MAAC Monday: Rider’s struggles, stat leaders, power rankings

By Jaden Daly (@jadendaly) and Vincent Simone (@VTSimone)

With two more weeks left in the regular season, the stretch drive rolls on in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, and MAAC Monday heats up in lockstep as well. In this week's edition, a former conference leader that has sputtered as of late will be profiled more closely in the team spotlight, hoping to get a clearer sense of what has gone on in recent weeks, before giving way to an updated set of stat leaders and power rankings. Without any further ado, the ball bounces across the Hudson River and into New Jersey:

Had the MAAC regular season ended two weeks ago, Rider would once again have earned the No. 1 seed in the upcoming conference tournament for a second time in three seasons, carrying with it an automatic berth to the National Invitation Tournament and a renewed sense of momentum for Lawrenceville to experience March Madness for the first time since emigrating from the Northeast Conference nearly a quarter-century ago.

Things seemed to be going well for Kevin Baggett and the Broncs. Behind a quartet of 1,000-point scorers and boasting perhaps the most talented roster in the league on paper, all the pieces seemed to be falling into place. Dimencio Vaughn returned to the lethal form that made him a first team all-MAAC selection, Tyere Marshall continued to further evolve into one of the conference’s best forwards, Frederick Scott was a mismatch and X-factor no opponent was able to solve, and senior point guard Stevie Jordan appeared to be enjoying the game and himself at the same time.

What happened since then, you ask? Rider has dropped three of its last four, including a pair of games this past weekend — a heartbreaking one-point setback to Iona Friday and a more decisive 19-point defeat at Saint Peter’s on Sunday — to sit 9-8 in league play, three games behind the aforementioned Peacocks with a promising freight train of momentum having been temporarily derailed.

“We shoot ourselves in the foot,” Kevin Baggett said after Friday’s 70-69 loss to Iona, one in which Isaiah Ross’ 3-pointer in the final seconds proved to be the dagger after Jordan’s game-winning layup attempt rimmed out to add to the Groundhog Day-esque circumstances of a night where the Broncs shot just 9-of-21 at the foul line. “We cost ourselves the game. You gotta make free throws, you gotta execute. You’ve gotta do what we’re asking you to do, not what you want to do. I’m worried about us doing what we’re asking our guys to do. If they’re doing exactly what we’re asking them to do, we wouldn’t be in this position.”

The frustration only mounted 36 hours later, as Rider pulled within two of Saint Peter’s before Doug Edert’s torrid 3-point shooting kick-started an 18-2 run that allowed the Peacocks to pull away to a convincing 73-54 victory that all but took the Broncs out of the regular season title chase. Once again, Baggett pulled no punches.

“We mentally break down when we’re supposed to do things that we guard and defend every day,” the head coach told The Trentonian’s Kyle Franko. “We left him open for a three. The back line screwed it up. Next thing you know, he goes on his run.”

With three games left before the MAAC tournament begins in Atlantic City, Rider has two of those contests at home — Monmouth and Manhattan visit Alumni Gym — and a road trip to Fairfield sandwiched in. But regardless of how much basketball is left, the objective is a clear one for a team that will undoubtedly hear the seemingly annual refrain of cynics and starved fans clamoring for the Broncs to finally advance past the quarterfinals of the conference postseason for the first time in Baggett’s tenure.

“I can control what’s controllable,” Dimencio Vaughn said to Franko after the game Sunday. “(I) just keep reminding them that you’ve got to play hard, stop quitting, just play through it. I know where I’m at right now. I’m tired of losing. (That’s) two games we should have won.”

Scoring Leaders
1) E.J. Crawford, Iona (18.3 PPG)
2) Rich Kelly, Quinnipiac (16.3)
3) Deion Hammond, Monmouth (15.7)
4) Jalen Pickett, Siena (15.5)
5) Elijah Burns, Siena (14.8)
6) Dimencio Vaughn, Rider (14.5)
7) Ray Salnave, Monmouth (14.4)
8) Tajuan Agee, Iona (14.2)
9) Manny Camper, Siena (13.9)
10) Marcus Hammond, Niagara (13.9)

Rebounding Leaders
1) Kevin Marfo, Quinnipiac (13.2 RPG)
2) Manny Camper, Siena (10.1)
3) Tyere Marshall, Rider (8.0)
4) Tajuan Agee, Iona (7.4)
5) Dimencio Vaughn, Rider (6.5)
6) Pauly Paulicap, Manhattan (6.2)
7) Elijah Burns, Siena (6.1)
8) Malik Johnson, Canisius (6.0)
9) Vincent Eze, Fairfield (5.9)
10) Michael Cubbage, Marist (5.9)

Assist Leaders
1) Malik Johnson, Canisius (5.9 APG)
2) Jalen Pickett, Siena (5.6)
3) Rich Kelly, Quinnipiac (4.5)
4) Stevie Jordan, Rider (4.1)
5) Isaiah Washington, Iona (3.6)
6) Samuel Chaput, Monmouth (3.3)
7) Michael Cubbage, Marist (3.2)
8) Ray Salnave, Monmouth (3.2)
9) Tajuan Agee, Iona (3.1)
10) Samir Stewart, Manhattan (3.0)

Field Goal Percentage Leaders
1) Elijah Burns, Siena (.628)
2) Tyere Marshall, Rider (.616)
3) Warren Williams, Manhattan (.570)
4) Jordan Jones, Marist (.535)
5) Tajuan Agee, Iona (.528)
6) Greg Kuakumensah, Niagara (.505)
7) Vincent Eze, Fairfield (.500)
8) Pauly Paulicap, Manhattan (.485)
9) Manny Camper, Siena (.485)
10) Dimencio Vaughn, Rider (.481)

Free Throw Percentage Leaders
1) George Papas, Monmouth (.887)
2) Rich Kelly, Quinnipiac (.883)
3) Ray Salnave, Monmouth (.874)
4) Elijah Burns, Siena (.837)
5) E.J. Crawford, Iona (.835)
6) Donald Carey, Siena (.823)
7) James Towns, Niagara (.816)
8) Taj Benning, Fairfield (.814)
9) Deion Hammond, Monmouth (.809)
10) Tajuan Agee, Iona (.791)

3-Point Field Goal Percentage Leaders
1) Doug Edert, Saint Peter’s (.472)
2) Matthew Lee, Saint Peter’s (.471)
3) Braden Bell, Marist (.421)
4) Matt Herasme, Marist (.415)
5) Marcus Hammond, Niagara (.407)
6) Justin Roberts, Niagara (.400)
7) Dimencio Vaughn, Rider (.398)
8) Frederick Scott, Rider (.394)
9) Rich Kelly, Quinnipiac (.383)
10) Jacob Rigoni, Quinnipiac (.381)

Steal Leaders
1) Malik Johnson, Canisius (2.1 SPG)
2) Christian Hinckson, Manhattan (1.7)
3) Isaiah Washington, Iona (1.7)
4) Dimencio Vaughn, Rider (1.6)
T-5) Stevie Jordan, Rider (1.4)
T-5) Ray Salnave, Monmouth (1.4)

Blocked Shot Leaders
1) KC Ndefo, Saint Peter’s (2.4 BPG)
2) Pauly Paulicap, Manhattan (1.8)
3) Seth Pinkney, Quinnipiac (1.5)
4) Tajuan Agee, Iona (1.4)
5) Jalen Pickett, Siena (1.2)

Power Rankings
1) Saint Peter’s (15-11, 12-5 MAAC)
Last Week: 1
Last Game: Sunday 2/23 vs. Rider (W 73-54)
Next Game: Thursday 2/27 at Niagara, 7 p.m.

2) Siena (15-10, 11-5 MAAC)
Last Week: 2
Last Game: Sunday 2/23 at Fairfield (W 62-59)
Next Game: Wednesday 2/26 at Quinnipiac, 7 p.m.

3) Monmouth (16-11, 10-6 MAAC)
Last Week: 4
Last Game: Sunday 2/23 vs. Quinnipiac (W 89-78)
Next Game: Friday 2/28 at Rider, 9 p.m.

4) Iona (10-13, 8-8 MAAC)
Last Week: 5
Last Game: Friday 2/21 vs. Rider (W 70-69)
Next Game: Thursday 2/27 at Canisius, 7 p.m.

5) Rider (15-12, 9-8 MAAC)
Last Week: 3
Last Game: Sunday 2/23 at Saint Peter’s (L 73-54)
Next Game: Friday 2/28 vs. Monmouth, 9 p.m.

6) Manhattan (11-14, 7-9 MAAC)
Last Week: 6
Last Game: Sunday 2/23 vs. Canisius (L 57-56)
Next Game: Wednesday 2/26 vs. Marist, 7 p.m.

7) Fairfield (11-16, 7-9 MAAC)
Last Week: 9
Last Game: Sunday 2/23 vs. Siena (L 62-59)
Next Game: Friday 2/28 vs. Quinnipiac, 7 p.m.

8) Quinnipiac (12-14, 7-9 MAAC)
Last Week: 8
Last Game: Sunday 2/23 at Monmouth (L 89-78)
Next Game: Wednesday 2/26 vs. Siena, 7 p.m.

9) Marist (7-18, 6-10 MAAC)
Last Week: 10
Last Game: Sunday 2/23 vs. Niagara (W 76-54)
Next Game: Wednesday 2/26 at Manhattan, 7 p.m.

10) Niagara (9-18, 7-9 MAAC)
Last Week: 7
Last Game: Sunday 2/23 at Marist (L 76-54)
Next Game: Thursday 2/27 vs. Saint Peter’s, 7 p.m.

11) Canisius (10-17, 5-11 MAAC)
Last Week: 11
Last Game: Sunday 2/23 at Manhattan (W 57-56)
Next Game: Thursday 2/27 vs. Iona, 7 p.m.