Iona scores comeback win over Niagara to end four-game skid

E.J. Crawford's 21 points included 13 straight during 15-0 run as Iona erased double-digit deficit to Niagara. (Photo by Vincent Simone/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

NEW ROCHELLE, NY -- With a stretch of five games in twelve days beckoning after Sunday's matinee against Niagara, a momentum boost would be beneficial to Iona as the Gaels -- three-time defending Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champions -- jockey for position in the top half of the league standings, hoping to secure a first-round bye in next month's MAAC tournament.

Trailing Niagara by ten several minutes into the second half, the pick-me-up seemed far away, until E.J. Crawford found the higher gear with which he has played most of his junior season, and carried with it a message to his teammates during an ensuing timeout.

"They had their run, and we had our run," Crawford said before a sequence in which he scored 13 consecutive points to ignite a 15-0 spurt that vaulted Iona back into the lead, but required a second comeback to ultimately seal a 79-76 victory over the Purple Eagles that halted just the second four-game conference losing streak of head coach Tim Cluess' career. "We just had to lock in defensively and get a few stops, and we knew we were going to be good."

Crawford finished with 21 points as Iona (8-15, 6-6 MAAC) evened its league record, but perhaps the biggest impact in Sunday's matinee came from sixth man Asante Gist. Thrust into the starting lineup with both Isaiah Still and Andrija Ristanovic unavailable, Gist supplemented Rickey McGill's production with 17 points of his own, and secured the rebound on Marvin Prochet's game-winning jumper attempt in the final seconds to wrap up a much-needed triumph.

"I thought he made a big shot late in the game, but more importantly, he got the last rebound of the game," Cluess said of Gist and his effort. "He's not usually known for his rebounding prowess, so the fact that he went in there and dug in is something we've asked him to do all year. I thought he played a really good game."

Niagara (11-14, 4-8 MAAC) stole the lead after Iona's aforementioned 15-0 surge, maintaining a slim advantage through most of the waning moments of the second half, but was unable to overcome Iona's vaunted transition defense despite four players scoring 10 or more points, as 17 turnovers were converted into 28 points for the Gaels, marking a return of the Iona brand to which fans have grown accustomed to seeing impose its own will on games over the years.

"As soon as we get back in our groove," Crawford cautioned, "it's going to be tough to beat us."

The groove the Gaels hope to establish begins with a pivotal stretch of five contests in twelve days, with Siena first up in that line Wednesday night at Albany's Times Union Center, the home of the MAAC tournament that has been extremely advantageous to the Gaels as of late. Iona has won 16 of its last 18 contests on the Saints' home floor, and will bring momentum from Sunday's homestand finale with them to New York's state capital, looking to further two streaks in the process.

"To finally get a win, it feels good," Crawford said. "I think we're going to pick it up now."

"It was kind of hard on us, because we were in every single game," Gist added. "But the whole time, we just kept coming to practice and looking at the brighter side of it, and we knew once we were able to get this win, I think we could go on a huge run right now. This felt like a big relief for us."