Elton Frazier (photo courtesy of Canisius athletics)

By Paul Casey Gotham

BUFFALO, N.Y. — What is the true value of timing? The Canisius Golden Griffins hope to find that answer.

Elton Frazier led three Golden Griffins in double figures with 14 as Cansius thumped the St. Peter’s Peacocks 59-45 in Metro-Atlantic Athletic Conference matinee action at the Koessler Athletic Center on Sunday.

After losing three of four all by single digits, the Griffs look to be catching their stride at the right time with a weekend sweep and four wins in five games.

“The old adage, you want to be playing your best basketball…,” head coach Tom Parrotta commented. “I thought we’ve kind of really labored to a couple of different points, but I do like the direction this is going. This was clearly another step in the right direction.”

The Griffs opened the game with an 11-0 run and closed it on a 13-5 string. In between, the blue and gold defense suffocated St. Peter’s.

Frazier found Belardo along the baseline on a flex cut and the Griffs led 2-0.

Two possessions later, Greg Logins stepped out from the block to set a ball screen for Julius Coles on the right perimeter. As the Peacock defender adjusted to the screen, Coles drilled a three.

Coles grabbed a defensive rebound at the other end, and busted it up the court in transition where he led Belardo to an open spot for another three-ball.

The Peacocks took advantage of 9-of-16 shooting from the free throw line to outscore the Griffs 18-14 for the remainder of the half.

Canisius opened the second stanza with a set play. Greg Logins relocated the ball from the right post to Coles who weaved his through the defense and finished with his left.

St. Peter’s responded with a basket.

Alshwan Hymes fed Frazier in the post and Canisius led 29-20.

Tomas Vazquez-Simmons broke snapped a 7-0 Peacock run with his first shot of the game – a three from the right corner.

Frazier followed with a jump hook from the right baseline.

Hymes hit a catch and shoot three from the right corner, and Canisius led by ten, 37-27.

But the second-place Peacocks would not go away.

Darius Conley finished a lay up on the fast break. Wesley Jenkins came off a ball screen and knocked down a three. Conley struck from 15 feet. Jeron Belin connected on a pair of free throws, and St. Pete’s trailed by three.

The Griffs imposed their will for the remainder of the game.

Greg Logins connected awkwardly with the shot clock about to expire. After one of his shots was blocked out-of-bounds. The griffs ran a play from the baseline. Logins got the ball from 12 feet just outside the paint. Again, his initial shot was blocked, but he regained possession of the ball and directed it toward the basket.

“I just chucked it up there,” Logins said with a smile. “I didn’t even know it was going to go in. It happened to go off the backboard. It was unbelievable.”

The senior forward continued with his “magic senior dust,” as Parrotta called it, hitting another shot just before the horn sounded.

“It was just a couple of seconds left, and I was just trying to get the ball up on the rim. That’s what happened they both went in.”

The Griffs sealed the victory hitting 7-of-8 in the game’s final minute.

Canisius outrebounded St. Peter’s by one 43-42. The Griffs set a school record holding the Peacocks to 22.4 percent from the floor.

“Canisius outplayed us in every facet,” St. Peter’s coach John Dunne commented. “We were settling for a couple of pull-up jumpers when we probably should have been taking the ball to the basket. The good teams find a way. They beat us. They flat-out played harder, tougher. They’re good at home.

Belardo and Logins added 11 and 10 points respectively. Logins, Frazier and Belardo all grabbed seven rebounds.

Frazier finished with zero points and five rebounds when the Griffs lost at St. Peter’s on January 3rd by a score of 63-55.

Reggie Groves had a game-high five assists.

Jenkins and Belin led St. Peter’s with 11 points. Belin and Ryan Bacon each had nine boards.

The Griffs played their third game without senior Robert Goldsberry who was hit in the head during the Niagara game on January 28th.

Canisius improves to 6-7 in the MAAC and sits just one game out of sixth. The top six teams earn a first-round bye in the upcoming MAAC tournament.  The Griffs travel to Rider on Friday.

Julius Coles battles Derek Needham for rebounding position. Photo by Fr. J. Bucki

By Paul Casey Gotham

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Tom Parrotta and the Canisius Golden Griffins know all too well the discomforts that come with the quest for self-awareness.

In the past twelve days, Parrotta and his Golden Griffins have had the chance to learn how they measure up with the top of the Metro-Atlantic Athletic Conference. After three close losses the Griffs know what is within their reach.

Derek Needham scored a game-high 19 points, and the Fairfield Stags won the war on the boards defeating the Griffs 67-60 in MAAC action Friday night at the Koessler Athletic Center.

Chris Manhertz gave the Griffs a 47-44 edge with 11:37 remaining. The freshman took a pass from Alshwan Hymes and muscled through Fairfield’s Ryan Olander and Keith Matthews. After trailing for much of the first half, the Griffs looked poised to knock off the first-place Stags. The Blue and Gold had sustained an early surge, and Hymes exposed the Fairfield defense with his drive into the paint and dish to Manhertz.

The Stags responded with a 12-0 run over the next nine minutes.

“We got good shots around the basket. Just couldn’t get one to fall,” Parrotta commented. “I thought our defense was good at the other end. They didn’t score either. I think their first point in that stretch was a free throw. The one stat that we talked about over and over again is the rebounding. We gave up 18 offensive rebounds and got out-rebounded on the whole by 15, and you lose to the first-place team by seven.”

Fairfield used the advantage on the boards to score seven second-chance points in the first half to none for the Griffs. Canisius responded after the break with a 15-4 edge in second opportunities. But the Stags’ tenacity on the offensive glass resulted in a 15-11 difference at the free throw line.

“You can’t give a team 18 offensive rebounds. It’s totally unacceptable.”

Despite the drought, the Griffs made a late charge.

Tomas Vazaquez-Simmons rebounded his own miss for two of his nine points and Canisius trailed 56-49.

Needham stretched the lead with his fourth three of the night. Vazquez-Simmons grabbed another offensive rebound and was fouled in the process hitting his two from the charity stripe.

Trailing late, the Griffs were forced to foul, and the teams exchanged points for the next forty seconds.

Needham knocked down a pair from the charity stripe. Hymes responded with a lay up. Olander hit two from the line. Gaby Belardo broke free and tipped in a Hymes miss from behind the arc.

Then came a pair of misses by Needham. Vazquez-Simmons corralled the board. Belardo got in the lane, but his shot rimmed out. Again, Vazquez-Simmons was there for the rebound. This time he kicked it to Robert Goldsberry for the open three and Canisius trailed 63-58.

Full court pressure resulted in a turnover, and Canisius had a chance to make it a one-possession game, but the Fairfield defense was equal to the task.

“This has been the toughest opponent in the league that we’ve played,” Fairfield coach, Ed Cooley commented. “They’ve had some very close games in our league and just haven’t been fortunate to get over the hump in some of them,” Cooley noted of the Griffs’s recent loss at the buzzer to second-place Rider and the four-point defeat at reigning conference champ, Siena.  “This is a dangerous team, this Canisius team. Very-well coached. Physical as all giddy out.”

Needham staked the Stags to an early lead. The Bob Cousy Award list candidate nailed a trio of threes in the game’s first six minutes as Fairfeld jumped to an 11-to-5 lead.

Belardo paced the Griffs with 15, and Greg Logins added 12.

Fairfield’s Yorel Hawkins grabbed a game-high 10 boards to go with 11 points. Olander finished with 15 points and nine rebounds. Lyndon Jordan added 10 for the Stags.

Vazquez-Simmons led the Griffs with seven rebounds. Elton Frazier blocked three shots. Vazquez-Simmons had two rejections.

Canisius hosts Iona on Sunday. The Gaels come into the game tied with Fairfield atop the MAAC. Iona defeated the Griffs 94-85 in the conference opener for both teams.

Elton Frazier and Julius Coles

By Paul Casey Gotham

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Tommy Dempsey knows better than to fight a good thing.

The Rider University coach and his Broncs brought a five-game win streak with them to 1833 Main Street, Buffalo. So when his team fell behind 9-0 early, the fifth-year coach let the game take its course.

Little did anyone know that this game would take so many twists and turns.

Novar Gadson capped a wild afternoon with a rebound and put-back as time expired, and the Rider Broncs rallied to defeat the Canisius Golden Griffins 77-76 in Metro-Atlantic Athletic Conference action at the Koessler Athletic Center, Sunday.

Gadson’s lay-up ended an unlikely series of events giving the Broncs their second conference win of the weekend.

The Griffs appeared to have secured the game just moments before when Gaby Belardo grabbed a defensive rebound and broke into the open court. As the red-shirt sophomore began his lay up, he was fouled from behind drawing a whistle. The made basket was called off, and Belardo went to the line for one-and-one instead of shooting two for an intentional foul. When Belardo’s free throw rimmed out the Broncs took advantage for the game-winner.

“Certainly feel fortunate to be getting back on the bus with a win because for most of the day it didn’t look like it was going to go in that direction,” Demspey said. “I thought Canisius played a terrific game. They executed very well. They made big shots after big shots. It was certainly an emotional game.”

After the Griffs jumped to an early advantage the lead changed hands three times in the game’s final five minutes.

Elton Frazier found Julius Coles with an inside-out pass, and the 6’4″ guard kept the ball moving to Belardo who hit a three from the top of the arc to tie the score at 71.

Danny Stewart gave the Broncs the lead back with a free throw. Jonathon Thompson made it 75-71 with a lay-up and free throw.

With the shot clock winding down, Coles brought the Griffs back within one using a step-back three from the top of the arc.

Canisius regained the lead at 76-75 when Alshwan Hymes found Coles on a flex cut for a lay up.

The Griffs looked to have secured victory when Tomas Vazquez-Simmons swatted Justin Robinson’s running one-hander, but it barely eluded Frazier chasing down the loose ball. Canisius forced the Broncs into another difficult shot that caromed off the rim and out-of-bounds with the possession surprisingly going back to Rider.

“We’re coming into our own a little bit. I thought we played pretty hard and competed,” Tom Parrotta commented. “We did a lot of good things, but they did one thing better, and that was difference in the game. When you got a team like that gets six, seven, eight, nine chances, they’re going to break you at one time or another.”

Greg Logins staked the Griffs to the lead scoring five points in the game’s first six minutes. The senior forward hit a free throw line jumper and two possessions later with a three from the top of the arc. Logins finished with 18 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

Coles led all scorer with 30 including 3-6 from behind the arc. The senior also grabbed five rebounds and had three assists.

Elton Frazier added 12 points and six rebounds. Robert Goldsberry scored six and handed out nine assists.

Belardo scored seven and had five assists.

Justin Robinson paced the Broncs with 19 points and eight assists. Mike Ringgold chipped in 17, and Novar Gadson had 16.

The Broncs out-rebounded the Griffs 37-32 including a 15-11 edge in offensive rebounds.

“It’s our intention to keep getting better,” added Parrotta. “We’re clearly not there yet. We haven’t performed up to expectations.”

Rider improves to 12-5 and 4-1 in the MAAC.

Canisius falls to 1-4 in conference play and 7-8 overall. The Griffs travel to Manhattan on Saturday.

By Paul Casey Gotham

BEAUMONT, Texas — The Canisius Golden Griffins stared an unflattering trend in the face. Entering play Tuesday night, the Griffs were 0-4 when trailing at the half. After taking an early 10-4 lead, the Griffs found themselves behind 32-30 going into the break.

It was time to put an end to the streak.

Tomas Vazques-Simmons and Alshwan Hymes led a second half comeback as the Canisius Golden Griffins defated the Lamar Cardinals in a non-conference match-up 78-72.

Vazques-Simmons and Hymes saved their production for latter stanza. The two contributed zero points before the horn and 22 points in the second frame.

Leading by three, Hymes connected on consecutive possessions – first with a jumper from the right side and then a 3 to pace the Griffs. Hymes picked off an errant pass at the other end of the floor, Elton Frazier followed with two of his 22 points. Two possessions later, Frazier fed Hymes. The sophomore nailed another trifecta, and Canisius had their largest lead of the game 61-51.

Vazques-Simmons brought the game home. The senior forward combined with Gaby Belardo on a pair of pretty pick and roll plays. First, Belardo led Vazques-Simmons for a lay up. On the ensuing possession, Frazier corralled a Belardo and slammed it home. Vazques-Simmons all but sealed the victory on the next play when he stepped back from a ball screen and knocked down a three-pointer to give the Griffs a 69-59 lead with four minutes remaining.

Vazques-Simmons finished with 14 points.

Frazier led the way with 22 points including a pair of clutch one-and-one free throws in the game’s final minute. It was the senior’s second 22-point performance in a row. Frazier has scored in double figures in each of Canisius’s last four games.

Julius Coles registered a career and game-high 12 rebounds. The Griffs controlled the glass 45-33.

Marial Dhal made his presence felt with just 10 minutes of playing time. The seven-footer from Uganda pulled down three rebounds and blocked two shots.  In a 20 second sequence Dhal rejected Vincenzo Nelson’s jumper, grabbed the rebound and kept the play going at the opposite with an offensive board. Belardo took advantage and hit a three-pointer.

Lamar came into the game leading the Southland Conference and ranked third in the country scoring 89 points per game. Mike James and Donley Minor came off the bench to lead the Cardinals with 13 and 12 points apiece.  Anthony Miles was a perfect 8-8 from the free throw line and also scored a dozen.

Canisius improves to 5-6 with the win.The Griffs ended a two-game skid. Canisius fell at Northwestern State Sunday evening 86-74 in a game where the Griffs were whistled for 31 personal fouls. Greg Logins scored 17 points before fouling out after 12 minutes of play. The senior became the 30th in program history to top the 1,000 point plateau.  The Griffs get a chance at payback when Northwestern State visits the Koessler Athletic Center on December 29th.

Greg Logins with Tomas Vazquez-Simmons in the background.

By Paul Casey Gotham

VESTAL, N.Y. – Tom Parrotta and his Canisius Golden Griffins spent the past seven days contemplating their season. After a demoralizing loss to a cross-town rival, the Griffs knew what was needed.

Stingy defense. Check.

Patient offense. Check.

Relentless rebounding. Check.

Elton Frazier finished at the rim. Alshwan Hymes connected from long distance. Greg Logins did his work in between, and the Canisius Golden Griffins held off a late rally to defeat Binghamton University 55-45 at The Events Center.

Logins started a 10-0 first-half run with a 3 from the corner assisted by Robert Goldsberry. After a Binghamton turnover, Gaby Belardo dished to Frazier for the lay up. One minute later, Goldsberry again found Logins – this time for a deuce. Hymes capped the run with a three from the corner, and the Griffs held a 20-10 advantage.

Canisius outscored Binghamton 8-2 in the final five minutes of the half for a 28-12 advantage.

The Griffs held the Bearcats to 22 percent shooting from the field in the first stanza.

Hymes and Logins displayed the Blue and Gold’s defensive intensity when the duo combined to take a charge just five minutes into the game.

Frazier made all four of his field goals before the break.

Canisius extended its lead to 18 with 14 minutes remaining on the game clock.

Frazier hit a jumper in the lane. Julius Coles finished a lay up then found Hymes for another trifecta and Canisius led 36-18.

Despite hitting just 14 shots from the field Binghamton scratched their way back into the game. After failing to get to the free throw line in the first half, the Bearcats hit 14-18 in the second half drawing as close as seven, 50-43, with just over a minute remaining.

Goldsberry iced the game with a pair of free throws, and Frazier added one more for insurance.

“We’re still making the transition from scoring when running full court and having to grind it out in the half court,” associate head coach Rob Norris said. “We still need to be aggressive while grinding it out. Against Bonaventure we scored early in the shot clock. That doesn’t always happen. We missed a lot of chippies around the basket.”

Frazier led the Griffs with 13 points on 5-10 shooting. The senior from Syracuse, New York corralled seven rebounds. Hymes went 4-8 from behind the arc. Canisius shot 7-12 from long range. Logins added nine points and six rebounds. Tomas Vazquez-Simmons led all with nine boards. The Griffs out-rebounded Binghamton 37-28.

The win comes one week after a disheartening 81-64 loss to the University of Buffalo. Canisius opened the season with an 80-70 triumph over St. Bonaventure.

Binghamton’s Greer Wright led all scorers with 23 points.

The game was the first of four on the round for Canisius. The Golden Griffins open Metro-Atlantic Athletic Conference play Friday night at New Rochelle against the Iona Gaels.

With the win Canisius improves to 3-2 on the season.

Frazier and Coles Photo by Fr. J. Bucki

By Paul Casey Gotham

BUFFALO – What goes around comes around. Unfortunately, Tom Parrotta and Canisius Golden Griffins men’s basketball team know the emotions experienced from both sides of that old saying.

Senior, Byron Mulkey had a career-best game as the UB Bulls dismantled the Canisius Golden Griffins 81-64 in a cross-town rivalry game at the Koessler Athletic Center Tuesday night.

Mulkey was a perfect six for six from the field including one 3 and two of two from the free throw line as the Bulls shot 64 percent and grabbed a 42-29 advantage at the half.

“He has a great stat line,” said 12th-year UB head coach Reggie Witherspoon considering his point guard’s output for the game. “The one that might be as big as all of them is controlling the tempo of the game. He controlled their press pretty well. He slowed the thing right down to the pace he wanted it to be at.”

“He was a great quarterback out there,” Parrotta commented on Mulkey. “He made shots, he got people the ball where they needed to get it. He was great tonight.”

Down 13 at half, the Golden Griffins came out and scored the first six of the second half.

Julius Coles hit a pull up jumper from the left side. The senior from Harlem, New York followed with an upfake and drive for a lay up. Tomas Vazquez-Simmons made it 42-35 with a rebound and putback. Coles picked Mulkey’s pocket on the next possession, but the Griffins could not convert, and seven was as close they would get.

UB only grabbed one offensive rebound in the first half – the result of missing just nine shots in the stanza. After the break, UB reigned in 10 boards on the offensive end.

“They beat us up on the glass,” commented Parrotta. “Win the battle of the boards, and we win the game.”

Three Griffs, Elton Frazier, Greg Logins and Vazquez-Simmons each pulled down five rebounds, but the Bulls won the battle of the boards 36-25.

Canisius took a hit in the paint when Frazier was whistled for his second foul less than three minutes into the contest. The senior played just 19 minutes for the game.

“That really hurt us,” Parrotta commented about his senior’s early foul troubles. “He does clean up a lot of things. If there’s balls bouncing , he’s the first off his feet and he’ll go up and get it.”

“They outplayed us,” Parrotta continued. “There’s no way around it. Half of me wants to burn the tape,” Parrotta said about the game film. “Half of me wants to say, you know what we got to learn from it.”

Canisius made just 11 shots in the first half.

“They did a good job of keeping us on the perimeter,” Parrotta noted. “We were settling for jump shots and hoping they would go in.”

The win was UB’s largest margin of victory in the series since a 40-23 victory in 1915. Canisius beat UB 73-71 a year ago. Saturday, the Griffs knocked off Eastern Michigan 71-51 to avenge last year’s defeat to the Eagles.

With the loss, the Griffs fall to 2-2. Canisius heads out on the road after the Thanksgiving holiday. The Griffs travel to Binghamton Tuesday before opening Metro-Atlantice Athletic Conference play at Iona on Friday the third.

Frazier battles C.J. Fair (5) and Joseph

By Paul Casey Gotham

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – With sixteen and change remaining in the second half of Sunday afternoon’s upstate New York basketball clash at the Carrier Dome, Jim Boeheim put his right fingertips into his left palm signaling for a timeout. The Syracuse Orange coach had seen enough.

Greg Logins had knocked down his fourth three of the afternoon, and the Canisius Golden Griffins pulled to 41-37 with an 8-2 run. The game teetered in balance.  For the third time in 25 minutes of play, Canisius sustained a Syracuse run and continued battling.

Whatever Boeheim said in the huddle, the Orange comprehended it.

Brandon Triche hit a three on the ensuing possession.  Rick Jackson followed with a jumper in the lane as Syracuse went on an 8-0 run en route to an 86-67 victory in a non-conference match up.

“They have another gear that they get to, and they really know when to turn it on,” said Canisius coach, Tom Parrotta. “I think they saw that we were coming back and making some plays, and they turned  it into one of those gears that I think nobody else has in the country. They just have that aura about them that they can do it.  Ultimately, they just wore us down.”

After connecting on just 12 of 39 shots in the first half, Syracuse shot 52.5 percent in the second stanza to outscore the Griffs 54-38.

Triche scored 13 of his 16 points in the second half while Jackson added 11 of his 17.

“Brandon came out aggressive in the second half,” said Boeheim. “He’s got to look for his shot. When he gets it, he’s got to take it.”

The sophomore hit a trio of threes in the final twenty minutes and finished with four to lead the Orange.

When Triche was not hitting from the outside, Syracuse’s front court took control in the lane. After outrebounding the Griffs 30-29 in the first half, the Orange dominated the glass in the second half grabbing a 28-14 advantage. Baye Moussa Keita pulled down nine of his game-high 15 boards after the break.

“Baye made a huge step up,” mentioned Boeheim. “He turned our whole rebounding game around. We don’t win without him.”

The lead changed hands three times in the first half. After Gaby Belardo found Elton Frazier with an alley oop for a dunk, the Orange went on a 9-0 run. Triche hit a three. Kris Joseph scored in the lane, was fouled and converted the free throw. Jackson hit a jumper in the lane, and Scoop Jardine went the length of the court for the 9-2 lead.

Julius Coles stemmed the tide. The senior hit a pull-up jumper from the left side of the basket. Frazier grabbed an offensive board and finished. Logins checked in off the bench, and with his first touch caught a pretty pass from Belardo and converted for the 11-8 score.

Forty seconds later, Logins connected with first from behind the arc, and the game was tied at 11.

The teams exchanged blows throughout the remainder of the first half.  The Griffs took the lead in the tenth minute when Logins connected again from long range. Canisius held the lead for the next five minutes before the Orange outscored them 7-3 in the half’s final three minutes.

“We came out in the second half: I didn’t think we had that fighter’s mentality,” added Parrotta. “We allowed them to get a little separation.”

The Griffs committed seven turnovers in the second half, and the Orange converted those miscues into nine points.

“At times it felt like there were seven or eight people out there,” said Coles when talking about the Syracuse defense.  “I guess it’s just because of how big and athletic they are. They get to those spots quicker.”

After hitting fifty percent from the field in the season opening win over St. Bonaventure, the Griffs hit thirty-four percent Sunday afternoon.

“They are just more able to get out to our shooters,” noted Parrotta. “They rush you a little bit. I thought the soft spot in the zone was the middle. We got it there a few times. You got to really punish people after you get the ball to where you want to. We just did not make enough shots.”

Frazier registered a double-double in his final regular season appearance in his hometown. The Syracuse native led the Griffs with 12 rebounds to go with 16 points. The Corcoran High School graduate did not allow a torn finger nail to keep him from finishing with a pair of his patented dunks – one a putback slam of a Logins miss.

“I just treat it like any other game,” said the senior. “It’s a plus coming home to play in front of my family and friends, but I just treat it like any other game and work really hard.”

When asked about his second slam, Frazier replied: “I’d rather have the win. We’ve been here before. We were ready to come here and win the game.”

“Whether he’s in the Dome, or he is in the Koessler Center, or he’s out in Lamar in Texas in a month or so, it’s irrelevant to him,” said Parrotta when talking about Frazier. “He plays the same way every day. What you saw today, you see every day in practice. There’s only one gear for Elton Frazier, and that’s as hard as he possibly can play.”

Canisius falls to 1-1 with the loss and will host Eastern Michigan, Saturday, November 20th. Game time is 2 p.m. at the Koessler Athletic Center.

With the win, Jim Boeheim moves into fourth on the all-time wins list with 831 victories.  The Orange host Detroit Tuesday night.

By Paul Gotham

Setting: It’s the ‘Battle of the Bridge Part II’ as Tom Parrotta takes his Canisius Golden Griffins (11-12/ 6-6) north on I-290 for a tilt with Joe Mihalich and his Niagara Purple Eagles (12-12/ 5-7).

Plot: The meeting is the second in seven days for the Metro-Atlantic Conference rivals divided by just 21 miles.

Sub-plot: Canisius is tied for fourth in the MAAC. Siena leads the charge with a 12-0 ledger. Niagara beat Loyola on Sunday, but the Purple Eagles have dropped three of their last four.  Canisius fell to Iona on Monday. The Griffs have split their last six games.

School records are on the line. Tomas Vazquez-Simmons needs just one block to pass Michael Meeks at the top (183) of the Canisius list. Frank Turner brings 550 career assists into the contest. Javone ‘Bam’ Moore heads the Griff list with 551.

Tyrone Lewis is sixth on Niagara’s all-time scoring list with 1,689 points. Cal Murphy leads the way with 2,548 points.

Flashback: With 20 points, Elton Frazier led three Griffs in double figures as Canisius beat Niagara in overtime 73-70.  Frank Turner added 18 and Julius Coles chipped in 16 for the win.

Niagara leads the series 94-72 and have taken 12 of the last 14.

Foreshadowing: Eleven Purple Eagles have graduated to the National Basketball Association, including hall-of-famer, Calvin Murphy. Eleven Golden Griffins have laced them up in the Association. Most recently, Mike Smrek played seven seasons in the NBA.

Niagara has made three NCAA Tournament appearances (’70, ’05, ’07). The Purple Eagles reached the Sweet Sixteen in 1970. Canisius has ‘danced’ four times (’55, ’56, ’57, ’96). Under Joe Curran, Canisius reached back-to-back Elite Eights in ’55 and ’56.

Conflict: A week ago, Niagara made just nine of 38 attempts from behind the three-point arc. The Purple Eagles average 31 percent from long range. Will Niagara be more disciplined in their shot selection this time around?

Canisius made nine of 17 free throws last Friday, and that does not include misses on the front end of one-and-ones. Can the Griffs improve?

Turner leads the Griffs with 16.9 points per game. His assist to turnover ratio (1.5:1) is deceiving. The turnovers he commits are usually sins of aggression. Turner sees the floor well and creates open spaces with passes up the floor. Some of these passes end up out bounds, but do not create lay ups for opponents.  Turner’s miscues allow his teammates to reset the defense.

Elton Frazier is a tireless worker who runs the floor both ways. Frazier averages nine points and 5.5 rebounds. His contributions should not be limited to the stat sheet. It is Frazier that defenses must account for in transition. His commitment to running the floor creates gaps in the defense that the 5’10″ Turner can exploit.

Go Griffs!

Julius Coles averages 15 points and just under five rebounds. At 6’4″ and 183 pounds, Coles is a slender player. He possesses a quick and accurate shot from behind the three-point arc. He can present match-up problems because smaller guards find it difficult to get a hand in his face. Coles is an active rebounder who grabs shot or two that goes long.

Vazquez-Simmons and Robert Goldsberry round out the starting five. Vazquez chips in nearly six points and five and a half rebounds. Goldsberry has an assist to turnover ratio of 1.9:1. The junior has only hit 13 three-pointers for the year, but many of those are timely. Defenses can not lose track of Goldsberry. He is capable of hitting the open shot.

Greg Logins provides valuable minutes off the bench. The junior scores 9.6 points and grabs 6.1 rebounds.

Lewis leads a starting five with nearly everyone scoring in doubles figures. The senior has hit 50 threes this year and averages 16.7 points per game.

Rob Garrison and Anthony Nelson create a two-headed play-making monster that gives opponents fits. The duo combine for almost ten assists per game while limiting turnovers to five.

Bilal Benn leads the Purple Eagle way with 9.6 rebounds. The Villanova transfer pours in 14 points a game.

Demetrius Williamson chips in 9.6 points and 4.5 rebounds.

Kashief Edwards and Austin Cooley come off the bench and combine for 12 points and nearly six rebounds.

Resolution: Niagara enters play tonight with a negative rebound margin of 3.2. Last week, the Purple Eagles out-rebounded the Griffs, 43-36, including 18-12 on the offensive boards. Canisius will need to keep Niagara off the glass and finish at the line.

The Purple Eagles will need to use their size advantage in the lane.  Last week, the Purple Eagles took more than half (38 of 75) of their shots from behind the arc.

Expect Niagara to pound the ball inside, but Canisius will answer with Vazquez-Simmons, Frazier, and Bogins. The last time Canisius swept the season series was ’94-’95. The Griffs are ready to end that streak tonight.

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By Paul Gotham

It’s that time again. Let’s hear from you readers. We had another week of many performances with which to choose. Pick the ONE that stands out to you, and tell us a story.

Elton Frazier of the Canisius Golden Griffins gets my POTW.

I could nominate Frazier simply for the fact that he grabbed the Sports Center #1 Play of the Day. It’s not often that schools from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) nab such publicity.

But to nominate Frazier for one play alone would overlook an outstanding performance for an entire game.

Frazier notched a double-double as the Griffs downed rival Niagara University in overtime, 73-70 at the sold out Koessler Center.

The junior from Syracuse, New York finished with 20 points on 8 of 13 shooting from the field and 10 rebounds. Frazier added an assist, two steals, and a block – I thought he had two blocks, but the box score only gives him credit for one.

Go Griffs!

The game was televised on ESPN U, and the teams did not disappoint. The game saw end-to-end action with both teams taking turns going on long runs.

Frazier is a tireless worker. It is perfect that his highlight on ESPN showcased him running the floor. He does that all night long. And he does it with the intention of opening the floor for his teammates. That highlight occurred in the game’s second minute. Frazier made the Purple Eagles defend him in transition for the next 38…43 minutes.

The forward works just as hard on defense. On several occasions, Frazier was the man back stopping Niagara’s fast break.

The better-half can vouch that I predicted Frazier’s play would get into ESPN’s top ten. I had no idea it would be No. 1.

Canisius travels to Niagara this Friday. Tale of the tape will be coming.

Who gets your POTW?