Manhattan University Athletics

Buffalo, NY- The Jaspers opened MAAC conference play with a loss against Niagara in Buffalo. Despite a hard-fought battle, Manhattan was outpaced by the Purple Eagles 73-70. 

Manhattan was able to secure a 15-10 lead at the end of the first quarter, grabbing thirteen rebounds compared to the Eagles' eight. 

The Jasper's came out strong during the rest of the half, leading for twelve of the halves twenty minutes. Continuing their defensive prowess, Manhattan hit the boards hard, outrebounding the Eagles 31 to 13, 18 of those rebounds came on the defensive side of the court. The green and white were able to add five steals in the first half alone. Additionally, the Jaspers took advantage of their size, outscoring the Eagles 36-24 in the paint. The Jaspers led 32-26 at the end of the first half. 

Late in the second half, Niagara was able to tie up the game at 62 with 2:51 left in the game. After a pair of technicals on both teams, Manhattan was leading 70-69. Niagara responded with a big bucket to put them in the lead 71-70 with 35 seconds left. The Jaspers got a chance to take the lead with nineteen seconds but failed to convert. Niagara was able to pull away with a score of 73-70. 

The green and white proved why they are a top rebounding team in the MAAC, finishing the game outrebounding the eagles by an impressive 57-26. The Jaspers were able to create 18 turnovers and convert them into ten points. Manhattan ended the game with seven steals and added forty points from inside the paint. The green and white shared the wealth in scoring, completing the game with eight different players scoring for the Jaspers.  

The Jaspers were led by junior forward Jenna Jordan (Valley Cottage, NY) who had a stellar performance and tied her career-high thirteen points by the end of the first half, Jordan registered a double-double for the second game in a row ending the game with 18 points, 14 rebounds, one assist, and three steals. 

In defeat, junior forward Brazil Harvey-Carr (Camden, NJ) continued the trend on the Jaspers' offense, registering a double-double for the day with a team-high nineteen points, thirteen rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Junior captain Dee Dee Davis (Bronx, NY) proved to be a leader on the court and finished the game with twelve points, five assists, and two rebounds. Freshman Petra Juric (Zagreb, Croatia) finished with eight points and eleven rebounds.

The Purple Eagles were led by MAAC First Team Preseason Selection Angel Parker, the junior guard finished the game with eighteen points and two rebounds. Senior guard Maddy Yelle ended with a game-high twenty points for the Eagles. 

The Jaspers will return to play in the MAAC play on Tuesday at 1:00 p.m. in Buffalo, NY taking on the Canisius Griffs.