Nehemiah Mack’s 15 points led Manhattan as Jaspers put clamps on Iona Sunday. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)
NEW YORK — Since Manhattan's victory over Iona in the 2015 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference championship game, every professional sports team in the New York metropolitan area has changed coaches, some more than once, and ten of the four major sports’ franchises ended championship droughts of two decades or longer, just to put the magnitude of the Gaels’ dominance over their local rivals into perspective.
On Sunday, a long-awaited dose of retribution, with a championship-level performance over the game’s final 20 minutes, was delivered.
Outscoring Iona by an impressive 39-14 margin in the second half, Manhattan ended its 1,790-day drought, conceding only four field goals to the Gaels after halftime to walk off the Draddy Gymnasium floor with a decisive 72-49 victory that marked only the second instance in which the Jaspers prevailed by more than three points over the four-time defending MAAC champions under head coach Steve Masiello.
“I thought we came out and showed great character,” Masiello remarked as Manhattan (9-10, 5-5 MAAC) also halted a four-game losing streak with its largest margin of victory since defeating Eastern Kentucky by 27 points in 2016. “We didn’t waver in times of adversity, and that’s what I’m most proud of.”
Prior to the game, Masiello shook up his starting lineup, giving Nehemiah Mack the start at the point guard spot and tabbing Michael Okafor for his first career start. However, it had nothing to do with Manhattan’s recent efforts, instead it was merely a reaction to tendencies the Jaspers’ coach felt needed to be modified.
“It wasn’t about play,” Masiello clarified. “It was about reaction to plays. It was a lesson about life in that we have to respond to adversity better when things don’t go our way, and we can’t just be result-driven. I thought a couple of our guys just needed that, and what I was most proud of was they were like Eli Manning in that locker room. Their character was unbelievable. They were the best teammates, they were the biggest cheerleaders, they were the biggest supporters, and that makes my job very easy.”
Prior to the game, Masiello shook up his starting lineup, giving Nehemiah Mack the start at the point guard spot and tabbing Michael Okafor for his first career start. However, it had nothing to do with Manhattan’s recent efforts, instead it was merely a reaction to tendencies the Jaspers’ coach felt needed to be modified.
“It wasn’t about play,” Masiello clarified. “It was about reaction to plays. It was a lesson about life in that we have to respond to adversity better when things don’t go our way, and we can’t just be result-driven. I thought a couple of our guys just needed that, and what I was most proud of was they were like Eli Manning in that locker room. Their character was unbelievable. They were the best teammates, they were the biggest cheerleaders, they were the biggest supporters, and that makes my job very easy.”
Manhattan showed a killer instinct from the opening tip, unleashing a 9-2 run to open the game after connecting on three 3-point field goals in the first four minutes. Iona would respond, using two spurts to forge leads, riding the hot hands of E.J. Crawford and Isaiah Ross, who combined for 30 of the Gaels’ 35 points before the intermission.
But the Jaspers, who have shown flashes of brilliance on the defensive end several times this season, uncorking an 18-3 rally to open the final stanza while holding Iona (5-12, 3-7 MAAC) without a field goal for over seven minutes, and more importantly, keeping Crawford and Ross off the scoreboard entirely down the stretch.
“They had six threes at halftime, and three of them were fool’s gold,” Masiello said of Iona’s offense in the opening frame. “We didn’t think they could sustain that for 40 minutes. It was just a matter of staying with our style. We believed that if we just stuck to what we do, and didn’t let doubt come in, that we’ll be fine. We have enough character in that room that they have faith, and they understand that.”
“We believe in our style. There’s going to be nights where it just doesn’t go your way, but if we believe and we stay committed to our style, we can wear you down.”
Following an uncharacteristically flat showing Friday against Saint Peter’s, preparing for Iona 36 hours later was no easy task, but a process-driven Manhattan team brought home the point that the end justifies the means.
“The thing we’ve been talking about is since June, these guys’ process has been flawless,” Masiello proudly shared. “We’ve has some moments under the lights where we haven’t reacted the way we typically do, and that happens. I just needed to refocus them on how we react to adversity. That was all we did in the last 36 hours. They got that message, and they followed that message. I have unbelievable belief in this team because of their process.”
“We believe in our style. There’s going to be nights where it just doesn’t go your way, but if we believe and we stay committed to our style, we can wear you down.”
Following an uncharacteristically flat showing Friday against Saint Peter’s, preparing for Iona 36 hours later was no easy task, but a process-driven Manhattan team brought home the point that the end justifies the means.
“The thing we’ve been talking about is since June, these guys’ process has been flawless,” Masiello proudly shared. “We’ve has some moments under the lights where we haven’t reacted the way we typically do, and that happens. I just needed to refocus them on how we react to adversity. That was all we did in the last 36 hours. They got that message, and they followed that message. I have unbelievable belief in this team because of their process.”
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