The Marist Red Foxes traveled down the Hudson River to the Bronx to face Manhattan University in a Saturday afternoon MAAC matchup. The game took place in a nine-point window as neither team ran away with a double-digit advantage, leading to a back-and-forth 62-57 Marist victory over Manhattan.
The Marist and Manhattan teams are different on paper, with the Red Foxes being guard-heavy, thriving on transition and beyond the 3-point arc, while the Jaspers look to find points in the paint.
In an evenly matched first half, the Red Foxes and Jaspers, who both started the season 0-2 in conference, battled in an attempt to get their second MAAC win, as the lead changed seven times in the first half.
The Jaspers ended the first half with a three-point lead, shooting 6-for-16 from the field compared to the Red Foxes, who shot 5-for-14.
Manhattan shut down the usual standout shooters for the Red Foxes, placing the ball in the hands of senior forward Ciara Croker, who missed the first eight games for Marist this season.
Croker broke her career high in the first 18 minutes against the Jaspers, shooting 6-for-7 from the field and a perfect 2-for-2 from the line, leading the team with 14 points, two rebounds and one assist. Croker ended the game with 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals.
As expected, half of Manhattan’s points in the first half came from within the paint. With a lack of pressure in the paint outside of junior forward Karly Fischer and Croker, Marist has allowed 92 points in the paint over three games, 36 coming in the game against Manhattan.
“We were pretty disappointed with our defensive effort in the first half. We challenged them at halftime to come out with much more defensive intensity. I think you saw those first eight possessions or so, we were much more locked in and limiting their penetration”, said head coach Erin Doughty on the ESPN+ broadcast. “I still think they had too many paint points, but that’s what they do, so credit to them, they attack their strength, and we couldn’t stop it for a while.”
Out of the break, senior Jackie Piddock found her fellow guard, sophomore Danielle Williamsen, driving to the basket on transition for the Red Foxes’ largest lead of the day, putting Marist up three, 36-33.
Senior guard Lexie Tarul set up shop at the 3-point line in the third quarter, hitting back-to-back threes in the latter half of the third, accounting for eight points in the third quarter. Tarul ended the game with 18 points of her own, as well as three rebounds and one assist.
Play continued to be even on paper between the Jaspers and Red Foxes, as both teams had 47 possessions, 23 rebounds and 46 points at the end of the third quarter.
With 10 minutes remaining, Manhattan’s advantage continued to be their inside play alongside their close-out defense, while the Red Foxes stayed in it with their perimeter shooting. As the Jaspers struggled from the outside, shooting 0-for-6 from the 3-point line, the Red Foxes shot 40% from the 3-point line.
The fourth quarter opened with a 6-0 run from Marist, the team’s largest of the game. The Jaspers quickly responded, making it a two-point game at 54-52 with four minutes remaining.
Coming into the matchup against Manhattan, Marist ranked 11th in NCAA women’s basketball in free-throw percentage and foul shots continued to help the Red Foxes as the team shot 14-for-19 in the tight win against the Jaspers.
With one minute remaining, junior forward Kristina Juric had the opportunity at the line to tie the game at 56 for Manhattan, the ball touched every part of the rim before bouncing out and was rebounded by freshman guard Justine Henry.
On the other side of the court, out of a timeout, Williamsen found Henry for a midrange jumper to make the score 58-55. With less than a minute remaining, Marist gained control of the momentum, salting the game away with free throws, to win 62-57.
The Red Foxes now sit 2-2 in conference play and will travel to Merrimack on Thursday to play the 3-1 (6-7 overall) Warriors at 7 p.m. in hopes of getting their third win in a row.
