WASHINGTON, DC – The Marist men's basketball team dropped its season opener at American in overtime, 77-73 on Tuesday night.
 

Summary

• The biggest lead either team had in the first half was four, held by Marist on two occasions.
• With the score tied at 24, Matt Herasme's put-back in the final minute of the first half gave the Red Foxes a 26-24 halftime lead.
• Marist started the second half on a 6-0 run to grab its largest lead at eight.
• The Red Foxes led 36-28 with 17:27 to go after a basket by Raheim Sullivan. Over the next 11:27, American outscored Marist 23-6 to hold its largest lead at nine.
• American was up nine with 2:18 to go, but Ricardo Wright hit three-pointers on back-to-back possessions to bring the Red Foxes within three. A tip-in by Jordan Jones trimmed Marist's deficit to one with 1:06 left.
• With American leading 62-60 and under 20 seconds left in regulation, Jones blocked a shot that Samkelo Cele rebounded. Cele missed a shot at the other end, but Wright followed to tie the game with under 10 seconds left. American did not score on its ensuing possession, and the game went to overtime tied at 62.
• Marist scored the first four points of overtime, and held American scoreless for the first two minutes of the extra period. However, the Eagles rebounded with an 8-0 run to take the lead for good.

 

Stats

• Sullivan led all scorers with 23, a new career high. He also had four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
• Jones finished with 14 points on 7-for-10 shooting with four rebounds and three blocked shots.
• Cele, Herasme, and Braden Bell led Marist with six rebounds apiece.
• Marist shot 4-for-19 (.211) from three-point range and 7-for-12 (.583) from the line. The Red Foxes had five assists and 15 turnovers.
• Stacy Beckton Jr. led American with 18 points, and also had five rebounds and two blocked shots.
• There were 16 lead changes and six ties.

 

Notes

• Sullivan's previous career high was 17 points at Rider on Jan. 22, 2021.
• This is the second straight year Marist started the season with an overtime game.
• Marist is now 2-2 against American all-time. This was the first meeting between the teams since 1999.

 

From Coach Dunne

"Down the stretch, we showed resilience, we came back to put it into overtime," head coach John Dunne said to the Red Fox Network's Steve Eggink in his postgame interview. "We didn't do the things we needed to down the stretch to win. We have to get better at closing out a game."
 

Up Next

• Marist returns to action on Friday at Columbia.
• Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
• The contest will be broadcast live on ESPN+, with free audio on the Red Fox Network.