LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – Siena Basketball turned the ball over on four consecutive possessions in the final 90 seconds, and Mervin James hit the go-ahead free throws with 11.6 seconds left as part of a 7-0 run, as Rider rallied past the Saints 69-66 at Alumni Gymnasium.
 
Allen Powell scored 24 points on 9-15 shooting to lead Rider (15-11, 12-5) which secured a split of the regular season series while going a game up on Siena (17-11, 11-6) for second place in the MAAC Standings with three games remaining. While the top-five teams earn First Round byes in next month's MAAC Tournament, the top-two seeds receive a much-coveted day off between the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds.
 
Andrew Platek scored 11 of his 14 points in the second half for the Saints, who shot just 13-24 (54%) from the free throw line in suffering their second straight three-point loss. Siena had entered play tied with the Broncs as the best free throw shooting team in the MAAC at 75.3%, which ranked 46^th best nationally.
 
Rider reeled off a 14-3 run late in the first half to take as much as a 12-point lead at 35-23 with 1:52 left before the break. The Broncs closed the half by making nine of their final 12 shots while shooting 53% overall in the stanza to the Saints' 30% to take a 37-27 lead into the lockerroom.
 
Siena tightened the screws defensively in the second half and slowly chipped away. The Saints flipped the script, shooting 61% in the second half to 39% for Rider. The sharpshooting helped fuel a 16-4 run over 3:03 capped by a three-point play by Jackson Stormo to give Siena a 58-51 advantage with 6:18 to go.
 
But the Broncs responded with an 11-3 spurt over 2:39 to reclaim the lead at 62-61 on a Dwight Murray, Jr. three-point play with 3:10 remaining. Siena took its final lead at 64-62 on a Stormo free throw with 1:50 left before things unraveled.
 
James tied the game on a put back with 58 seconds left before hitting the clinching free throws. With the Saints down three and with one final chance moments later, Murray stole a pass in the backcourt and swooped in for the layup to ice it.
 
Murray scored 13 of his 17 points in the second half while James finished with a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds for Rider, who held a 23-7 advantage in points off turnovers despite only holding just a +2 turnover margin (14-12).
 
Stormo joined Platek in double figures with 13 points for the Saints who had won their previous three in the Broncs Zoo.
 
The road gets no easier for Siena who heads to first place Iona Sunday with the Gaels on the verge of locking up the MAAC Regular Season Championship. Iona has won eight straight since the Saints captured the first matchup between the rivals by 17 points on Jan. 27 in Albany. Tip-off Sunday is set for 1 p.m. from an already sold out Hynes Athletics Center.