Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball

Canisius Golden Griffins
Canisius Golden Griffins
	2024–25 Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball team
University	Canisius University
All-time record	1306–1266 (.508)
Head coach	Jim Christian (1st season)
Conference	MAAC
Location	Buffalo, New York
Arena	Koessler Center ; (capacity: 2,196)
Nickname	Golden Griffins
Colors	Blue and gold;
Uniforms
Home	Away ;
NCAA tournament Elite Eight
	1955, 1956
NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen
	1955, 1956, 1957
NCAA tournament appearances
	1955, 1956, 1957, 1996
Conference tournament champions
	1996
Conference regular season champions
	1994, 1996, 2018; America East: 1985; Little Three: 1947, 1950, 1952, 1956, 1957

Last updated October 06, 2024

For information on all Canisius University sports, see Canisius Golden Griffins

The Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball team, or the Griffs, represent Canisius University in Buffalo, New York, United States.^[2] Canisius is a member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and play their home games at Koessler Center. ^[3] Canisius has appeared in the NCAA tournament four times, most recently in 1996. In 1955 and 1956, the Golden Griffins appeared in the NCAA tournament Elite Eight.

Golden Griffins in the ABA/NBA

Andrew Anderson, played for the Oakland Oaks, Miami Floridians and Los Angeles Stars (1967–70)
Leroy Chollet, played for the Syracuse Nationals (1949–51)
Larry Fogle, played for the New York Knicks (1975–76)
Herm Hedderick, played for the New York Knicks (1955–56)
Charles Jordan, played for Indiana Pacers (1975–76)
Mike Macaluso, played for Buffalo Braves (1973–74)
Bob MacKinnon, played for Syracuse Nationals (1949–50)
Anthony Masiello, played for the Indiana Pacers (1969–70) and later served three terms as mayor of Buffalo (1993–2005).
Al Masino, played for four teams (1952–54)
Johnny McCarthy, played for the 1963–64 NBA Champion Boston Celtics; first of just four players in NBA history to record a triple-double in their playoff debut with the other three being Nikola Jokić, LeBron James and Magic Johnson.
John Morrison, played for Denver Rockets (1967–68)
Mike Smrek ’85, played for the 1986–87 and 1987–88 NBA Champion Los Angeles Lakers
Mel Thurston played for the Tri-City Blackhawks 1940–42

Other notables

Darrell Barley, 1996 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year
Darren Fenn, owner of the Buffalo eXtreme
Ray Hall, all-time leader in scoring and steals
Malik Johnson, all-time leader in assists
Chris Manhertz, signed by Buffalo Bills as undrafted free agent, played for New Orleans Saints, Carolina Panthers, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Denver Broncos (2015-present)
Craig Wise, 1995 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year
Eyal Yaffe (born 1960), Israeli basketball player, Israeli Basketball Premier League
Thomas Hardiman played handball at the 1972 Summer Olympics

Postseason tournaments

NCAA tournament results

The Griffins have appeared in four NCAA Tournaments. Their combined record is 6–4.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
1955	First round Regional semifinals Regional Finals	Williams Villanova La Salle	W 73–60 W 73–71 L 64–99
1956	First round Regional semifinals Regional Finals	NC State Dartmouth Temple	W 79–78 ^4OT W 66–58 L 58–60
1957	First round Regional semifinals Regional 3rd-place game	West Virginia North Carolina Lafayette	W 64–56 L 75–87 W 82–76
1996	First round	Utah	L 43–72

NIT results

The Griffins have appeared in five National Invitation Tournaments (NIT). Their combined record is 5–6.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
1944	Quarterfinals	Oklahoma A&M	L 43–29
1963	Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals	Memphis Villanova Providence	W 76–67 W 61–46 L 66–81
1985	First round	Nebraska	L 66–79
1994	First round	Villanova	L 79–103
1995	First round Second Round Quarterfinals Semifinals 3rd-place game	Seton Hall Bradley Washington State Virginia Tech Penn State	W 83–71 W 55–53 W 99–90 L 59–71 L 62–66

CIT results

The Griffins have appeared in four CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournaments (CIT). Their combined record is 4–4.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
2013	First round Second Round Quarterfinals	Elon Youngstown State Evansville	W 69–53 W 84–82 ^OT L 83–84
2014	First round	VMI	L 100–111
2015	First round Second Round Quarterfinals	Dartmouth Bowling Green NJIT	W 87–72 W 82–59 L 73–78
2017	First round	Samford	L 74–78

CBI results

The Griffins have appeared in one College Basketball Invitational. Their record is 0–1.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
2018	First round	Jacksonville State	L 78–80^OT

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The 2015–16 Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball team represented Canisius College during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Golden Griffins, led by fourth year head coach Jim Baron, played their home games at the Koessler Athletic Center and were members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. They finished the season 14–19, 8–12 in MAAC play to finish in a tie for seventh place. They defeated Niagara in the first round of the MAAC tournament to advance the quarterfinals where they lost to Iona.

The 2016–17 Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball team represented Canisius College during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Golden Griffins, led by first-year head coach Reggie Witherspoon, played their home games at the Koessler Athletic Center in Buffalo, New York as members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. They finished the season 18–16, 10–10 in MAAC play to finish in a tie for sixth place. They defeated Marist in the first round of the MAAC tournament to advance to the Quarterfinals where they lost to Saint Peter's. They were invited to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament where they lost in the first round to Samford.

The 2017–18 Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball team represented Canisius College during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Golden Griffins, led by second-year head coach Reggie Witherspoon, played their home games at the Koessler Athletic Center in Buffalo, New York as members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. They finished the season 21–11, 15–3 in MAAC play to finish in a share for the MAAC regular season title with Rider. It was their first conference regular season title since 1994. As the No. 2 seed at the MAAC tournament, they were upset by in the quarterfinals by No. 7 seed Quinnipiac. They were invited to the College Basketball Invitational where they lost in the first round to Jacksonville State.

The 2018–19 Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball team represented Canisius College in the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They played their home games at the Koessler Athletic Center in Buffalo, New York as members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, and were led by 3rd-year head coach Reggie Witherspoon. They finished the 2018–19 season 15–17 overall, 11–7 in MAAC play to finish in a four-way tie for second place. As the No. 2 seed in the 2019 MAAC tournament, they defeated No. 7 seed Manhattan in the quarterfinals 69–65^OT before falling to No. 6 seed Monmouth 59–73 in the semifinals.

The 2019–20 Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball team represented Canisius College in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Golden Griffins, led by fourth-year head coach Reggie Witherspoon, played their home games at the Koessler Athletic Center in Buffalo, New York as members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. They finished the season 12–20, 7–13 in MAAC play to finish in tenth place. They lost in the first round of the MAAC tournament to Iona.

The 2020–21 Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball team represented Canisius College in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Golden Griffins, led by fifth-year head coach Reggie Witherspoon, played their home games at the Koessler Athletic Center in Buffalo, New York as members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). They finished the season 7–6, 7–5 in MAAC play, to finish in a tie for fifth place. As the No. 6 seed in the MAAC tournament, they lost in the first round to No. 11 seed Rider 76–78.

The 2021–22 Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball team represented Canisius College in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Golden Griffins, led by sixth-year head coach Reggie Witherspoon, played their home games at the Koessler Athletic Center in Buffalo, New York as members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

The 2022–23 Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball team represented Canisius College in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Golden Griffins, led by seventh-year head coach Reggie Witherspoon, played their home games at the Koessler Athletic Center in Buffalo, New York as members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

References

↑ "Canisius College Style Guide 2014" . Retrieved April 13, 2016.
↑ "Canisius' men can measure degrees of success - College basketball- NBC Sports". Archived from the original on 2010-11-08. Retrieved 2010-11-09.
↑ "Canisius Hires Witherspoon". 28 May 2016.

External links

Official website

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[1] "Canisius College Style Guide 2014" . Retrieved April 13, 2016.

[2] "Canisius' men can measure degrees of success - College basketball- NBC Sports". Archived from the original on 2010-11-08. Retrieved 2010-11-09.

[3] "Canisius Hires Witherspoon". 28 May 2016.

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[2]

[3]

v t e Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball
Venues	Broadway Auditorium (1936–1939) Buffalo Memorial Auditorium (1940–1995) Marine Midland Arena (1996–1998) Koessler Center (1999–present)
Rivalries	Niagara
Culture & lore	Petey "Canisius, Blue and Gold"
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25

v t e Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference men's basketball
Teams	Canisius Golden Griffins Fairfield Stags Iona Gaels Manhattan Jaspers Marist Red Foxes Merrimack Warriors Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers Niagara Purple Eagles Quinnipiac Bobcats Rider Broncs Sacred Heart Pioneers Saint Peter's Peacocks Siena Saints
Tournament & awards	MAAC men's basketball tournament Coach of the Year Player of the Year Rookie of the Year
Seasons	1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23