NASHUA, N.H. – Graduate guard Griffin Foley (Portland, Maine) scored 19 points to lead six Monks in double-digits and help Saint Joseph's College (9-9, 5-5 GNAC) defeat Rivier University (2-19, 0-13 GNAC), 85-75, in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's basketball action on Tuesday night.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The Monks led by as many as 15 points in the triumph, but the Raiders mounted a 13-4 run spanning five minutes late in the second half to cut their deficit to just five points (76-71) with 3:28 remaining. St. Joe's managed to hold off the hosts in the closing minutes by making 7-of-8 free-throw attempts while holding Rivier to a 1-for-8 shooting performance from the floor.

STATS OF THE GAME:

The Monks made 27-of-35 free-throw attempts for a 77.1% clip in the victory…The Raiders made just 52.9% (9-17) of their bids from the charity stripe in a losing effort…For Saint Joseph's, tonight's free-throws total is the program's most since SJC made 31 freebies versus Emmanuel College on December 30th, 2018…St. Joe's also held a 24-16 lead in bench points in tonight's triumph.

LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:

• Foley was 6-for-9 from the floor – and 3-for-4 from three-point range – en route to netting 19 points with two assists
• Senior forward Ashtyn Abbott (Farmingdale, Maine) notched a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds
• Sophomore guard Julian Llopiz (Boston, Mass.) came off the bench to score 13 points with four boards
• Graduate guard Nicholas Curtis (Windham, Maine) was 8-for-9 from the FT line with 11 points, five assists, three caroms, two steals, and a blocked shot
• Sophomore guard Teagan Hynes (York, Maine) added 10 points, six rebounds, and three assists
• Freshman guard John Paul Frazier (York, Maine) chipped in with 10 points and three rebounds

LEADERS – RIVIER:

• Nikolas Pignone led the Raiders with 19 points and added five rebounds and a pair of assists
• Robenson Baguidy was 8-for-11 from the field with 18 points, five rebounds, five steals, and two assists
• Nesta Roberts recorded a double-double with 15 points and 10 caroms while blocking three shots and picking off three steals

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:

Saint Joseph's is now 26-5 in the history of the series with Rivier University.

NEXT!

Saint Joseph's will host Dean College in a conference contest on Thursday at 7:30 PM.

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