Emmitsburg, Md. (December 3, 2022)--Mount St. Mary's was edged by Rider, 68-65, in a hard-fought Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference matchup at Knott Arena on Saturday afternoon.  Jalen Benjamin paced the Mount with 18 points while Deandre Thomas added 14 points and seven assists.  The Mount, who was announced as the MAAC's 11th member on May 2nd after a 33-year stint in the Northeast Conference, was playing in its first-ever MAAC home game after opening conference play with a 73-58 win at Saint Peter's in the MAAC opener on Thursday night.

The game was tight throughout in a game that featured 12 lead changes and eight ties with the biggest lead by either team being seven points.  The Broncs (3-4, 1-0 MAAC) took advantage of a Mount dry spell on the offensive end to take the lead.  Malik Jefferson hit 1-of-2 at the line to give the Mount a 49-47 advantage with 13:15 on the clock.  Rider held the Mount off the scoreboard over the next seven minutes during a 9-0 run to take the lead.  Allen Powell capped the run for Rider with a three-pointer for a 56-49 advantage, Rider's biggest lead of the contest.

The Mount (4-5, 1-1 MAAC) dug in and fought back to regain the lead with an 11-2 run that ended with a 60-58 advantage with 2:51 on the clock.  Jaylin Gibson hit a pair of free throws and Frantisek Barton scored on a jumper to cut the deficit to three to start the run.  After a Rider bucket on a fast break, Benjamin hit a three, Jefferson scored on a putback, and Benjamin scored on a tough drive to the basket to put the Mount up by two with just under three minutes left.  After Rider's Dwight Murray, Jr., hit 1-of-2 at the line, Gibson added two more free throws for a 62-59 lead with 2:12 left.

Murray, Jr., tied the score with a three-pointer from the left corner with 1:55 remaining.  On the Mount's next possession, Thomas had to take a challenged three-pointer as the shot clock expired, allowing Rider a chance to take the lead.  Rider's Powell missed a jumper, but the Broncs retained possession with four seconds left on the shot clock.  Mervyn James got the inbounds pass and missed, but Ajiri Ogemuno-Johnson grabbed the rebound, scored and was fouled on the play with 51.9 seconds left.  Ogemuno-Johnson hit the free throw to compete the three-point play for a 65-62 lead.  The Mount turned the ball over, and James hit a pair of free throws to make it 67-62.  Benjamin countered on the other end with a three-point play on a drive to the basket to cut the deficit to a pair of points with 21.9 seconds left.  Rider's Corey McKeithan hit 1-of-2 at the line, giving the Mount a chance to tie.  Benjamin missed a long three with Thomas grabbing the rebound and feeding Gibson in the right corner, but his game-tying three-point attempt was off the mark at the buzzer.

Benjamin finished the game with 18 points and five rebounds, hitting 7-of-14 from the field and 3-of-5 from three-point range.  Thomas was 4-of-8 from three in the game en route to his season-high 14 points while matching his career high with seven assists.  Malik Jefferson had 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds in the game.  Murray, Jr.., led Rider with 19 points and eight rebounds while James added 14 points and seven boards in the win. 

The Mount shot 45.1 percent overall and 50.0 percent (9-of-18) from three-point range in the game.  The Mount was limited to 8-of-25 (.320) shooting and 2-of-10 from three in the second half.  The Mount defense was solid, holding Rider to 37.9 percent shooting overall, including 34.6 percent in the second half.  The Mount held a 35-to-34 advantage on the boards, but Rider was able to convert 16 offensive rebounds into 19 points.

The Mount jumped to to an early 15-to-9 lead behind the hot shooting from Thomas, who had eight points in the opening five minutes.  Rider countered and evened the score at 27-27 on a McKeithan three-pointer with 5:24 left in the opening half.  The Mount responded with a 7-0 run to take its biggest lead of the game at 34-27.  Benjamin started the run with a three-pointer, Jedy Cordilia added a putback basket, and Jefferson hit a floater to give the Mount a 34-27 lead with 3:31 left.  Rider was able to trim that deficit to 39-37 at the break.

The Mount is back in action on Tuesday, December 6, with a 7:00 p.m. home game against American.

Game Notes:  This was the first meeting between the Mount and Rider since an NEC quarterfinal matchup on Feb. 28, 1997...The Broncs now hold a 14-12 lead in the all-time series...Cordilia's seven points are a career high for the sophomore forward.