December 22, 2006 - Rider 74 Fairleigh Dickinson 72
December 22, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Men's College Basketball
Rider University 74, Fairleigh Dickinson University 72
HACKENSACK—Christmas came a little early for Rider, as the Broncs came back from a 21-point second half deficit to defeat FDU Friday. “We did a great job of forcing some turnovers, and we made a lot of plays down the stretch,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey.
Rider (7-4) trailed 56-35 with 13:04 left to play. “We were getting stop after stop, but we weren’t scoring,’ Dempsey said. “Then Terrance turned it on.”
Trailing 63-45, Rider went on a 25-7 run, 12 points by senior Terrance Mouton (Lafayette, LA/Acadiana), to tie the score at 70-70 with 1:26 left to play. A three-point field goal by sophomore Harris Mansell (Cheltenham, PA) with: 36 left gave Rider a 73-72 lead; Rider’s first lead since 15-13 mid-way through the first half.
Mouton finished with a career-high 23 points, 18 in the second half. “Terrance has a calmness about him, and he calmly buried shot after shot down the stretch,” Dempsey said. “We had to do whatever we could to get back into the game,” said Mouton. “We made them turn the ball over, and that allowed us to score. That was a big Christmas present tonight.”
FDU committed 11 turnovers in the second half and 18 for the game.
Mansell finished with 13 points and a career-high nine rebounds.
Junior Jason Thompson (Mt. Laurel/Lenape) scored 24 points, 15 in the second half, to lead the Broncs. Thompson also grabbed 10 rebounds for his sixth ‘double-double’ of the season and the 19th of his career.
“We were struggling, but we knew we could come back,” said Thompson. “We’re a young, talented team that never gives up.”
The victory was Rider’s fourth on the road this season. The Broncs had just two road wins last year.
FDU (5-5) out-scored Rider 20-4 over the first seven minutes of the second half, seven by 6’8” senior forward Andre Harris, to take a commanding 56-35 lead. Harris finished with 22 points and 14 rebounds.
Trailing 29-19, Rider went on a 9-0 run, seven points by Mansell, to cut the lead to 29-28, and FDU led 36-31 at half time.
With the score tied at 16-16, FDU went on a 13-3 run to take a 29-19 lead with 6:50 left in the first half.
Rider made 11 of 13 foul shots in the first half, and 17 of 26 for the game.
FDU entered the game 2-0 against the MAAC this year, defeating Saint Peter’s and Canisius, and also defeated Seton Hall earlier this year.
The victory snapped a two-game losing streak for the Broncs.
Rider plays at the University of Notre Dame December 28. “The trip is going to be a lot smoother now,” Dempsey said.
-RU-
