Men’s Basketball Downs Canisius to Take Sole Possession Of First Place In MAAC

North Andover, Mass. – The Merrimack College men's basketball team beat Canisius University on Saturday afternoon to move into first place in the MAAC standings. Adam "Budd" Clark finished the game with 17 points. Both Sean Trumper and Tye Dorset added 12 points in the victory. Bryan Etumnu finished the game with a double-double after scoring 10 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.
 
The Essentials
Score: Merrimack 69, Canisius 51
Records: Merrimack (14-10, 11-2 MAAC) | Canisius (2-21, 2-10 MAAC)
Location: Hammel Court  

Rapid Recap

• On the first offensive possession of the game, Trumper posted his man up for two. The Griffins answered back with four straight points to go up two. David Murray converted on a layup to tie the game at four. Both teams battled for a number of minutes. With 11 minutes on the clock in the first half Dorset hit a jumper to put the Warriors up three. Trumper would score on a tip in to increase the lead to five. Canisius battled back, getting the advantage down to one. With seven minutes left in the first half, the Griffins were up one. Merrimack then went on a nine-point run to flip the game and go up by eight. The run was highlighted by five points from Dorset. Canisius hit a three to stop the run. The Warriors added six points in the final minute to go up 11. The Griffins hit a three at the buzzer to head into halftime down by eight.
• Canisius stuck first in the second half to make it a six-point game. Clark answered back with a jumper to make the lead eight. Three minutes into the second, the Griffins got the lead down to four. Etumnu found the bottom of the net with a three to get the advantage back to seven. The three sparked a seven-point run that made the Warrior lead 14. With 10 minutes to go in the game, Canisius got the lead down to 11. Merrimack then went on a seven-point run to swell the lead to 18. A layup stopped the Warrior momentum. The home team picked it back up, going on a five-point run, making the lead 21 points with five minutes to play. The Griffins attempted to battle back but Merrimack proved to be too much on Saturday afternoon, winning the game by 18.
   

Notes and Numbers

• Murray finished the game with six points in nine minutes, including his 1,000-career college point.
• The Warriors got 22 points from their bench in the victory.
• Merrimack shot 49% from the field, including going 60% in the second half.

Up Next
The Warriors hit the road to take on Manhattan University on Friday. Game time is set for 7 p.m.