Strong Second Half Propels Mount St. Mary’s Previous Iona, 66-59

Emmitsburg, Md. (December 29, 2025)–A powerful second half propelled Mount St. Mary’s previous Iona, 66-59, on Monday evening at Knott Arena in a rematch of final yr’s Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championship sport.  Luke McEldon led the Mountaineers with 18 factors whereas Justin Amadi chipped in 14 and Anthony Arrington 10 within the victory.  The Mount improves to 5-9 total and 1-2 within the MAAC with the victory.

Iona used an 8-0 run early within the second half to construct its largest lead of the sport, 41-32, with 16:10 remaining.  Mount St. Mary’s responded by scoring the subsequent 10 factors to tug forward, 42-41.  Anthony Arrington hit 1-of-2 on the line to begin the run forward of an Amadi bucket within the paint.  Arrington then scored seven consecutive factors to offer the Mount the lead, capping the run with a three-pointer with 13:02 left for a 42-41 benefit.

With the rating tied at 46-46, the Mount scored the subsequent 12 factors to take management of the sport.  Amadi began the run with an emphatic dunk off a steal by Arlandus Keyes for a two-point lead.  McEldon adopted with a powerful transfer within the paint, and Abdou Khadre Kebe introduced the house crowd to a roar with an alley-oop dunk on a feed from Keyes to make it 52-46, forcing the Gaels (9-5, 1-2 MAAC) to name timeout.  Trey Deveaux scored within the paint, Amadi on a lay-up off a Kebe steal, and Keyes a turn-around jumper to cap the run for a 58-46 benefit with 6:09 left within the contest.  The Mount was capable of shut out the victory from there.

McEldon went 9-of-12 from the sphere en path to his 18-point evening whereas including 5 rebounds within the win.  Amadi was 7-for-12 from the sphere for his 14 factors whereas chippping in 4 boards, two blocks and two steals.  Arrington added 10 factors off the bench with Kebe including eight factors.  Xavier Lipscomb had a stable sport with 5 factors and a team-high 9 rebounds whereas Deveaux completed with 4 factors and 7 boards.  Denver Anglin led Iona with 15 factors whereas Lamin Sabally had a double-double with 10 factors and 11 rebounds.

The Mount shot 46.6 p.c within the sport whereas holding Iona to 21-of-65 (.323) capturing.  Iona shot simply 9-of-35 (.267) from the sphere within the second half, together with 1-of-15 (.067) from past the arc.  The Mount held a 43-36 edge on the boards.

GAME NOTES

• The sport was a rematch of the 2025 MAAC Championship sport received by the Mount, 63-49, on March 15 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.
• Mount St. Mary’s improves to 1-8 this season when trailing on the half.
• Iona holds a 7-4 lead within the all-time collection, however the Mount has received three of the previous 4 matchups.
• It is the primary time this season the Mount has received consecutive video games.

UP NEXT:  The Mount heads on the highway for a two-game swing with video games at Merrimack (January 2) and Quinnipiac (January 4).  The Mount’s subsequent dwelling sport is Friday, January 9, towards Saint Peter’s.