Casimir rediscovering freshman groove as Iona surges to top of MAAC

Schadrac Casimir has opened 2018 in emphatic fashion, with four straight games of double-figure points and at least 28 minutes played, helping guide Iona back to top of MAAC standings. (Photo by Vincent Simone/NYC Buckets)

NEW ROCHELLE, NY -- Schadrac Casimir burst onto the scene in his freshman season, the diminutive guard with a lethal shot capable of knocking any opponent for a loop.

His 40-point game against Delaware State late in November was merely the beginning of a career that earned him plaudits for potentially being Iona's best shooter out of all the players to don the Gaels' maroon and gold under Tim Cluess, no easy feat considering the likes of Scott Machado, Momo Jones, and Sean Armand having come before him. Generously listed at 5-foot-10, the Stamford native who received only a handful of scholarship offers before signing with Iona in the 2013 offseason. From there, he built an impressive resume in just one season, garnering unanimous Rookie of the Year honors and a spot on the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference's second team at the end of the regular season, helping the Gaels defend their league crown.

Then fate, as it always has a knack for doing when one least expects, intervened.

Three hip surgeries limited Casimir to just four games his sophomore year and forced him to take a medical redshirt. He would eventually play in all but one of Iona's games last season, primarily off the bench, but was still nowhere near the explosive player he was as a rookie.

"I'm hoping to see him, over the next couple of games and into the early part of the year, start to put his game into a little bit of another gear," head coach Tim Cluess said after Iona's exhibition game against Army in October, "and get back some of that freshman year confidence."

As the calendar has turned from 2017 to 2018, so too has Casimir's game, enjoying perhaps his best stretch of basketball since his freshman campaign ended.

His 18 points against Saint Peter's one week ago Friday, including five three-point field goals, helped the Gaels erase multiple double-digit deficits to down the scrappy Peacocks. Rewarded with a start two days later against Fairfield, his 11 points were one of five double-figure point totals as Iona dominated the Stags. Then, last Thursday, Casimir led all scorers with 17 points as Iona wiped out a 12-point deficit against Siena to upend the Saints in a rematch of last year's MAAC championship game.

"That's huge for us," said Cluess after the Siena game. "Now that he's done it three games in a row for us -- that's the first time since his freshman year that he's done that -- I'm hoping he can be a solid player for us the rest of the way, and that will help our team a lot."

Casimir took center stage again Sunday, leading all scorers with 15 points as Iona survived a first-half shootout against Rider before thoroughly dominating the Broncs in the second half of a 91-64 victory, albeit as the complexion of the game changed when Stevie Jordan sprained his ankle just before the intermission. For Casimir, it was the fourth straight contest in which he scored 10 or more points, and played at least 28 minutes.

"I feel good every game," he said when asked for an update on his condition. "When my jersey's called in the game, I play. I do whatever I can to help my team win. Some games, it's offense, some games, it's defense. Whatever it is, I try to go out there and try to live up to the expectations."

"There's no doubt about it," Cluess added. "This is the first time that you could ever sit there and say he's played not only one or two games in a row (like this), but four games in a row. He's a player again out in the court, and you can see the confidence coming out in him, even more and more, every game he plays."