BY JONNY WALKER, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
The St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team hosts Little Three rival Canisius in the Reilly Center Saturday, rounding out a two-game home stretch to begin the 2023-24 season.
The Bonnies (1-0, 0-0 A-10) dropped an overtime thriller, 84-80, to the Golden Griffins (0-1, 0-0 MAAC) early last season in Buffalo. However, Bonaventure has lost just once to Canisius on its home court since 2005 and won six of the programs’ last ten matchups overall.
“I think 70-75% of home games are won by the home team,” said Bona head coach Mark Schmidt. “Not just Bonaventure-Canisius, but throughout this country. It’s just the stat.”
The Bonnies opened their season with a win over Longwood despite their two preseason all-conference selections, guard Daryl Banks III and forward Chad Venning, combining for 12 points in 40 minutes. Offseason additions, such as graduate guard Charles Pride (Bryant), proved vital. Pride had a team-high 21 points, including five 3-pointers.
The Golden Griffins opened their season with an 11-point road loss to Power Five-opponent Syracuse. Against the Orange, Canisius had four scorers in double digits. Junior guard Tre Dinkins had a team-high 17 points off the bench.
“They [Golden Griffins] got really good guards,” said Schmidt. “Staveskie and Dinkins are terrific guards. They can shoot the ball, take you off the bounce, get to the rim. They can pass it.”
Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. Bonaventure’s ticket office announced Thursday that limited tickets remain available for purchase online.
walkerjc20@bonaventure.edu
