DELHI, N.Y. – Ryan Giordano's (West Nyack, N.Y./Clarkstown South) career-high of 27 points led the Manhattanville College men's basketball team to a week-opening victory on Monday night as the Valiants defeated SUNY Delhi 71-62. The Valiants improve to 3-2 on the season with the win.

Giordano's career night came on a 50 percent effort from the field, hitting ten field goals while going 7-for-9 at the free throw line. The graduate center added eight rebounds, three assists, three blocks and a steal as part of his dominant performance all over the court.

With all of Manhattanville's scoring coming from five players in the contest, three other shooters joined Giordano in double-figures. Tony Hastings (Clarkstown, N.Y./Clarkstown South) had his best game in a Manhattanville uniform as he scored 15 with eight rebounds of his own. John Ranaghan (Pearl River, N.Y./Pearl River) scored a season-best 11 as the freshman was a perfect 7-for-7 at the charity stripe, while Xavier Kistoo-Miles (Spring Valley, N.Y./Spring Valley) had his best offensive performance of the year with 10 points. Jack Scanlon (Pearl River, NY/Pearl River High School) accounted for the Valiants' final eight points.

Hastings matched Giordano's rebound total of eight as the duo finished tied amongst players from both teams as the night's board leaders. Benjamin Merritt (West Hartford, Conn./Kingswood Oxford) provided a team-best pair of steals and three assists coming off the bench.

A .444 field goal clip in the first half allowed the Valiants to take a nine-point lead into the break. Manhattanville's defense led to the Broncos shooting just 7-for-31 in the first half. The cold start by Delhi allowed the Valiants to score the opening seven points of the game across the first four minutes. Manhattanville would build up to a 15-point advantage with 5:21 remaining in the half, up 25-10. Delhi would finally get the buckets to fall, scoring eight straight to pull back within seven. Kistoo-Miles ended the run with a layup, the final basket by either team across the final 2:05 of the half as Manhattanville led 27-18 through 20 minutes.

It was an offensive display in the second half as the teams put up a total of 88 points across the final 20 minutes of play. While the Broncos fared significantly better from the field in the second by shooting 45 percent, the Valiants' .546 clip and 18-for-18 display at the charity stripe allowed the visiting team to hold on to their lead.

With both teams pouring in baskets, sustained runs were few and far between. The Valiants took their largest lead on a pair of free throws by Scanlon to go up by 14 with 14:49 to play, up 37-23. The Broncos immediately rattled off seven unanswered before Hastings ended the Delhi scoring string with a deep ball. The Broncos continued to hang around and closed the gap down to five with a Lester McCarthy three with 11:35 left. Manhattanville would then respond with a 13-4 run to reestablish a 14 point advantage under seven minutes to play. The lead peaked at 17 as the Valiants continued to drill their free throws, holding on as the Broncos ended the night on a 10-2 run to move the final score to 71-62.

Up Next
The Valiants return home on Saturday to host Marywood at 4 p.m. 

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