Siena breaks road skid with rout at Iona

Jalen Pickett was one of seven Siena players in double figures Friday as Saints overpowered Iona for first road win of season. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — After a loss at Manhattan nearly three weeks ago, Carmen Maciariello refused to buy into a perceived dichotomy in his Siena team based on its record on its home floor at Times Union Center — where the Saints remain undefeated this season — and away from Albany, where the first-year head coach had yet to earn a victory. Instead, he focused on the glaring need for consistency and the same amount of effort from each player, on and off the court.

Friday night saw Siena take said consistency, brewed with two home wins against Marist and Quinnipiac, and raise it to perhaps the highest level the program has seen since Fran McCaffery delivered the last of three consecutive Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference championships to the Capital Region.

With seven players scoring 10 or more points, Siena jumped on the accelerator Friday and never looked back, riding the offensive balance and an efficient shooting night to a commanding 87-64 defeat of Iona, the Saints’ most decisive road win in a decade and the Gaels’ largest home setback since 2007.

“I’m extremely proud of this group,” Maciariello gushed as Siena (10-9, 6-4 MAAC) ended a Jekyll-and-Hyde-like split of nine home wins in as many attempts versus an 0-for-9 split on the road. “I’m super proud of executing a great game plan, not settling for open shots, and being able to play deep into possessions to get what we want.”

“It feels great,” Manny Camper said of ending the much-ballyhooed road losing streak, a demise he contributed to by posting 12 points and 13 rebounds. “We’ve been putting in the work every day in practice. Like Coach said, it starts in our preparation. We’ve been taking it serious, and the results are showing. We’re just going to keep pushing and get better every day.”

Taking advantage of Tajuan Agee being hampered by foul trouble in the first half, the Saints saw an opening to attack both the glass and paint, and did exactly that en route to a plus-18 rebounding edge and a 40-28 margin in interior scoring against an Iona team that appeared overmatched on the boards despite E.J. Crawford doing everything in his power to keep the Gaels within earshot.

“We haven’t really been doing what we need to do on the offensive glass,” Maciariello noted, underscoring the value of Siena’s 16-6 edge in that department. “Obviously, we shot the ball well in our last two home games, but guys getting around the rim and executing, and not finishing their first shot, but able to kind of get that second one in or get to the foul line, they were doing some different lineups, so we thought we could really attack them out of that ball screen action.”

“It was embarrassing,” acting Iona head coach Tra Arnold surmised of the Gaels’ (5-11, 3-6 MAAC) effort. “We just got out-toughed. That’s about it.”

With the win, Siena now moves within a half-game of the first-place tie between Quinnipiac and Monmouth atop the MAAC standings, and now heads into a crucial road game at Saint Peter’s on Sunday, looking for its first Yanitelli Center win since the 2009-10 season, McCaffery’s last at the helm before leaving for the University of Iowa.

“We want to be the aggressors in all that we do,” said Maciariello. “It’s doable. Shaheen is doing a great job with those guys, they played Wednesday, they played Friday, now they play us Sunday at 4. When it’s all said and done, it doesn’t matter how much rest you have. You’ve got to show up and you’ve got to do the job, and it’s another game, another tough MAAC opponent, another great coach, another great team, and we look forward to that challenge. That’s what it’s about.”

Fearless and focused, Quinnipiac is enjoying this season as MAAC hunter rather than hunted

Tricia Fabbri looks on as Quinnipiac battles Saint Peter’s. (Photo by Ray Floriani/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

By Ray Floriani (@rfloriani)

Special to Daly Dose of Hoops

JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Do not write them off. 

In the pundits’ estimation, the changing of personnel brought Quinnipiac back to earth. Well, the pundits may not be right about this after all. 

On Thursday evening, the Bobcats came into Yanitelli Center and left posting a convincing 91-64 victory over Saint Peter’s. Quinnipiac is 9-9 overall, but more importantly, 6-3 in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play with victories in five of its last six conference games.

“First off, we came into the game with (Mikala) Morris out with an ankle injury,” head coach Tricia Fabbri noted. “Our first half tonight was good. Our third quarter was absolutely great.” 

The Bobcats went on an 11-2 run in the opening minutes of that stanza, raising an 11-point halftime lead expanded to 20. Quinnipiac never looked back. The key to that third period began with 1.4 seconds left in the first half, on a sideline inbounds play Fabbri adopted from Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens.

“That’s a little play we picked up from him,” she said. “That basket gave us a lift. We talked about that at halftime and how we could build on that momentum when we came out the second half. We did just that.”

​

Fabbri calls February an exciting time of the year. Her group has a lot to be excited about. Among her starting five this season are one freshman, one sophomore, and one junior. There is a learning curve. 

“It took everyone a while to figure out what we want to do defensively,” Fabbri said. “I cannot say we’re still a young team, as over half the season is gone, but we are still a new group.”

​

Offensively, Quinnipiac was led by senior forward Taylor Herd, with a game-high 22 points.  Herd was effective inside, then stepped out to knock down four 3-pointers.

“That is a trademark in my recruiting,’ Fabbri said. “We want versatility. Our guards can post up, our bigs can put the ball on the floor and drive. We’ve been recruiting versatility for years.”

The offense, never the issue, is favorable. The defense, the concern, is coming around. Fabbri is excited and enjoying it all. 

“This is fun,” she exclaimed. “The last few seasons, we were the favorite and expected to go through the conference and go undefeated,” she said. “Now, we’re not the target. We’re considered in the mix. In a way, there’s less pressure and we’re having a lot of fun with it all.”

   

The MAAC tournament, in Atlantic City, is another source of excitement for the Quinnipiac mentor, a Delran native who proudly embraces her roots in the southern portion of the Garden State. 

“I am a South Jersey native,” she said. “We recruit New Jersey. To have the tournament in Atlantic City and such a great venue is so exciting. I can’t wait.”

Seton Hall vs. DePaul Photo Gallery

Photos from Seton Hall’s 64-57 win over DePaul on January 29, 2020: 

(All photos by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

5 Thoughts: Seton Hall survives upset bid, denies DePaul

Myles Powell battled his way to 24 points as Seton Hall survived upset bid from DePaul. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

By Jason Guerette (@JPGuerette)

NEWARK, N.J. — If you look up winning ugly in the dictionary, chances are good that this game Wednesday night in Newark will be listed there. Neither team shot the ball well, the Pirates missed a bunch of free throws, both teams turned the ball over, and there were some calls from the referees that had the crowd grumbling throughout.

And yet, 10th-ranked Seton Hall notched a 64-57 victory over the upset-minded DePaul Blue Demons, making the plays and shots they needed to make down the stretch.

Here are the five thoughts:

1. Ref Show 

Big East games tend to be hard to officiate as far as Division I college basketball games go. The league's DNA contains a physical, East Coast, hard-nosed, grinding style of hoops, and sometimes the whistles interrupt play more than most.

Tonight was one of those nights. The Pirates weren't playing well offensively, and the officials were calling some fouls that could be described as ticky-tack, and most of those ended up on the Pirates in the first half. There also were eventually four technical fouls, and 47 combined fouls called in the game, with 49 free throws being shot, and a cumulative game time of nearly two-and-a-half hours.

Both head coaches were very democratic about it after the game, but let's just say that the calls, and the reaction to those calls by the fans, and the reaction by the players to the calls, certainly played a big role in this game. I think the grumbling about the men in stripes would have been lessened a bit if not for the home team's...

2. Shooting Woes

No one shot the ball well tonight on either team. DePaul finished with 33 percent shooting, while the Pirates ended up at 39 percent after a hot start during which they vaulted out to a 17-6 early lead.

What really stood out tonight about the Pirates, however, was the free throw shooting. Seton Hall shot a very uncharacteristic 14-of-29 at the charity stripe tonight, and that's even with the Pirates making six of their last eight free throws overall. Until Myles Powell made a pair at the 5:09 mark of the second half, no Pirate had made two straight free throws all game long.

“It’s tough," head coach Kevin Willard said. "Free throws were kind of what got us in the first half. When you’re up six, up seven and you miss two front ends of the 1-and-1, it kind of takes some steam out of it a little bit, and that’s what I told the guys at halftime. I’m like, ‘We’re still playing pretty good, we’re just missing some free throws.’ I just think when (Myles Powell's) a career 88-percent free throw shooter goes 8-for-13, sometimes you have an off night.”  

Obviously, the Pirates are a better shooting team than this, ranking at just about the middle of the pack in the Big East at 71 percent coming in, so I'd chalk this up to an outlier and move on.

3. Coffee Is For Closers

... and Seton Hall has one in Powell. He was not immune from the team-wide shooting struggles tonight, making just seven of 21 field goal attempts, two of ten 3-pointers, and eight of 13 free throws on the night.

However, after turning the ball over on the break with the Pirates down by one and six minutes to play, the All-American would go on a personal 8-0 run, capping it with his second 3-pointer, and putting the Pirates ahead to stay. All told, Powell scored ten straight Seton Hall points down the stretch, and hit for 12 of his 24 points in the game's final seven minutes.

How was he able to pull through on a frustrating night? If you've been following along this year, you know what the answer was.

"This is probably one of the worst games I've had in a while," Powell said. "If it wasn't for my teammates and my coaching staff picking me up and not letting me hang my head, I don't think I would have finished like I did."

That turnover was a big turning point, as that was the point where Willard stepped in.

“I was just trying to encourage him," Seton Hall's skipper said. "He was struggling, and every once in a while, you don’t have your A-game, and I just wanted to tell him to keep on attacking. Sometimes the building’s loud, you just have to yell. One of the issues that we’re having is teams are doing a really good job, especially early in halves, early in the beginning of the game because everyone’s so fresh and locking in on him, and he’s expending a lot of energy early in games. That’s why I was having that nice conversation with him, to just kind of stay with it and don’t worry about it.”

4. Demon-ized

Maybe it's just recurring bad memories of a 30-point loss that this author witnessed at the tail end of the 2011-12 season at DePaul. Maybe it's the fact that the Pirates went on to drop four out of six to the Blue Demons between 2012 and 2016. 

But even though the Pirates responded to that streak by winning five in a row over DePaul from 2016-18, and have now won seven of their last nine against them, it never feels like Seton Hall plays exceptionally well against them. To wit, the last five meetings have been decided by eight points or fewer, and neither of the two games this year was decided until the closing minutes.

“I thought they did a really good job defensively on us," Willard said about the game tonight. "I think you have to give them a lot of credit, I thought they were very physical on the pick-and-rolls, they did a good job of keeping everything tight, but you’re not always going to able to score 80 points — especially in this league — so I thought it was a really good fight, a really good effort. I thought all the guys did what they had to do to find a way to win, and that’s really all that matters.”  

It seems the Blue Demons just present the Pirates with a tough matchup no matter what the statistics say coming in, and so the fact that they were able to beat them twice is a feather in their cap, all things considered.

5. $10 Steak

This win was the Pirates' 10th in a row, and they improved to 8-0 in Big East play, too. But they also extended their record to 25-0 with Fox Sports' Brian Custer on the call. It's the most-amazing streak that not a lot outside the Pirates' fan base knows about.

After the game, Custer tweeted that the fans behind him were nervous when the Blue Demons took a nine-point lead early in the second half, but he said that he'd seen bigger comebacks before, and added in his tweet that the Pirates were as tough as "a 10-dollar steak."

On a night where you shoot that poorly, you've got to be tough if you still want the victory, and for Seton Hall, their toughness leader has been Quincy McKnight. It was the senior point guard who spearheaded the charge. After the aforementioned Powell turnover, DePaul got out on the fast break. McKnight leaped up high in the air to break up an alley-oop pass, then deflected it off of a Blue Demon out of bounds to jump-start the Pirates' game-breaking run.

"I think everyone knows how good of a defender Q is," Willard said. "It was a huge play, because Charlie (Moore) picked Myles when he was about ready to pull a three, and then (they would have) had a dunk, which would have been huge. Q’s energy and his effort, and how hard he plays, he made a phenomenal play breaking it up, and then he slapped it off (Jalen) Coleman-Lands’ leg and we got the ball back, so it was a monster play.”  

McKnight ended up with a rebound, two steals, and an assist in the Pirates' late push, and finished with nine points, six assists, three rebounds and four steals overall. He put it in perspective after the game.

"We had a slow start, that's going to happen," McKnight said after the game. "The good thing about us is that if we're not scoring the ball, we're going to get stops (on defense). That's how we stay in the game when we're not scoring the ball. I think that it shows how tough we are."

Seton Hall will now go for an 11th-straight win Saturday morning, with an 11 a.m. tip time at the Rock against Xavier.

Kevin Willard quote book: DePaul

On Seton Hall winning games on its toughness:
“I thought they did a really good job defensively on us, too. I think you have to give them a lot of credit, I thought they were very physical on the pick-and-rolls, they did a good job of keeping everything tight, but you’re not always going to able to score 80 points — especially in this league — so I thought it was a really good fight, a really good effort. I thought all the guys did what they had to do to find a way to win, and that’s really all that matters.”

On Quincy McKnight’s defensive performance:
“He got his third foul and he sat a lot in the first half. We just needed some good energy, some good vibe, and I thought him and Jared, their energy was really infectious almost, and kind of just — even though we were missing free throws and having a hard time making shots — I thought their defense kept us upbeat and kept us going.”

On potential rust coming off a bye week:
“It’s never easy coming off a bye week, but I think you give a lot of credit to their size and physicality. I thought they did a good job defensively.”

On Charlie Moore and DePaul:
“Charlie’s really tough, and I think Dave (Leitao) does a great job putting him in different pick-and-roll situations. I think DePaul’s good, there’s a reason why they won at Minnesota, won at Iowa. They’re having a hard time making shots right now, I think that’s the biggest issue. They were shooting the ball better in the non-conference, and I think the only difference now is that they’re struggling to shoot the basketball.”

On Ike Obiagu:
“Ikey’s been playing great, it’s just been tough to get him in there because Ro’s been playing so good. But Ikey’s playing with a lot of confidence, he’s making the progression I was hoping he would make, just like Ro did last year. I think you’re going to see him continue to get better and better, and make that progression just like Ro did.”

On his message to Myles Powell:
“I was just trying to encourage him. He was struggling, and every once in a while, you don’t have your A-game, and I just wanted to tell him to keep on attacking. Sometimes the building’s loud, you just have to yell. One of the issues that we’re having is teams are doing a really good job, especially early in halves, early in the beginning of the game because everyone’s so fresh and locking in on him, and he’s expending a lot of energy early in games. That’s why I was having that nice conversation with him that you brought up, to just kind of stay with it and don’t worry about it.”

On Sandro Mamukelashvili’s return:
“It was great. Actually, I thought Sandro played much better than I even thought he would for having four practices. I was actually very encouraged, he wasn’t, I was just encouraged of where he was. In the second half, I just couldn’t get him back in there. For a guy that hasn’t played in that long, it just wasn’t the time.”

On his message to the team:
“At this time of year, with everything that’s going on — classes starting back up — sometimes teams need to be reminded of not slipping on the little things, that’s it. Not that they have, but there’s some things that I’ve been seeing, and I just want to make sure we stay on top of what we’ve been doing to get to this point. This is a great group, they work hard, obviously they play hard, we’re just trying to keep them focused. It’s a tough time of year sometimes.”

On remaining poised amid physicality:
“I think that’s one advantage we have in this conference, we have great referees. I thought the referees, again, they do a phenomenal job. These kids all play so hard, it’s a physical game in this league, so I think our refs do as great a job as anybody being proactive. It’s going to be chippy and you’re going to get into it a little bit, but you’re going to have some things. That’s just part of life in the Big East.”

On second-half adjustments to Charlie Moore:
“I just think Q was a little bit more aggressive, and he does a lot. He played 38 minutes. That’s a lot of minutes for him, and he’s guarding on the other end. I think the biggest thing is he just got a little more aggressive at the point of attack, and made it harder for him to get deep.”

On free throw shooting:
“It’s tough. I could say it in practice and Jared goes 90-for-100. Free throws were kind of what got us in the first half. When you’re up six, up seven and you miss two front ends of the 1-and-1, it kind of takes some steam out of it a little bit, and that’s what I told the guys at halftime. I’m like, ‘We’re still playing pretty good, we’re just missing some free throws.’ I just think when a guy’s a career 88-percent free throw shooter goes 8-for-13, sometimes you have an off night.”

On Saturday's 11 a.m. tipoff against Xavier:
“It’s just like a noon game. You just have to wake up a half-hour earlier. We’ll do the same thing we usually do, we’ll practice early Friday, have a night walkthrough Friday night and get after it on Saturday.”

On Powell and McKnight sparking an 8-0 run:
“That’s just kind of — I think everyone knows how good of a defender Q is, but the way he does it — it was a huge play, because Charlie picked and Myles was about ready to pull a three and he picked it on him, and then he had a dunk, which would have been huge. QU’s energy and his effort, and how hard he plays, he made a phenomenal play breaking it up, and then he slapped it off (Jalen) Coleman-Lands’ leg and we got the ball back, so it was a monster play.”

MAAC Monday: Remembering Kobe, Malik Johnson’s POY-caliber senior year, stat leaders, power rankings

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

MAAC Monday returns today with a different spotlight this week, as we focus not a team, but rather on a senior that has gone from underappreciated role player to one of the most impactful leaders for his program. From there, the weekly stat leaders and power rankings will be refreshed. But first, an opening segment was initially going to be a recap of what turned out to be Monmouth’s fourth straight victory Sunday as the Hawks wrapped up a regular-season sweep of Iona, now becomes an unexpected eulogy for one of the most transcendent figures the sport of basketball has ever seen.

As Monmouth and Iona slugged it out inside the Hynes Athletics Center Sunday afternoon, turning in yet another classic installment to one of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference’s premier rivalries, the tenor of the day shifted from exciting to somber during the second half.

It was then that the world learned of the tragic passing of Kobe Bryant, killed Sunday in a helicopter crash outside Los Angeles at the tender age of 41. Eight others, including the Laker great’s 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, also perished. Almost instantly, a pall was cast over the basketball world, and certainly on press row in New Rochelle.

It is inexplicable as to how something can so suddenly become inconsequential in the grand scheme of life, but so it was on this particular day. For the final 12 minutes of action, neither the final score, nor the winner and loser, mattered. The central focus shifted to the well-being of a man who was not only the fourth-leading scorer in NBA history, but more importantly, an ambassador of the great game we all love and one just beginning to relish his new role in teaching his offspring the right way to make an impact and cement her own legacy, so that the youth of her generation could potentially idolize her in much the same vein today’s children of the 1990s and 2000s did her father.

The clips of Kobe teaching a young Gianna on and off the court, working on mechanics and studying film, have made the rounds on social media, and rightfully so. Forget whether or not you loved or hated Kobe Bryant, the Los Angeles Laker. The impact that Kobe Bryant — man, husband, and father — left upon a world that must now face life without his unyielding and inspiring work ethic to guide it in times of adversity, is undeniable. As Steve Masiello has said many a time during his years at Manhattan College, it is bigger than basketball. It always has been.

Therefore, we urge you to hug your loved ones. Hold them close. Let them know how much you love and appreciate them, and most importantly, cherish the opportunity you are blessed to have whenever you spend time with them.

Life is too short, and tomorrow is not promised. 

Make it count while you still have the chance, just like Kobe Bryant did every day of a life that was abbreviated far too soon before any of us could stop taking it for granted and simply be grateful for what we did have when he walked alongside us.

Rest in peace, Mamba.

***

Malik Johnson’s production has risen to career-high levels, validating development of Canisius’ senior point guard. (Photo by Tom Wolf Imaging)

From an early stage in his collegiate career, it seemed as though Malik Johnson was destined to be the consummate leader on a Canisius team that possessed multiple veteran options for the Richmond, Virginia native to complement with his fearless approach and stalwart mentality that head coach Reggie Witherspoon was fortunate to inherit when Johnson upheld his commitment in the wake of Jim Baron’s retirement following the 2015-16 season.

“Malik is the guy that didn’t score a lot of points, but had a huge impact for our basketball team,” Witherspoon said in 2017, in the waning stages of Johnson’s freshman season, when the 5-foot-10 bedrock of the Golden Griffins’ program completed an inaugural campaign that resulted in a spot on the MAAC’s All-Rookie team. “To have a freshman play that many minutes on a team with a winning record anywhere in the country is remarkable, and for him to be a point guard and do it, that’s really remarkable.”

Three years later, as Johnson prepares himself for the coda to one of the more complete four-year tenures on Main Street in recent memory, very little has changed. The departures of Isaiah Reese and Takal Molson have positioned him as the undisputed face of the Griffs’ roster, but the approach to which Johnson goes about his business remains virtually the same.

“I wouldn’t say I needed to prove anything, but I knew there was going to be an opportunity for me to step up,” he said Friday after Canisius battled Iona to the wire in New Rochelle. “I knew we were going to have a bunch of young guys who were going to be looking up to me to be a leader and show them how we do things here, so it was a challenge in that way. But I wasn’t out to really prove anything. I knew who I was, how good I am as a player. I just had to show it.”

Malik Johnson has turned in perhaps his most stellar season halfway through his senior year at Canisius. (Photo by Tom Wolf Imaging)

Where Johnson has markedly improved, aside from the slight offensive uptick, is in his growth as a two-way player as well as a facilitator. The MAAC’s leader in both assists per game and steals per game, and Canisius’ all-time leader in games played, Johnson ranks among the top ten in the conference in rebounds per game, averaging six boards per contest, usually unheard of for a small point guard. In Friday’s game against Iona, he racked up a double-double with 11 assists and 10 rebounds, the latter marking his third double-digit effort on the glass.

“His rebounding has been a part of what he’s about when he plays the game,” said Witherspoon. “He looks to win the game, so if there’s an area we need him at to win, he just embraces it and goes at it.”

“I would say I got a lot better,” Johnson concurred. “I credit the coaches, just working over the summer on weaknesses and stuff like that, but a lot of the stuff just came with being more confident and as Coach said, sometimes I’ll have to go out there and rebound a lot in certain games, so I just try to keep that in my mind and as far as assists, just find my teammates, push the floor, and get guys open shots. That’s all I really focus on.”

As the Griffs continue to make headway in a parity-laden MAAC entering the second half of conference play, they do so with a battle-tested leader that is not only unfazed by the big moment, but also one whose value cannot truly be measured in tangible units.

“He’s meant a lot,” a passionate Witherspoon remarked. “I’m thankful that he decided to stay, and he has been the face of our program and the leader in our locker room from the moment he arrived on campus. That’s not just because of his ability to play basketball, but that’s who his family raised him to be. He’s that way every day. That’s just who he is, and he has a real good idea of what he needs to step to the plate and swing at.”

Scoring Leaders
1) Rich Kelly, Quinnipiac (17.3 PPG)
2) E.J. Crawford, Iona (17.0)
3) Deion Hammond, Monmouth (16.3)
4) Jalen Pickett, Siena (16.0)
5) Elijah Burns, Siena (14.8)
6) Ray Salnave, Monmouth (14.6)
7) Tajuan Agee, Iona (14.2)
8) Landon Taliaferro, Fairfield (13.9)
9) Dimencio Vaughn, Rider (13.6)
10) Manny Camper, Siena (13.6)

Rebounding Leaders
1) Kevin Marfo, Quinnipiac (13.7 RPG)
2) Manny Camper, Siena (10.5)
3) Tyere Marshall, Rider (7.9)
4) Tajuan Agee, Iona (7.4)
5) Dimencio Vaughn, Rider (6.5)
6) Elijah Burns, Siena (6.5)
7) Frederick Scott, Rider (6.3)
8) Pauly Paulicap, Manhattan (6.2)
9) Malik Johnson, Canisius (6.2)
10) Vincent Eze, Fairfield (5.8)

Assist Leaders
1) Malik Johnson, Canisius (6.0 APG)
2) Jalen Pickett, Siena (4.8)
3) Rich Kelly, Quinnipiac (4.3)
4) Stevie Jordan, Rider (4.3)
5) Samuel Chaput, Monmouth (3.5)
6) Isaiah Washington, Iona (3.2)
7) Samir Stewart, Manhattan (3.2)
8) Ray Salnave, Monmouth (3.2)
9) Marcus Hammond, Niagara (3.1)
10) Tajuan Agee, Iona (3.1)

Field Goal Percentage Leaders
1) Elijah Burns, Siena (.624)
2) Tyere Marshall, Rider (.578)
3) Warren Williams, Manhattan (.576)
4) Tajuan Agee, Iona (.541)
5) Greg Kuakumensah, Niagara (.528)
6) Vincent Eze, Fairfield (.522)
7) Manny Camper, Siena (.491)
8) Frederick Scott, Rider (.478)
9) Jalen Pickett, Siena (.467)
10) E.J. Crawford, Iona (.465)

Free Throw Percentage Leaders
1) Landon Taliaferro, Fairfield (.947)
2) Rich Kelly, Quinnipiac (.867)
3) Ray Salnave, Monmouth (.863)
4) Donald Carey, Siena (.854)
5) Elijah Burns, Siena (.835)
6) James Towns, Niagara (.829)
7) E.J. Crawford, Iona (.816)
8) Taj Benning, Fairfield (.806)
9) Deion Hammond, Monmouth (.800)
10) Stevie Jordan, Rider (.764)

3-Point Field Goal Percentage Leaders
1) Matthew Lee, Saint Peter’s (.512)
2) Ray Salnave, Monmouth (.468)
3) Doug Edert, Saint Peter’s (.462)
4) Dimencio Vaughn, Rider (.426)
5) Rich Kelly, Quinnipiac (.417)
6) Frederick Scott, Rider (.415)
7) Raheem Solomon, Niagara (.413)
8) Jacob Rigoni, Quinnipiac (.408)
T-9) Jordan Henderson, Canisius (.400)
T-9) Matt Herasme, Marist (.400)

Steal Leaders
1) Malik Johnson, Canisius (2.4 SPG)
2) Christian Hinckson, Manhattan (1.7)
3) Stevie Jordan, Rider (1.6)
4) Isaiah Washington, Iona (1.6)
5) Michael Cubbage, Marist (1.5)

Blocked Shot Leaders
1) KC Ndefo, Saint Peter’s (2.7 BPG)
2) Tajuan Agee, Iona (1.5)
3) Pauly Paulicap, Manhattan (1.5)
4) Seth Pinkney, Quinnipiac (1.4)
5) Jalen Pickett, Siena (1.1)

Power Rankings
1) Monmouth (12-7, 6-2 MAAC)
Last Week: T-2
Last Game: Sunday 1/26 at Iona (W 94-88)
Next Game: Wednesday 1/29 at Saint Peter’s, 7 p.m.

2) Quinnipiac (10-8, 5-3 MAAC)
Last Week: T-2
Last Game: Sunday 1/26 at Siena (L 84-61)
Next Game: Friday 1/31 at Canisius, 7 p.m.

3) Rider (11-8, 5-4 MAAC)
Last Week: 6
Last Game: Sunday 1/26 at Manhattan (W 67-63)
Next Game: Friday 1/31 vs. Fairfield, 7 p.m.

4) Siena (9-9, 5-4 MAAC)
Last Week: T-7
Last Game: Sunday 1/26 vs. Quinnipiac (W 84-61)
Next Game: Friday 1/31 at Iona, 7 p.m.

5) Manhattan (8-9, 4-4 MAAC)
Last Week: 1
Last Game: Sunday 1/26 vs. Rider (L 67-63)
Next Game: Friday 1/31 at Saint Peter’s, 7 p.m.

T-6) Fairfield (8-11, 4-4 MAAC)
Last Week: 5
Last Game: Sunday 1/26 vs. Canisius (W 63-55)
Next Game: Friday 1/31 at Rider, 7 p.m.

T-6) Niagara (6-13, 4-4 MAAC)
Last Week: 4
Last Game: Sunday 1/26 at Saint Peter’s (L 58-53)
Next Game: Friday 1/31 vs. Marist, 7 p.m.

T-6) Saint Peter’s (7-10, 4-4 MAAC)
Last Week: 9
Last Game: Sunday 1/26 vs. Niagara (W 58-53)
Next Game: Wednesday 1/29 vs. Monmouth, 7 p.m.

9) Iona (5-10, 3-5 MAAC)
Last Week: 10
Last Game: Sunday 1/26 vs. Monmouth (L 94-88)
Next Game: Friday 1/31 vs. Siena, 7 p.m.

10) Canisius (8-12, 3-6 MAAC)
Last Week: T-7
Last Game: Sunday 1/26 at Fairfield (L 63-55)
Next Game: Friday 1/31 vs. Quinnipiac, 7 p.m.

11) Marist (4-14, 3-6 MAAC)
Last Week: 11
Last Game: Friday 1/24 at Siena (L 70-57)
Next Game: Friday 1/31 at Niagara, 7 p.m.

Late run helps Hofstra get back on track with win over Drexel

Tareq Coburn’s 24 points and 12 rebounds led Hofstra past Drexel, avenging last-second loss in previous game versus Delaware. (Photo by Vincent Simone/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

By Vincent Simone (@VTSimone)

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — On to the next.

The benefit of playing in a conference built around a strict Thursday-Saturday schedule is a quick turnaround. 

A chance to right the ship before you drown in the thoughts of a crushing defeat. Three weeks ago, Hofstra suffered one such crushing defeat in the form of a 27-point drubbing at the hands of Colonial Athletic Association underdog William & Mary. Two days later, the Pride turned the tables and doled out a 27-point punishment of its own to conference for Elon.

This past Thursday, Hofstra found itself on the wrong end of one of those crushing defeats once more when Delaware’s Kevin Anderson drove the length of the court and found the bottom of the net with a floater to break a 71-all tie in the final second of regulation. That bucket would be featured that night as SportsCenter’s No. 1 play of the day.

Rather than wallow in misery, Hofstra had the benefit of being forced to turn its attention toward Saturday afternoon’s contest against Drexel.

"We were frustrated after the game Thursday," senior Desure Buie said. "We wanted to get right back at it the next day. We brought that energy today and played angry."

Entering the half down a point, the visiting Dragons burst out of the gate with a 13-2 run to open their largest lead of the night at 43-35 early in the second stanza. With his team struggling to stay afloat, Hofstra senior Tareq Coburn soon sparked the Pride with five quick points to help pull Hofstra back within one.

"I was just bringing energy, starting out on defense," Coburn said of that spark, “keeping my teammates motivated and doing whatever I can."

Junior Jalen Ray came through with a triple to deliver Hofstra its first lead of the second half, at 52-51, with 9:47 remaining, and from there, the Pride never looked back. The trey turned out to be the catalyst of a 17-0 Hofstra run, lifting the Pride to a 72-59 victory and a 6-3 record in league play.

Coburn capped the night with a career-high 24 points to go along with 12 rebound for his fourth double-double of the season. Pride leading scorer and CAA Player of the Year candidate Buie managed 12 points and 5 assists despite a dismal 5-of-20 night from the floor.

"He just proved he's human," Hofstra head coach Joe Mihalich said of Buie. "I get more upset if they don't take an open shot than if they miss an open shot."

Despite the off night shooting, Buie enjoyed setting the program record in games played at Hofstra with 129. Isaac Kante and Eli Pemberton joined the duo in double figures with 13 and 12 points apiece. Junior forward, CAA leading rebounder, and walking double-double James Butler paced Drexel with his 14th double-double of the season on 21 points and 12 boards. Zach Walton added 14 points while Camren Wynter notched 10 points and four assists in his return to his hometown of Hempstead.

Notes:

* William & Mary, Charleston, and Northeastern all lost at home Saturday afternoon, throwing the CAA standings into a deliciously chaotic mix. William & Mary maintains its lead atop the league at 7-2, while Hofstra, Charleston, and Towson each sit a game behind at 6-3. Northeastern, Delaware, and Drexel are all just two games back of the conference lead at 5-4 with half the league slate left to play.

* Prior to Saturday's game, Hofstra senior walk-on Connor Klementowicz was awarded an athletic scholarship to cover the remainder of his time at the university. 

"He is the best walk-on I've been around in my life," Mihalich said of Klementowicz, who has accrued 17 career points. "He's not liked, but loved by all these guys, and respected."

WATCH: Geo Baker hits game-winning 3-pointer to beat Nebraska

Watch Geo Baker’s game-winning 3-point field goal in the final seconds of Rutgers’ 75-72 win below:

(Video courtesy of Brian Fonseca/NJ Advance Media)

FINAL: Rutgers 75, Nebraska 72.

Geo Baker. For the win. Stones. https://t.co/DltkX4259A pic.twitter.com/G4NeIFb3s2

— Brian Fonseca (@briannnnf) January 25, 2020

Seton Hall vs. Providence Photo Gallery

Photos from Seton Hall’s 73-64 win over Providence on January 23, 2020:

(All photos by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

Iona survives, ends Canisius’ win streak to begin homestand

Tajuan Agee scored season-high 24 points as Iona fended off late run to defeat Canisius. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — Following a much-needed win one week ago Friday, E.J. Crawford praised Iona’s development effusively, citing that the collective buy-in of the Gaels had risen to a crescendo halfway through a season rife with adversity and a roster still feeling itself out through its first two months of playing alongside one another.

Seven days later, the individual and group commitment manifested itself in the form of a 22-point lead, but threatened to evaporate after the four-time defending Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champions surrendered 19 unanswered points.

That was when muscle memory and senior leadership kicked in.

After opening up a 59-37 advantage over Canisius and then seeing its cushion whittled down to a mere three points, Iona found a way to close its opener of a three-game homestand, salting away a 69-66 victory over the Golden Griffins to remain just two games out of the lead in what has shaped up to be an even more unpredictable MAAC race than that of one year ago, where the Gaels rode a seven-game surge at the end of the regular season to an historic conference tournament crown.

“I feel like we still haven’t played to our fullest potential,” Tajuan Agee candidly opined after his season-high 24 points propelled Iona (5-9, 3-4 MAAC) to a bounce-back win on the heels of a disappointing loss last Sunday at Marist. “We got off to a good run, got up 22, but I think we fought hard. We’ve still got a lot to work on, but tonight was a good win to get us rolling.”

“We’ve made big strides,” Crawford added after supplementing Agee with 18 points of his own. “We’ve got to keep going and we’ve got Monmouth on Sunday. We’ve got to come and play the right way, and get that W as well.”

For the majority of the evening, Iona fed off its customary brand of transition offense and deceptively strong defense, seizing control midway through the first half with a 17-4 run and holding Canisius (8-11, 3-5 MAAC) to just two field goals during a five-minute outburst that illustrated the Gaels’ potent attack at perhaps its most complete appearance to date this season. But a 19-0 run by the Griffs, punctuated by a Majesty Brandon 3-pointer with 3:15 remaining in regulation, forced acting head coach Tra Arnold to call a timeout to rally the troops for a suddenly intense stretch run.

“We’ve been having lulls like that throughout the year,” Arnold, who continues to fill in for Tim Cluess as he recovers from a health issue that has sidelined him, said. “I just told them to be tougher offensively and make plays offensively, and then defensively, we can’t have lapses at those points.”

In addition to Agee and Crawford leading the way, Isaiah Washington flirted with a triple-double, ultimately finishing with eight points, seven rebounds and seven assists while demonstrating an all-around game that has markedly improved since his Gaels debut in November.

“It’s something we’ve been talking about,” said Arnold. “We want him to score, but we want him to get in the paint and pass, and get guys shots, because he has the ability to do that. When transfers come in, it usually takes a while to adjust to a system, and I think he’s really recently grasped what we want him to do, and hopefully it continues going forward.”

Iona resumes its stay at the Hynes Athletics Center on Sunday, when it welcomes a resurgent Monmouth team currently tied for the MAAC lead. The Hawks already own a victory over Iona, on January 5 in West Long Branch, but the Gaels have a shot at retribution with a momentum-boosting triumph to fuel the fire.

“It’s definitely better to win and learn than lose and learn,” Arnold admitted. “We had shown spurts in the game, especially in the second half, and defensively, we were really good.”