Iona faces Canisius after Middleton’s 24-point showing

By Canadian Press on January 9, 2026.

Iona Gaels (9-7, 2-4 MAAC) at Canisius Golden Griffins (2-12, 0-5 MAAC)

Buffalo, New York; Saturday, 1 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Iona plays Canisius after Isabellah Middleton scored 24 points in Iona’s 77-49 victory against the Niagara Purple Eagles.

The Golden Griffins are 2-5 on their home court. Canisius has a 0-10 record in games decided by 10 or more points.

The Gaels are 2-4 in MAAC play. Iona has a 1-0 record in games decided by less than 4 points.

Canisius is shooting 40.8% from the field this season, 0.4 percentage points higher than the 40.4% Iona allows to opponents. Iona averages 60.6 points per game, 13.0 fewer points than the 73.6 Canisius gives up.

The matchup Saturday is the first meeting of the season between the two teams in conference play.

TOP PERFORMERS: Franka Wittenberg is averaging 8.9 points and 6.2 rebounds for the Golden Griffins. Shariah Gailes is averaging 10.4 points and 5.3 rebounds while shooting 54.1% over the past 10 games.

Middleton is scoring 13.8 points per game with 6.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists for the Gaels. Zoey Ward is averaging 13.7 points and 7.8 rebounds while shooting 34.0% over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Golden Griffins: 2-8, averaging 55.1 points, 28.9 rebounds, 10.8 assists, 5.5 steals and 1.4 blocks per game while shooting 41.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 69.8 points per game.

Gaels: 5-5, averaging 63.9 points, 31.9 rebounds, 14.1 assists, 8.1 steals and 2.4 blocks per game while shooting 36.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 63.7 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

The Associated Press