Shaka blending havoc, humility and hubris with first Marquette team

Already rebuilding Marquette to fit his effervescent personality, Shaka Smart now sets to work on making Golden Eagles into connected and aggressive team befitting of his past rosters. (Photo by the Marquette Wire)

NEW YORK — In his first public media session since being introduced as head coach at Marquette nearly seven months ago, Shaka Smart was not one to mince words when discussing what would comprise his maiden roster of Golden Eagles as it prepares to take flight in the Big East Conference.

Still the same dynamic and contagious personality that endeared him to the nation in his dozen seasons at VCU and Texas, Smart was effusive in his praise for the players he inherited from Steve Wojciechowski and brought in on his own, but also doubled down on the experienced veterans providing a much-needed jolt of leadership, a tenet that is as vital to his coaching as it is to the pulse with which he wakes up and dictates the tempo of every day.

“It’s going to be everything,” Smart said of the presence of graduate transfers Darryl Morsell and Kur Kuath, arriving in Milwaukee by way of Maryland and Oklahoma, respectively. “I think every team is determined by its leadership, and we define leadership as the ability to just make people better. Having Darryl and Kur is important for us because even though they’ll only be on our team for one year, they’re going to mean everything to our foundation, and they’re doing a great job so far.”

And to those who do not yet know how central leadership is to Marquette's new coach, it goes far beyond the playing surface at Fiserv Forum, whose professional residents — reigning NBA champions, for the record — are role models in Smart’s eyes for how his young charges should approach the dichotomy of basketball and life, but that does not mean the finished product on the hardwood will be neglected. In fact, it will be a cultivated effort, taking positive energy and marrying it with the Havoc defense — predicated on transition opportunities, 3-point shots and maximum aggression — that made Smart a household name in coaching circles across the nation.

“It’s not so much about the court you play on,” he opined. “I think it’s more about having a respect for what goes into winning and what goes into (a) positive experience on the court. The Bucks are as good an example as anyone of that, the way Giannis, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton carry themselves, represent themselves, the way they work. That’s certainly an example we want to follow.”

“There’s different benchmarks. How long it takes to fully transition, that could be a while, but I think what you’re looking for is, number one, can you build a consistency of playing with enthusiasm, defending with enthusiasm, playing with an aggressiveness, even a violence about you on the defensive end? And our guys have made a lot of progress in that. Now we haven’t played any games, so we really have yet to get in-game feedback of where we are, but actually, we’re probably a little bit ahead offensively of where I thought we would be. Defensively, it’s not that we’re behind, but we still have a long way to go.”

Incumbent players the likes of Greg Elliott and Justin Lewis, who now become some of the more experienced Golden Eagles by default, will no doubt see their opportunities to be impactful on both ends of the floor, as will Tyler Kolek, last year’s Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year. The George Mason transfer, lauded by Smart for his ball handling abilities that supplement his already lethal shooting prowess, may be flying under the radar to start the season, but his new coach believes that sleeper status will not last long.

“Well, I’ll tell you this about Tyler Kolek,” Smart cautioned. “There’s a bunch of players being talked about today, and he’s not one of them? By the end of the year, he will be. We can say that and talk about it, it doesn’t really matter, but I’m just telling you I like the position he’s in because a lot of people are sleeping on him. He’s someone that I want on my team. He’s a gamer, he’s tough, he’s no-nonsense, he’s been by far the best passer on our team.”

Marquette is projected as a middle-of-the-pack Big East team in light of its rebuild, but the ground covered in seven months has provided enough of a positive to suggest that this iteration of basketball on the shores of Lake Michigan can not only surprise people at first blush, but also thrive on its commitment to one another, which remains a work in progress.

“I think our biggest strength, when we embrace it, is the unselfishness and the relationships of the players,” Smart observed. “We have guys like Kur and Darryl and Tyler, and some of the other guys on our team, that are truly about winning and are not caught up in the stuff on here or some of the other BS that can be out there in college basketball, but that doesn’t mean that it’s a given. You don’t necessarily wake up or roll out of bed that way, you have to actively get yourself in that place to be, as we say, lost in the fight or lost in your team.”

“Our biggest weakness or area for growth right now is that we have to continue to learn more about each other so we can trust each other more, just by virtue of not having been together as long. I think we have another step to take in terms of true trust on the court and really just laying it on the line for your brother. These guys are willing to do that, they’re able to do that, so now it’s a matter of us understanding it’s the only way to truly be our best.”

Evolution with familiar personnel has Tartamella excited about St. John’s potential

Joe Tartamella discusses the year ahead for St. John’s at Big East media day. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

NEW YORK — It may appear hard to believe, but Joe Tartamella is a fortnight away from entering his tenth season as head women's basketball coach at St. John’s.

In many ways, it still feels as though Tartamella, 42, just moved one chair over on the bench yesterday after Kim Barnes Arico moved into the Big Ten and to the University of Michigan, rather than in April of 2012. Yet Tartamella has come his own long way since then, offering unique perspective on how both he and his players have adapted over time.

“I haven’t thought a lot about that,” he admitted at first before elaborating on his journey. “People make me think about it, but looking back through last year, I’ve changed my own arc of who I was. When I first got the job, it felt like you were drinking out of a fire hose. In reality, I don’t live and die by every play anymore, I’m probably a lot calmer than I was then, but I’ve had to learn.”

“Certainly, people were thrust into a different role last year whether they were ready or not, and I look at that as their opportunity to grow as players and as people, and understand what it was going to mean to work hard and compete. We’ve talked a lot this year about what our standard is in our program and where it is, and they’re very focused on what our goal is, and that is to be back where we want to be, in the NCAA Tournament, in the postseason, vying for a Big East championship. But you’ve got to do everything else to get there. We’re trying to win today every time we go to practice, and they’ve won a lot of games so far, so we feel pretty good.”

Last season, one in which the Red Storm navigated both COVID-19 and the injury-plagued campaign of Qadashah Hoppie, who has since transferred to Texas A&M, did provide a revelatory moment of sorts, though. The emergence of Leilani Correa as a cornerstone of the program as she enters her junior season, and continued maturation of Kadaja Bailey — who Tartamella has known since recruiting her and helping develop her as a seventh-grader attending St. John’s summer camp — offered more than just a glimmer of hope for the future, which suggests a newer look to the familiar brand on the floor is on the way.

“I think it helped give other people chances last year to be on the floor,” Tartamella said of Hoppie’s absence and the impact it had on Correa. “I think it helped Leilani become a better leader, it helped her understand what it meant for her to step up for her team. When I look at our players, she probably was ahead early and can continue to be ahead. I think the one thing we’re trying to build with her was both physical and mental, but the ability to understand what it meant to get her to be as good as she can be.”

“What does that mean for us? She’s an extremely gifted scorer, she can score at all levels. She’s increased her ability to defend, especially on the ball, so we’re trying to complete the game for her so that when she has the opportunity to be a pro — and she will — she’s going to be ready. Her IQ is a lot higher than people give her. She’s changed her mentality and the amount of work she’s put in from even the first two years. We know what we’re getting from her in practice. She’s confident and she’s ready to lead, and I think that’s the part we’re continuing to build on. We’re really excited to see what she’s going to do this year. We’ve got to make sure her arc is the same so that when she finishes her career here, she has a chance to be one of the best ever, if not on paper, THE best.”

As for Bailey, Tartamella laid out a more understated role for the senior, but highlighted her versatility as an advantage no other program in the Big East possesses.

“My expectation of her is a lot higher than many people,” he revealed with regard to Bailey. “What she does on the floor, however, is critical for us to do the things we’re talking about. The way we’re going to play this year gives her an opportunity to really expand on what she’s been doing. Her ability on the defensive end is as good as anyone we’ve talked about. We’ve had Aaliyah Lewis, Aliyyah Handford, both Defensive Player of the Year in this league, and our feeling is she could be one of those players.”

“She’s the tip of the sword in many ways on the defensive end, and as the attacker on offense. Her ability all over the floor to do things, we don’t have that on our team. She brings that. She should be a double-double kid, she should be an all-Big East player. That’s the ability we feel she has. If we’re going to be successful, she’s going to be a big reason why we are.”

St. John’s will not be just a two-person team, either. Unique Drake and Camree Clegg’s growth at the point guard spot have given Tartamella optimism as he looks to raise the Red Storm’s transition game, with twins Emma and Sophia Nolan helping space the floor while also aiding Rayven Peeples down low. Incoming transfers Danielle Cosgrove and Danielle Patterson, from Notre Dame and Indiana, respectively, bring with them a winning culture and overlooked skill set at higher levels that their new coach is certain will translate as the two return to their home state. 

“We’ve always talked about being a transition team,” Tartamella said. “I just think the uptempo piece, and the pace and space that we can play with is going to be exciting for our players. People that watch us will see a little different twist to what we’ve been doing, and then continuing to build on the foundation of what we’ve always been, trying to be a good defensive team. That part of us, and that part of me as a coach, I’ve had to transition a little bit over time to be okay with maybe giving up a little bit more. But we’re still going to be aggressive. I love our mentality, and we’re going to be in a good spot to feel good about where we are toward the end of the year.”

“It’s more than just their presence. It’s what they bring, the stories that they have from the places they were at, and I think just the level and the standard that they bring. Dani Patterson and Danielle Cosgrove understand what it means to have to be able to win and what you need to do, but they also bring us a skill set that’s allowing us to play the way we want to play, with our pace and space. DC can really flick it, as we all know, and Dani Patterson is kind of a Swiss Army knife. So we have a lot more ability to move people around, and I’m excited for them because they've been looking for an opportunity to show people what they can do at this level, and we know they’re going to show people what they can do here.”

All in all, St. John’s has the experience most other teams in the nation do as the COVID year has afforded increased roster depth on all fronts, but the X-factor for the Red Storm could very well be its evolution from trial by fire to contender, which will be tested early with a strong non-conference slate that will only provide yet another vantage point to observe by season’s end.

“We’ve gotta compete,” Tartamella stated. “And honestly, I expect us to win every game no matter what year it is. When people look at records and what you did, it doesn’t tell the whole story when you look at who you played. A lot of people didn’t play people in our own league. We try to challenge ourselves with different styles of play that will help us prepare for the league.”

“We’ve had to evolve. We’ve had all these things happen in the world, within our league, the league restructures with different types of teams, different types of coaches. The one thing I’ve always been blessed by, I think, is that I’ve been in a league where there a lot of gifted coaches that you can learn from, that you have access to. I want to say I’m a better listener than I was back then, which I think I am, and I’m also open to looking through different lenses more than I was. That’s a part of this year that’ll be different. We’re looking through a couple different lenses than we have before, so I’m excited about that.”

Hurley adamant to prove UConn is back among national elite as Huskies raise expectations

Dan Hurley defends UConn’s second-place preseason pick by highlighting Huskies’ upside and experience as program moves closer to heights it has become renowned for. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

NEW YORK — Speaking with the hardwood of Madison Square Garden as a backdrop to countless Connecticut basketball memories over the past three decades as the home of the New York Knicks became a de facto second home court for the Huskies on their path from regional darling to national powerhouse, Dan Hurley calmly and bluntly laid out the mindset with which his program expects to operate as he enters his fourth season at the helm in Storrs and second in a reconfigured Big East Conference that is eager to embrace the renaissance of one of its most iconic properties.

Picked second in the league’s preseason poll behind perennial favorite Villanova, Hurley was equal parts realistic and bold at last week’s Big East media day, drawing a line in the sand for the standards he has set for a team in search of an identity befitting both sides of the basketball.

“Was it Ricky Bobby (who said), ‘if you’re not first, you’re last?’” Hurley asked a horde of media gathered to hear his take on UConn and its prospects entering the coming year, one in which the Huskies must replace James Bouknight after the virtuoso guard was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets last summer. “Obviously you want to, in your mind as a coach, keep advancing the program. Last year, we were clearly — over the course of the entire season — the third-best team in the league behind Villanova and Creighton in terms of overall quality the whole season. We want to be better this year than we were last year, so the next logical step for us is to put ourselves in a position during the regular season, to late in the year, be in contention for a championship.”

“I feel like we have a very, very deep team. That’s a tremendous challenge with where Villanova is as a program with their culture and their mentality. They don’t give many games away, they make very, very few mistakes. And hopefully for us with such an older team, we’ll be a team that makes less mistakes and blinks less, especially at the end of games, and is able to be in contention at the end of March.”

Bouknight may be gone, but the core of last season’s roster — which fell to Maryland in the NCAA Tournament — remains. Hurley is confident that RJ Cole, Tyrese Martin and Isaiah Whaley will all take the next steps into potential all-conference players, with Adama Sanogo already on that trajectory up front and a supporting cast that includes Akok Akok, Jalen Gaffney, Andre Jackson, Tyler Polley, and a highly-touted freshman class comprising one of the deepest units from top to bottom in not just the Big East, but also the nation.

“From an offensive standpoint, losing a guy like James forces you to really look at your ball movement, your pace of play, some of the things you flow into in transition,” Hurley assessed of UConn’s offensive makeup in Bouknight’s absence. “I think for us, our path forward with this group is pretty simple: We’re going to be an inside-out team. We believe that Adama Sanogo is going to be one of the best big guys in the country this year and one of the best players in this league, we feel like RJ Cole has the potential to be a much more dynamic player this year as we give him the green light to be more assertive and look for his offense a lot more. We’re obviously going to need more from Tyrese Martin as that third scorer, and then we’ve got a collection of six or seven guys that could get us 15 on any given night, so I think you’re going to see a more cohesive offensive team.”

As for the in-your-face pressure defense that has become a trademark of every Hurley-coached team, providing a live, real-time stamp of its leader’s image? That will only ramp up in lockstep, the coach declared.

“We’re going to play elite-level defense,” Hurley proclaimed. “Elite defense, elite-level rebounding, elite ‘I’m going to play harder than my opponent and show up with more desperation and more physicality,’ will put you in a position to win every time you step on the floor. If we get a little bit better offensively than we were last year, we’ve got a chance to be a better team than we were last year. Our depth is unique and our stature is impressive. We’re an impressive-looking team, athletically and physically.”

“We’re way ahead of where we’ve been. We’re way more organized, we’re so much further ahead in terms of what we have in, and that’s the benefit of having eight returning guys who have real experience with you. I think that teams like us, older teams, are going to play better basketball — cleaner basketball — earlier in the season.”

Hurley is banking on said experience to propel UConn closer to Villanova and the stratosphere the Wildcat program has propelled itself to, and has already made significant strides to close the gap between the two. His famous “you better get us now” comment after a loss to Villanova in January 2020 has only been backed up in droves through multiple wins on the recruiting trail, an improved product on the floor, and of course, the unbridled intensity and competitive desire that has been ubiquitous since his youth in Jersey City, and has never left his side years later.

“There was nowhere to go but up from when we saw them here in year one,” Hurley said of the comparison to Villanova and the motivation it triggered. “It really ruined Christmas and was a real wake-up call as to how far away we were at that time. We feel like we’re much better positioned, short-term and long-term, to go into every season in our minds believing we could compete for a championship in this league and that we’re potentially national championship contenders, too, the type of team that could make a run in the NCAA Tournament. When you’re the head coach of UConn, that’s where you need to be.”

St. John’s driven by contagious commitment to winning, picked 4th in Big East

St. John’s head coach Mike Anderson (left), Julian Champagnie (center) and Stef Smith (right) discuss Red Storm’s upside and prospects at Big East media day Tuesday. (Photo by Bob Dea/Daly Dose Of Hoops)

NEW YORK — The last time St. John’s entered a season with this much upside and an equally bullish perception from insiders to match, the Red Storm backed up the pundits’ faith with a trip to the NCAA Tournament behind an all-conference superstar.

That may be the only common denominator between the Johnnies of 2018-19 and the group that opens play on November 9, when it will welcome Mississippi Valley State into what will undoubtedly be a sold-out Carnesecca Arena.

Picked fourth in the Big East Conference preseason poll — the same spot it occupied three years ago — released Tuesday morning during the league’s annual media day festivities, St. John’s is night and day from where it stood as a program in what turned out to be Chris Mullin's final season at the helm of his alma mater. The star-crossed future and development of a professional prospect in the making — Shamorie Ponds then, Julian Champagnie now — has been replaced with a quiet confidence, a swagger that has bred insatiable optimism on the corner of Union and Utopia.

“The guys that are in place in our program now are guys that we brought in,” head coach Mike Anderson proclaimed inside Madison Square Garden, where St. John’s will play four of its Big East home games during the regular season. “I think that’s more important, and I talked about it from day one. I want guys that are going to be able to do the right thing on and off the floor, guys who fit, character guys. And these guys are doing that.”

“I think when a team takes on the personality of the coach, you’re moving in the right direction. Last year, when I heard, ‘You know what? That looked like a New York team,’ I took a lot of pride in that. We’ve got three guys coming back from that team, but we’ve added some more pieces to this team, so I’m anxious to see how it ends up.”

Champagnie and Posh Alexander, first and second team preseason all-Big East honorees, respectively, and sophomore guard Dylan Addae-Wusu, are the incumbent trio in Queens, but Anderson and his staff recruited the transfer portal as actively as any Big East program in having to replace eight players from a team that likely would have made the postseason in a normal year. Guards Montez Mathis (Rutgers) and Stef Smith (Vermont) arrive to shore up the defense and shooting in the backcourt, with Aaron Wheeler (Purdue) and Joel Soriano (Fordham) adding a more promising and physically imposing brand of basketball on a front line that, at times, was forced to play undersized in relation to its opposition.

“We’ve got a lot of question marks, and I’m getting towards some of those answers,” a candid Anderson revealed. “We’ll get more into those answers as we get into practice and get into games. Our team will not be a one, two-man team, it won’t be just Julian and Posh. It’s gotta be Stef, it’s gotta be Aaron Wheeler, it’s gotta be Joel. We’ve got to be a team that’s got to play with a lot of depth to play the way we want to play.”

St. John’s, with Champagnie leading the charge after the junior tested the NBA Draft waters in the offseason only to return to school, will no doubt look to double down on Anderson’s 40 Minutes of Hell mentality, which predicates itself on creating defensive chaos and thriving in transition with rugged, bulldog-type players who have bought into a philosophy Anderson instilled from the jump following his April 2019 arrival, despite the perceived notion that a lack of New York ties would pronounce him dead on arrival.

“If you asked me now if I knew all this two years ago, no, I did not know all that,” he admitted. “But to be where we are, it makes a great statement about the guys who are here. You look at Julian, one of the first guys that I brought on board with me, and look where he is right now. It tells me there’s some trust going on, there’s a culture shift. And the shift is all about winning.”

“As you could see, we’re excited about this basketball team becoming the best version of itself. I think that’s the most important thing. Everybody wants to talk about where you’re going to be at the end of the season. We know where we want to be. I say it every year: If you’re not sitting here thinking about winning a national championship, then you’re in the wrong business.”

Big East media day photo gallery

Photos from the 2021 Big East Conference basketball media day at Madison Square Garden on October 18, 2021:

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

Kevin Willard quote book: Big East media day

On Jared Rhoden being named first team all-Big East:

“I think he’s progressed really nice. He has a great work ethic, and when he got on campus — obviously he was more of a power forward when he came in — but he’s worked really hard on his ball skill, he’s worked really hard on shooting, so it’s been a nice progression for him.”

On potential Big East expansion:

“It’s over my pay grade. I think we’re in a really good spot as a league. If there’s someone that makes sense, if the presidents and ADs think it makes sense, obviously they know more than me.”

On the double round robin setup of the Big East schedule:

“I think it really makes it fair. I think the Big East regular season champion has earned it, and you can’t say, ‘well, he didn’t get to play him twice, he didn’t get to play them twice.’ It’s a fair and true test.”

On Seton Hall’s current health:

“We’re behind. To be honest with you, I’m a little worried, but we’ve got a couple of weeks to kind of get things going in the right direction. Everyone got COVID in September, so it’s not a 10-day (recovery), it’s 21 days that you miss. We had eight kids get it at different times, so we missed a big chunk of September, and then we lost our gym. We didn’t have a gym for two-and-a-half weeks.”

On practicing at Walsh Gymnasium:

“Walsh is great. That’s why we’re kind of getting back into it a little bit more. We’re just a little bit behind, we’re about two weeks behind.”

On scheduling an exhibition game:

“Well, we were going to do two scrimmages, but because of COVID and some scheduling conflicts with the gym, I decided to throw in an exhibition. It was going to be two scrimmages this year just because we’re a little bit older, but also I think being in front of fans is important. We had the Blue-White (scrimmage) the other day, it was a great environment, but there was nerves. We haven’t played in front of fans in almost two years if you think about it. The last time these guys played in front of fans — I mean, Butler had 5,000 and they were nervous — we didn’t play well. To get them back in front of fans, I think is the biggest thing.”

On differences in Rhoden this year:

“I really say this: I don’t think this team’s going to have a guy. I think we’re deep enough where there’s going to be two or three guys. I think the biggest difference between this year and years before is he doesn’t have pressure to where he has to be the guy. It’s just (that) we're too old, we’re too deep, and there’s not going to be one guy on this team.”

On Rhoden being a leader:

“He is. But Myles Cale, Ikey, they’re all fifth-year guys, so there’s not a huge need for someone to be this leader when you have multiple leaders. Myles Cale has been to three NCAA Tournaments and he’s started in all three of them, Ikey has been a huge part of what we’ve done, Bryce is a fifth-year guy, so the leadership role is more by committee because they’ve all been in big roles. But that’s always been Jared. He always plays with a lot of energy, so I think that’s one of the reasons why he’s progressed as a player, because he has an unbelievable work ethic and he has tremendous energy.”

On Rhoden’s progression:

“I say one thing to every recruit: If you love to work on your game and you love being in the gym and working out, I’m a great coach to play for. If you don’t like working on your game and you don’t like working, then I’m a terrible guy to play for. And Jared loves working on his game, and he does it with an unbelievable energy. And that’s why guys like that always succeed with me, because I love being in the gym with them. It’s what we built this program about.”

On incoming players being primary options vs. role players:

“It’s hard right now, to be honest with you. We’re not nearly where we need to be, and we have fifth-year guys that are coming in and starting, trying to figure out how we do things with guys who know how we do things — defensively, a breakdown here or there, which would never happen — it’s been a little more difficult and I think it’s been a little more boring to some of the returners, because I’ve had to really break down certain things. I think it would be a lot easier if you bring in a fifth-year guy to come off your bench. It makes it much easier when you know who your top two are, like Posh (Alexander) and Julian (Champagnie), you know who’s going to shoot the basketball. We have five guys — in practice the other day, I had five guys that, any one of them, I could get a shot for and feel comfortable with them getting a shot. I probably need to get them shots, so it’s probably going to be a little bit of a feeling-out process, and it still is. Guys are still getting comfortable with what they can do and they can’t do.”

On Rhoden helping the transition process:

“I’ll be honest with you: It’s comfortable to have Myles Cale. He’s always been my security blanket. A guy like Myles is someone (who) I know what I’m going to get every second he’s out there. He’s never missed a day of practice, he’s been as steady as anybody can be. He always is.”

On Alexis Yetna:

“I think he gives us an opportunity to play smaller at times. We struggled last year with teams that had small five players, I’d have to ask (Obiagu) to play guys that it’s really hard for him to play, because he’s probably the best rim protector in college basketball, but at times, what teams tried to do was go smaller against us. It would have made it difficult for us to guard smaller fives, so he gives us a chance to play a little bit more — with Tyrese and him, we can play small — he gives us a chance to play small ball, which we haven’t had an opportunity to do.”

On Kadary Richmond and Jamir Harris in the backcourt:

“I think we’ve added a couple of extra ball handlers, which really helped. I think last year, Shavar did an unbelievable job for us. It also gives us a chance to defend that position better, where we really had to be careful how we played defense last year because Shavar got in foul trouble. It gives us a chance to play more aggressive defensively.”

On expectations for Tyrese Samuel:

“I think he’s gotta take that step. He’s got to realize that opportunity’s there, and he’s got to step up and do it. He’s capable of doing it, he just has to do it. It’s easy for all of us to say. I’ve seen it flicker. I just need to see it more consistently, and I think he needs to see it more consistently. It’s night and day when he’s playing at a high level. He’s an extremely talented player, but the consistency of doing it when you’re on the floor, it’s his biggest challenge and it’s always been his biggest challenge. If he gets that down and that light switch goes off, I wouldn’t want to play against him. I wouldn't want to play against anybody at my age.”

On Jahari Long and Tray Jackson:

“Well, Jahari’s been out three months with a knee injury, so Jahari’s kind of up in the air right now. But Tray has really taken some good strides. It was really tough when he got eligible in the middle of December, technically in the middle of Big East play. It’s tough to kind of fit him in, but now he’s had a full, a really good summer, he’s had a good preseason so far. I think Tray is going to be a big boost for us.”

On UConn returning to the Big East:

“Oh, I gotta be nice on this one. You want the real answer, or do you want the political answer? I think it’s great. I’m a huge fan of having them back. When I played, I played against Ray Allen, all those guys, so to have them back, I think, it’s added another great team to this league. And I think the way Danny coaches fits this league. They’re tough, they rebound, I think it fits really well.”

2021-22 MAAC preview: Will Iona win 6th straight tournament?

Rick Pitino’s maiden voyage at Iona resulted in MAAC championship, and first full season may only be the beginning as Gaels enter this year as consensus league favorite. (Photo by Iona College Athletics)

Now that Rick Pitino needed only four months to win a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference championship at Iona, one question is central to anyone following the MAAC this season:

Who, if anyone, can stop the Gaels from tightening their stranglehold on the MAAC tournament, an event that has seen the maroon and gold cut the nets five consecutive times?

Pitino smartly reloaded in the wake of graduating Isaiah Ross and Asante Gist, landing Elijah Joiner, Tyson Jolly and Quinn Slazinski in the transfer portal from Tulsa, SMU and Louisville, respectively. The trio joins returning starters Berrick Jean-Louis and reigning MAAC Rookie of the Year Nelly Junior Joseph to form one of the more intimidating top fives in recent conference history. Moreover, senior Dylan van Eyck is back as a sixth man of sorts, and if sophomore Ryan Myers — lauded by Pitino this offseason for his shooting improvement in the Hall of Fame coach’s vaunted player development sessions — can take an incremental leap, the high expectations already placed in and around New Rochelle may very well be exceeded.

Leading the challengers will be the three New Jersey schools, each of whom brings back a significant piece from its past. Saint Peter’s, arguably the most fearless team in the MAAC, was able to bring KC Ndefo back for his senior season after it was widely assumed he would not return when he entered the transfer portal. Ndefo, along with Daryl Banks III and the most underrated point guard in the conference in Matthew Lee, will be the keys for Shaheen Holloway to slay the giant. The Peacocks also return twins Fousseyni and Hassan Drame, along with Doug Edert, Marty Silvera and Oumar Diahame while welcoming a hungry, young core that will be able to make an immediate impact.

Monmouth lost Deion Hammond and Melik Martin from a roster that found a way to share of the regular season crown last year, but the Hawks retained George Papas after the Garden State native elected to come back to West Long Branch, as did Marcus McClary. King Rice added a trio of incoming freshmen and a pair of transfers in Shavar Reynolds (Seton Hall) and Walker Miller (North Carolina) to solidify his program’s habitual place among the top half of the MAAC. Rider is one of two schools to attract a former player back, as two-time first team all-MAAC forward Dimencio Vaughn has resurfaced in Lawrenceville to use his COVID year after a season at Ole Miss. Dwight Murray, Jr., who should have been a first team all-conference selection last year, will co-anchor the Broncs’ efforts, with help from a supporting cast headlined by transfers Mervin James and Sedrick Altman, as well as Allen Powell and point guard Corey McKeithan, who has recovered from a torn ACL to free up Murray to be more of a scoring threat.

Fairfield, last year’s MAAC tournament runner-up, has a pair of seniors in Taj Benning and Jesus Cruz to team with Jake Wojcik and Caleb Green as head coach Jay Young continues to change the culture in the Stags’ program. Elsewhere in the Nutmeg State, Quinnipiac also saw a familiar face come home again, as Kevin Marfo transferred back to Hamden from Texas A&M. Along with Jacob Rigoni, Tymu Chenery and Luis Kortright; plus a healthy Elias King, Baker Dunleavy has quite possibly his most potent arsenal in what is now his fifth season at the helm.

Siena, the regular season champion of the past two seasons, has a new look about them after Manny Camper turned pro, while Jalen Pickett and Jordan King transferred to Penn State and East Tennessee State, respectively. Head coach Carmen Maciariello recruited the transfer portal more actively than anyone this offseason, bringing Anthony Gaines, Jayce Johnson, Colby Rogers, Jordan Kellier, Michael Baer and Mike Tertsea to the Capital Region to mesh with returning forward Jackson Stormo and sophomore point guard Aidan Carpenter to keep the Saints forwardly placed. Marist brings back the bulk of its roster as Jordan Jones anchors the paint and Ricardo Wright leads the backcourt in his sophomore season, but head coach John Dunne has been high on incoming freshman Jao Ituka, who will contend for all-rookie honors alongside fellow newcomer Noah Harris.

Niagara also has its most experienced roster coming back under Greg Paulus, with Marcus Hammond returning for his senior season to lead a supporting cast that includes Raheem Solomon, Justin Roberts, Greg Kuakumensah and South Alabama graduate transfer Sam Iorio. Crosstown rival Canisius has a promising core in place behind Malek Green, Jordan Henderson and Ahamadou Fofana. Finally, Manhattan has its deepest and most talented roster since winning the MAAC championship in 2015. Newcomers Josh Roberts and Jose Perez join Anthony Nelson, Warren Williams, Elijah Buchanan, Samir Stewart and Samba Diallo to give Steve Masiello a multitude of options as the Jaspers seek their first winning season since winning it all six years ago.

Projected Order of Finish

1) Iona — Bet against Rick Pitino at your own risk, even though the Gaels’ road to the top will not be the runaway most people expect.

2) Saint Peter’s — KC Ndefo’s return was the biggest boost to a scrappy Peacocks team that finds ways to win better than most. Shaheen Holloway should have a more cohesive group this season, and will no doubt have his team ready for all situations.

3) Monmouth — The Hawks have been one of few constants atop the MAAC the past several years, and that should not change this season. Shavar Reynolds and Samuel Chaput will give King Rice an interchangeable point guard pairing to free up George Papas and Marcus McClary. If Walker Miller can use his size efficiently, Monmouth could finish even higher.

4) Fairfield — The Stags may be the most deceptively strong team in the MAAC between its steady backcourt play and suffocating defense. Jay Young has not gotten anywhere near as much credit as he deserves for turning Fairfield into a quiet contender.

5) Siena — Carmen Maciariello has made over the roster in the offseason, but the Saints are faster and more athletic this year, and should have no problem exceeding expectations.

6) Marist — John Dunne’s group will have legitimate hype this season. The Red Foxes will need Jordan Jones and Ricardo Wright to take the next step in tandem with their supporting cast.

7) Rider — Dimencio Vaughn’s return cannot be understated, as he and Dwight Murray will help the Broncs make up a lot of ground this year. Corey McKeithan’s arrival at point guard will allow both Vaughn and Murray to intimidate defenses off the ball easily.

8) Manhattan — Steve Masiello brings into Riverdale the most talent in the program since its back-to-back MAAC championships in what will be a pivotal year for the Jaspers.

9) Quinnipiac — Kevin Marfo’s second stint in Hamden should allow Jacob Rigoni to be more comfortable as a shooter, while the Bobcats’ depth could be the strongest in the conference.

10) Niagara — The good news for the Purple Eagles is that Greg Paulus has his most experienced roster. The bad news is that the MAAC as a whole has improved just as much.

11) Canisius — Malek Green will need to be the X-factor for the Golden Griffins, but Reggie Witherspoon has always gotten his role players to improve. Expect more of the same this season.

All-MAAC Preseason Predictions

Preseason Player of the Year: KC Ndefo, Saint Peter’s

Preseason Rookie of the Year: Jao Ituka, Marist

First team

Marcus Hammond, Niagara

Nelly Junior Joseph, Iona

Dwight Murray, Jr., Rider

KC Ndefo, Saint Peter’s

Dimencio Vaughn, Rider

Second team

Daryl Banks III, Saint Peter’s

George Papas, Monmouth

Jacob Rigoni, Quinnipiac

Warren Williams, Manhattan

Jake Wojcik, Fairfield

Third team

Taj Benning, Fairfield

Malek Green, Canisius

Jordan Jones, Marist

Kevin Marfo, Quinnipiac

Anthony Nelson, Manhattan

Jackson Stormo, Siena

Unfinished business brought Rutgers seniors back for one more run

Geo Baker (0) and Ron Harper, Jr. (24) both flirted with NBA Draft process, but each returned to Rutgers with unfinished business and larger goals at hand. (Photo by NJ Advance Media)

PISCATAWAY, N.J. — In the wake of Rutgers’ second-round NCAA Tournament loss to Houston, several events transpired that shaped the narrative for the year ahead.

First, Myles Johnson and Jacob Young transferred to the Pac-12, with Johnson enrolling in a graduate engineering program at UCLA while Young headed to Oregon. Shortly thereafter, Montez Mathis took his talents across the Hudson River, opting to spend his final two years with Mike Anderson and St. John’s. Between all the shuffle, the futures of Geo Baker and Ron Harper, Jr., the Scarlet Knights’ top two players, hung in the balance while each tested the NBA Draft waters.

Baker was first to announce his return after an anticipation period lasting most of the spring and summer. Then, after initially leaning toward turning pro, Harper soon followed. The pair, and fourth-year junior Caleb McConnell, had a common denominator in their decisions to remain on the banks:

Unfinished business.

“I think it was a combination of things,” Baker admitted with regard to his offseason decision. “I definitely learned a lot during the process, I went up against some really good players, but (with) the COVID year (and) not ending on a good note, losing that game against Houston, I think those were two things that are important. And I want to take one more crack at it with my brothers. I feel like we have a really good time, and I’m excited to do it.”

“To be honest, I didn’t see myself coming back to Rutgers for my final year,” Harper, the native New Jerseyan, revealed. “I was still always around here working out and playing pickup with the guys, and this team just attracted me like nothing else. I wanted to play for this team, I wanted to play with these guys, and ultimately, I came back because I wanted to be a part of this group one more time. Me and Geo would talk a lot of times about the process and what we wanted to do, and we thought that if we came back and we ran it back one more year, it’d be a truly special year. We both agreed that we’ve got a special group of guys, and we can’t wait to work with them. This season’s gonna be a fun one, and I can’t wait to put my heart on the line every day for these guys.”

Harper was noticeably vocal about how the team bonded in the offseason, citing its impact on the Scarlet Knights being more connected on the floor, which is also a byproduct of head coach Steve Pikiell’s infectious energy that McConnell feels was a major influence in the trio choosing to play in Piscataway.

“I wanted to be a culture changer,” McConnell proudly declared. “I wanted to come here and change the program around, and this is a place that I knew I could win at. If your leader is saying those things and preaching those things, I feel like that’s a big thing, especially when choosing a school.”

“We fell in love with Pike when we came here, and we made a difference. We changed the culture, and now we’re trying to keep it going and raise the bar higher. As a whole, if we set the bar higher, can’t nobody stop us.”

The return of an experienced core, as well as a raucous crowd at the RAC, has players and fans naturally dreaming big on the heels of waters that had not been navigated since 1991. Normally, expectations would be tempered for a group of this ilk, but with Pikiell being the first to embrace the lofty goals, his players have once again followed suit in the latest affirmation of trust in their leader.

“I’ve been here at Rutgers through it all,” said Harper. “We finished 12th when I got here my freshman year, so it’s just come full circle. I believed in Coach Pikiell’s vision just because of that. He told me he was going to bring this group back to the NCAA Tournament. He did, and we have so much more to accomplish.”

“Being able to share that with the guys that were here last year is an honor, but everybody in this room will tell you that we wanted to go further. And we will go further this year. We have high expectations for ourselves and each other, and we’re going to have a great year.”

Baker, perhaps the owner of the grandest scale on the team, has an even bigger stage on his agenda.

“I think that’s something that’ll be great for everybody to get that experience, (for) fans and players to really feel the love and the environment,” he said. “But we’re not even thinking NCAA Tournament, we’re thinking national championship. That’s what we really want to do.”