Alshwan Hymes (Photo courtesy of Canisius athletics)

FARMVILLE, VA. – Canisius junior Harold Washington had a career-high 30 points and junior Alshwan Hymes added 24 points on five 3-pointers as the Golden Griffins went on the road and defeated Longwood 87-83 Tuesday night in Willett Hall in Farmville, Va. The win improves Canisius to 1-1 on the year, while the Lancers slipped to 1-2 with the loss.

Washington finished the night shooting 13-for-21 from the field, 2-for-6 from 3-point land and 2-for-2 from the free-throw line to go with five rebounds and three assists. The Brandywine, Md., native had 21 of his game-high 30 in the second half, including a stretch where he posted 13 of the Griffs’ 15 points in the later stages of the contest. Hymes went 9-for-18 from the field and 5-for-11 from behind the 3-point arc while adding five rebounds, three assists and a steal. Sophomore Chris Manhertz chipped in 12 points and nine rebounds in the win for the Blue and Gold.

“This was a quality win in a very hostile environment,” Canisius head coach Tom Parrotta said. “We got contributions from a lot of guys, and that’s what you need to do when you go on the road at this level.”

Jeremiah Bowman scored 27 points and dished out five assists in the loss for the Lancers. Forward Antwan Carter was good for 21 points and 15 rebounds for Longwood, but Canisius controlled the boards overall, posting a final rebounding cushion of 46-33 at the end of the night.

The Griffs trailed 73-71 before Washington hit a 15-foot jumper with 3:51 left to play to knot the game at 73-73. From there, the Blue and Gold scored the game’s next six points, all by Washington, in a span of 1:54 to push its lead to 79-73 with 1:36 left in the game. Longwood would cut Canisius’ hold to three at 79-76 when Carter hit a 3-pointer from the corner with 1:16 left, but Washington answered with another jumper from the top of the key to give the Griffs get a lead they would not give back.

Canisius will continue its four-game road swing Thursday, Nov. 17, when the team plays at UNLV. Game time in the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nev., is set for 10 p.m., Eastern.

Game Notes: This was the first meeting between the two schools… Canisius is now 7-4 under Parrotta when meeting a team for the first time in school history… The win was the 1,175th in school history… Washington is the first Griff to score 30-or more points on the road since Frank Turner had 30 in a win over Southern Miss Dec. 22, 2009… Freshman Franklin Milian came off the bench and scored his first six career points, all in the first half… Senior Marial Dhal had a career-high four rebounds for the Griffs in the win.

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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