Iona rebounds from shocking blowout loss with scrappy win over Fairfield

Rick Pitino looks on as his Iona team overcame resilient effort from Fairfield to get back on winning track. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — Iona’s most recent contest before Friday, an uncharacteristic 23-point loss at Quinnipiac where the Gaels were done in by lack of depth and their leading scorer — point guard Daniss Jenkins — fouling out as a victim of ambiguous whistles in the second half, was one which Rick Pitino hoped would be quickly flushed from his team’s conscience.

It may have taken a full half to reacclimate to what Iona fans are accustomed to, but the Gaels got the desired result in their return to the Hynes Athletics Center, surviving a valiant Fairfield squad in a 75-69 decision that ensured the hosts would keep pace with Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference leader Siena, who was also victorious Friday. Iona remains one game behind the Saints, who are still unbeaten in MAAC play.

“Obviously, the Quinnipiac game was one game where you’ve just got to say to yourself, ‘throw it out or it’ll drive you crazy,’” Pitino cautioned. “Anything that could go wrong did go wrong, it’s Murphy’s Law. But we’ve maintained a hard-working team. We just played a really good second half, Cruz Davis made some big shots, and we played really good defense on the perimeter.”

“Parker (Weiss) and Anton (Brookshire) won the game for us, and they’re two players that don’t play a lot of minutes, but they won the game. They gave us the lift we needed.”

Playing without Walter Clayton, Jr. for a third straight game as the sophomore continues to rehab a bone bruise on his thigh, Weiss and Brookshire — and Davis as well — were counted upon to shoulder the load in the backcourt alongside Jenkins against a Fairfield team that was missing its primary ball handler in point guard Caleb Fields. And despite a sluggish beginning, the next-man-up mentality that was on display last week at Marist manifested itself again as Iona (12-5, 5-1 MAAC) maximized its resources and was rewarded for its resolve.

“I feel like everybody started out slow,” Brookshire said, referencing both the beginning of the season with each player’s individual roles as well as Friday’s contest. “And I would say mine and Cruz's position is to give the team minutes whenever we need it, whether that’s when we’re in the game, on the bench, just encouraging our teammates. When moments like this happen, the role for me and Cruz is now bigger than it actually was. I would say right now we’ve been doing a great job on the court and when we’re on the bench as well.”

“We’re struggling right now,” Pitino reiterated. “And we’re struggling because I’ve never had this many injuries in all my years of coaching. It started out with a double meniscus with Sadiku (Ibine Ayo), and then Berrick (JeanLouis) is out three weeks to a month, then Quinn (Slazinski) is out a month, and now Walter. Early in the season, we had great continuity, we were playing terrific, and we’ve lost our continuity because of the injuries. But we’re winning, and that’s okay.”

Slazinski, whose lower-body injury is being carefully monitored by Pitino, is still on his way back to full health. As for Clayton, the Hall of Fame coach hopes his return comes much sooner.

“He’s got really a hard thigh bruise, a hematoma,” Pitino revealed. “I personally think he’ll be ready for Manhattan. If I had to guess, he’ll start practicing on Wednesday and hopefully be ready for Manhattan.”

Iona has a Sunday matinee against Rider before its first showdown this season with the archrival Jaspers, and each game from here on out represents a showcase of upside that Pitino feels is higher than that of last year’s unit that flirted with an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament before bowing out in the quarterfinals of the MAAC tournament, even if such promise is not already prevalent.

“I thought last year’s team was much better, and I think it is,” he declared. “But the good thing is I think this team has the potential to be better than last year. They’re not now, and they have a legitimate excuse, but I think we can be better, I really do. They work hard, they’re good guys, they’ve withstood a lot. I think there’s two or three teams better than us now in the MAAC, but I’m not sure that’ll be the case in March.”