NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. – App State men's basketball fell at Iona 65-53 in its 2021-22 season opener on Tuesday evening.
Adrian Delph paced the Mountaineers (0-1) with 15 points and eight rebounds.
Michael Almonacy added nine points, while
Justin Forrest had eight points.
James Lewis Jr. finished with seven points and a team-high nine rebounds.
A 3-pointer from Almonacy broke a 9-9 tie in the opening half. Following an Iona (1-0) basket, App State used a layup from Delph, a free throw from Lewis Jr. and a basket from Forrest to push its lead to 17-11 with just under eight minutes left in the opening half.
Leading 23-17, the Gaels mounted an 8-2 spurt to tie the score at 25-25 late in the half. A jumper from
Michael Eads Jr. in the closing seconds gave the Mountaineers a 27-25 lead at the break.
The Black and Gold came out of the locker room and scored the first four points to open a 31-25 advantage. Iona answered with six consecutive points to knot the score at 31-31, but the Mountaineers came right back with four straight points to take a 35-31 edge.
From there, the Gaels used a 10-2 spurt to open a 41-37 lead with 10:46 to play. The Mountaineers answered with six of the next eight points to tie the score at 43-43. Iona retook the lead on its next possession and opened a 53-46 advantage with just under five minutes remaining.
A jumper from Delph at the 3:10 mark of the second half trimmed the App State deficit to 55-53, but Iona responded with 10 consecutive points to close out the victory.
Tyson Jolly finished with a game-high 19 points for the Gaels, while Dylan Van Eyck finished with 17 points and a team-high eight rebounds off the bench.
The Mountaineers held a slim 37-35 edge on the glass, including a 13-6 advantage in offensive rebounds.
App State will return to action on Friday at 6:30 p.m. against ETSU in its home opener on ESPN+. Season and single game tickets for the 2021-22 season are on sale and can be purchased by
clicking here.
