Cluess' latest magic act has Iona in top form as top seed in MAAC tournament

Tim Cluess' latest success story has taken Iona from middle of muddled MAAC picture to regular season champion and hottest team in conference entering MAAC tournament. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

ALBANY, NY -- Just twelve months ago, Iona emerged from a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament where the top three seeds were all eliminated before the Gaels' latest title defense even began, and walked off the Times Union Center floor having punched its third straight NCAA Tournament ticket in a weekend that was soon heralded among the greatest coaching jobs Tim Cluess had completed in his lifetime in the industry.

While some may have expected the feat to be replicated this March, as Iona has once again converged upon its home away from home in Albany as the prohibitive favorite to win what would be an unprecedented fourth consecutive MAAC postseason crown, the manner in which the Gaels have entered the dance floor has been rather different.

First, there was the dismissal of Roland Griffin -- preseason first team all-conference talent and legitimate contender for MAAC Player of the Year honors -- after a post-practice altercation with assistant coach Ricky Johns. An uncharacteristic 2-9 start to the season after non-conference play did little to quell the speculation that the dynasty may have been nearing its end, and a four-game losing streak that dropped Iona to 5-6 in league play after a one-point loss to Quinnipiac on February 8 only exacerbated the skepticism. But as the wise man knows, one must never count Cluess out when the chips are down and the money is on the line.

Seven consecutive wins to close the regular season have brought Iona into its latest date with destiny -- and perhaps, history -- at 12-6 in MAAC play, and owners of an automatic bid into the National Invitation Tournament at the very least. And with essentially a six-man rotation due to injuries, new roles, and incoming transfers becoming indoctrinated into the Iona brand of basketball, it might be safe to say that this latest iteration of the Gaels could be the most impressive in terms of what the group has accomplished as a whole.

"The respect I have for Tim and the job that he does year in and year out is special," Manhattan head coach Steve Masiello said after his Jaspers were vanquished in the midst of Iona's unbeaten surge two weeks ago, on February 22. "I think it's one of the best coaching jobs in the country for what he's accomplished. I think not enough people give him enough credit for the job he has done, and continues to do. I have so much respect for him and what he's able to accomplish at this time of year."

"I don't know if I could rank his coaching jobs in order, having been on the inside and knowing some of the things we've done and overcome over the years," said Jared Grasso, Cluess' longtime former assistant and right-hand man on each of the four MAAC titles that were brought to New Rochelle this decade before leaving to take over the head coaching vacancy at Bryant University this past April. "He's a magician. His teams always play their basketball late in the year. You could go through some ups and downs, and different things will happen -- like in any program -- but Tim is the master at figuring it out and getting his guys to play together, and play the right way at the right time. This is another example of him doing that, which is what makes him one of the best coaches in college basketball."

So what, exactly, was the impetus behind the latest flick of the proverbial switch?

"I think everyone's starting to buy in now," junior forward E.J. Crawford, a first team all-MAAC honoree who made great strides this season toward becoming a more complete and all-around talent, said. "It took us a minute to get used to each other because there were so many new pieces, but now we're starting to click and gel. We're only getting better, too."

"I think they were growing as a team all along, and I really do think that," Cluess opined, even in the throes of an unusual dose of adversity. "We just had guys out forever, so even though we're low on bodies, we've had our main five or six for a bit now. We haven't had that. All those games we lost, Tajuan (Agee) was sick as a dog for two of those games, Asante (Gist), Ben (Perez) missed games. Dre (Andrija Ristanovic) missed games. We haven't had consistency to try and get better, and now that we have most of the guys, they've gotten familiar with what we're doing a little bit more, and they're taking a little more pride in themselves."

"I see other guys coming in now on their own and working a little harder before and after practice, and they're holding each other accountable. The players are getting on each other about their decision making, knowing a set, and they're taking the criticism from each other in a better way. Early in the year, they'd blow up at each other. Now if someone says it, the guy listens to it and actually tries to make an adjustment. I think they're coming a long way as their bond as a team goes. It's been fun to watch that."

Iona's next attempt at rewriting the record books begins Friday in the quarterfinals of the MAAC tournament, against either Marist -- with whom the Gaels split the regular season series -- or Saint Peter's, against whom Iona earned a 16-point victory in the lone meeting between the two teams. Regardless of who lines up opposite the defending champions, one thing is certain, that being Cluess' knack for maximizing his talent and extracting every last drop when it matters most.

"Tim has an innate ability to get guys," said Grasso. "It's almost the opposite of John Calipari. John has the one-and-dones on the front end, Tim has one-and-dones on the back end, with grad transfers and junior college transfers. He's just really good at getting groups to play together and work together. In different years with us, it took a different amount of time, and I know everyone was in panic mode when Iona was losing games early in the season. They played a non-conference schedule that I wouldn't wish upon my worst enemy, and you knew once they got back in the gym and were able to practice and spend time together, that Tim would be able to figure it out like he always does. It's helped obviously having two returning guys who are two first team all-league players who are wired to win (Crawford and Rickey McGill) and understand the competitive nature of the program. When it comes to winning time, those guys always take their game to another level. I just think Tim has an unbelievable ability to get teams to play good basketball at the right time, and it would not shock me by any means to see them win three more games in Albany and go play in the NCAA Tournament again."