Rider hopes change of scenery leads to change of results

Kevin Baggett and Rider look for elusive deep run into MAAC tournament this week in Atlantic City. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

By Vincent Simone (@VTSimone)

Hungry for a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference championship, the hope for Kevin Baggett and the Rider Broncs is a change in scenery could bring with it a change of fortune.

For Rider and head coach Kevin Baggett, the hope is a change in scenery will bring with it a change of fortune. After a five-year stint in Albany, the 2020 MAAC tournament makes its way to the Atlantic City boardwalk and Rider’s home state of New Jersey.

Currently in his eighth season at the helm of the Broncs, Baggett has yet to lead his squad past the MAAC tournament quarterfinals. It is the elephant in the room for a coach who has enjoyed great regular season success. Over his eight seasons, Baggett has compiled a 137-106 regular season record and come out victorious in 60 percent of league games. In 2018, he led the Broncs to their first regular-season MAAC title in a decade.

Yet for all their regular season success, Baggett’s Broncs have repeatedly come up short in the postseason, even when entering the conference tournament as a favorite. Rider has fallen in its opening game four times as the higher seed, including losses to seventh-seeded Saint Peter’s in 2015 as the No. 2 seed and again to the ninth-seeded Peacocks as the top seed in 2018.

This year’s change of scenery could offer a change of fortune for Baggett and the Broncs.

The 2020 MAAC tournament makes its way to the Atlantic City boardwalk, a fraction of the distance from Albany’s Times Union Center and the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Massachusetts, the homes of the tournament for the better part of the last decade. 

For the Broncs, that move closer to home could portend a long overdue extension of regular season success into the postseason.

Over the last three seasons, Rider has been nothing short of dominant on its home court. The Broncs have compiled a 32-5 record at Alumni Gymnasium during that stretch, including an 11-1 mark this season.

“It had a lot to do with [our fans] and our guys feeding off their energy.” Baggett said of his team’s success at home. It means a lot. It means that when we’re in front of our fans, our guys give them everything they’ve got. We need them to come out in numbers. We’ll feed off of them.”

Leading the Broncs into Atlantic City will be All-MAAC First Team member Dimencio Vaughn. The redshirt junior leads Rider and ranks fifth in the conference with 14.8 points per game along with 4.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.8 steals per game.

“He’s been playing the way he’s capable of playing,” Baggett said of Vaughn. “I don’t think he’s trying to prove anything as much as he’s trying to help his team win.”

Senior Tyere Marshall and redshirt junior Frederick Scott each joined Vaughn on the All-MAAC squads, both landing on the Third Team. Marshall averaged 12.9 points and 8.0 rebounds per game while connecting on 61 percent of his shots. Scott averaged 12.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.

“Those guys are the fabric of our program,” Baggett said of the duo. “We’re going to go as those guys go. Tyere Marshall had not made an all-conference team to this point. He’s deserving of it, he’s had a good year for us, and I’m just excited he’s finally had a chance to get on one of these teams. To his credit, he’s really put the work in.”

Rider’s experienced quartet is rounded out by senior Stevie Jordan. The talented point guard had been a member of the All-MAAC Second Team each of the last two seasons, but fell short this year despite averages of 11.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game.

“He’s still the guy that makes us go,” Baggett added on Jordan. “We’re counting on him to continue to lead us, and he has a lot still to prove as well.”

The Broncs will take on the winner of Tuesday night’s matchup between sixth-seeded Niagara and No. 11 seed Marist on Thursday.

With a prospective large crowd on hand cheering them on, the Broncs and their head coach will attempt to reverse the misfortunes of the past and advance to their first NCAA Tournament since 1994.