Rider drops Quinnipiac 60-57 in MAAC tourney

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) Jimmie Taylor scored 18 points with five 3-pointers, Teddy Okereafor hit a couple of big free throws late, and eighth-seeded Rider dropped No. 9-seed Quinnipiac 60-57 in a Metro Atlantic tournament first round game on Thursday.

Rider (13-19) advances to face top-seeded Monmouth (25-6) in the quarterfinals on Friday.

A close game throughout, Rider led by three with 13:20 to go, and a 9-2 run pushed it to a 10-point lead. Quinnipiac roared back though and trimmed the deficit to one, 58-57, on James Ford Jr's 3-pointer with 18 seconds to go.

The teams traded turnovers, and Rider's Okereafor ended up at the line after a steal and made the pair with eight seconds remaining. The Bobcats had one more look, but Dimitri Floras' desperation 3-point attempt clanged off the rim.

Kahlil Thomas added 14 points and 12 rebounds for Rider.

Quinnipiac (9-21) was led by Abdulai Bundu with 13 points, Ford finished with 12 and Chaise Daniels added 10.