin Price (Inglewood, Calif.) shot 6-for-7 from the free- throw line, finishing with 11 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Red-shirt freshman swingman Anell Alexis (Hillsborough, N.J.) contributed 10 points along with five rebounds, two blocked shots and two steals in 28 minutes off the bench, while senior forward Korey Bauer (Whitehall, Pa.) pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds, which also set a season high.
Iona was led by guard Scott Machado, who recorded a double-double for the Gaels with 22 points and 11 assists. Shooting 7-for-13 from the field and 7-for-9 from the free-throw line, Machado also recorded four rebounds and two steals. Guard Rashon Dwight scored 19 points on 7-for-11 shooting from the field and contributed a game-high five steals on the defensive end of the floor. Forward Mike Glover posted 15 points and six rebounds for Iona.
In a game that began with a 14-2 scoring run for Iona, the Red Foxes relentlessly scratched away at Iona's lead, cutting the deficit to just nine points at halftime. Prescott led Marist's charge out the locker room, scoring all seven points inside of Marist's 7-0 run to start the second half. Following Marist's run, Iona responded with a 6-0 run, increasing their lead to eight points. After a timeout, Marist answered with a 6-0 run of its own, once again dragging Iona's lead back down to just two points.
With 10:26 to play, a three-pointer by Prescott brought the Red Foxes to within two again at 60-58. However, that was as close as Marist would come, as Iona then scored the next 12 points of the contest. After that run, the Red Foxes got within seven twice with under three minutes remaining, but the Gaels scored the game's final six points over the last 1:18.
As a team, Marist shot .367 (22-for-60) from the field, .367 (10-for-24) from three-point range, and.941 (16-for-17) from the free-throw line. They also outscored Iona in second-chance points by a 14-11 margin.
Iona shot .525 (31-for-59) from the field, .417 (10-24) from three-point range and .679 (19-for-28) from the free throw line. The Gaels never trailed in the contest. They outscored Marist 50-14 in the paint, 22-5 off of turnovers, 12-4 on fast-break points and 17-13 off the bench.
Marist's 10th straight loss dropped the Red Foxes to 4-23 overall and 3-12 in MAAC play this season; Iona improved to 16-10 overall and 10-5 in the MAAC.
The Red Foxes will next face MAAC foe Fairfield on Wednesday, Feb. 16 at Webster Bank Arena at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport, Conn., before returning home on Saturday, Feb. 19, to host New Hampshire in a Sears BracketBusters game.
