BUFFALO — Canisius plays its final home game of the 2016-17 season this afternoon when the Golden Griffins meet Saint Peter’s on Hall of Fame Day at 2 p.m. With a win today, the Griffs will secure a first-round bye in next weekend MAAC Tournament.
Canisius plays its final regular-season game today as the Golden Griffins play host to Saint Peter’s on Hall of Fame Day. Prior to the start of today’s game, Canisius will honor three seniors (Phil Valenti, Martin Dixon-Green and Kiefer Douse) playing their final scheduled home game. The Griffs are 17-13 overall and 10-9 in MAAC play after losing to Fairfield Friday by a score of 58-55. The 55 points scored by Canisius in that game are the fewest for the team this season. Canisius’ loss to Fairfield at the buzzer is the program’s first last-second defeat since Jan. 11, 2013 when the team lost to Siena 57-54. Junior Kassius Robertson hit three 3-pointers in the loss to Fairfield, making him just the third Griff in school history with 90-plus 3-pointers in a season. Phil Valenti was good for his eighth career double-double on Friday when he posted 23 points and a career-high 13 rebounds.
This will be the 77th all-time meeting between these two Jesuit schools, with Canisius holding a 43-33 lead in the series. Canisius’ 72-70 win at Saint Peter’s Feb. 6 marked the 31st time in the series history where the two teams played a game decided by five-points or less. The Peacocks have won 16 of those 31 contests. Canisius is 20-15 all-time against Saint Peter’s in Buffalo, but Saint Peter’s leads the series 13-12 in games played in the Koessler Athletic Center.
Saint Peter’s starts today riding a five-game winning streak. The Peacocks defeated Niagara 66-53 Friday in Lewiston, New York. Saint Peter’s is 17-12 overall and 13-6 in league play. The Peacocks can earn the second-seed in next weekend MAAC Tournament with a victory this afternoon. As a team, Saint Peter’s ranks first in the MAAC in scoring defense, allowing opponents to score an average of just 61.4 points per game. In their current five-game winning streak, the Peacocks have held their opponents to an average of 49.8 points per game. Senior Quadir Welton leads the team in both scoring and rebounding with his 11.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. Senior guard Trevis Wyche chips in 11.2 points per game and ranks eighth in the MAAC with his 3.8 assists per game. The Peacocks have nine players on their roster that average better than 11.5 minutes per game, led by Wyche, who plays 29.9 minutes per contest.
Canisius will formally introduce the newest class to its Sports Hall of Fame today at halftime, and there are plenty of representatives from the men’s basketball program being honored today. Former Griff guard Kevin Downey, ‘05, MBA ‘07, is the 54th former men’s basketball player to be enshrined into the school’s Hall of Fame. A three-time All-MAAC selection, Downey is one of seven players in school history with more than 1,000 points, 400 rebounds and 250 assists in his career. The 1962-63 men’s basketball team will be the fifth team honored into the Sports Hall of Fame. That team, under the guidance of late head coach Bob MacKinnon, went 19-7 and ended the season with a loss to Providence in the NIT Final in Madison Square Garden.
Canisius will travel down the New York State Thruway to take part in the 2017 MAAC Men’s Basketball Championship in Times Union Center. The Griffs’ first opponent, game date and game time will be announced by the MAAC later this evening.
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