Men’s Basketball Downs Lesley in Non-Conference Action, 75-68

NASHUA, N.H. – The Rivier men's basketball team came away with its fifth-straight victory in a 75-68 non-conference takedown of Lesley on Monday evening at the Muldoon Center.

Rivier now sits at 10-2 overall while the Lynx fell to 2-10.

This is the first season the Raiders have secured a five-game winning streak since the banner season of 2006-07 and the first with 10 wins since the 2021-22 campaign in which the team went 10-15.

Rivier buzzed out to a 14-5 lead thanks to a three-pointer by Odarius Cade 4:55 into the opening half. After the lead was cut down to as little as five points through the middle going of the frame, a putback by Joe Melvin with 4:03 remaining put the Raiders back up by 10. With ten seconds left before halftime, Christian Castro nailed a three-pointer to make it a 40-36 game in favor of the hosts, but Nikolas Pignone would respond with a buzzer-beater three of his own to give his squad a seven-point cushion at the break.

Both Cade and Ra'Quan Groves led the squad with 12 points with 20 minutes to play, followed by Pignone with 11.

Lesley whittled the deficit down to two points on a pair of Jamarick Preston free throws with 11:26 left. Despite regaining a double-digit lead down the stretch, Lesley's stingy defense would not allow the Raiders to break away. Christian Castro hit a three with 16 seconds left to make it a five-point ballgame, but Cade would hit both free throws after being intentionally fouled to secure the 75-68 final, keeping Rivier's winning streak intact.

Owens, the reigning GNAC Player of the Week, took over in the second half, scoring 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the floor in the second.

Owens led the way with 23 points, five boards, and one assist. Cade scored 16 points to go along with six steals, four rebounds, and three assists. Pignone notched 12 points off the bench on 4-of-9 shooting, including 3-of-5 from three. Groves finished two rebounds shy of a double-double as he hauled in eight rebounds and notched 12 points.

Rivier outscored Lesley on points from turnovers, 23-7, fast breaks, 14-6, and second-chance opportunities, 10-9.

The all-time series now sits at 5-1 in favor of the Raiders, dating back to the 2017-18 season.

The Raiders will look to keep their winning and GNAC unbeaten streaks going in a road tilt at Norwich on Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. at Andrews Hall Gymanasium.