MAAC Monday: Awards and all-conference picks, quick hits, final stat leaders and power rankings, tournament predictions

The final MAAC Monday of the season will once again be a space for all-conference and award predictions in the opening segment, with quick hits, overall stat leaders and power rankings to follow. From there, my Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament predictions will close out the last recap of the league. Without any further ado:

All-MAAC first team, in alphabetical order:

Walter Clayton, Jr., Iona

Daniss Jenkins, Iona

Nelly Junior Joseph, Iona

Dwight Murray, Jr., Rider

Noah Thomasson, Niagara

All-MAAC second team, in alphabetical order:

Patrick Gardner, Marist

Mervin James, Rider

Anthony Nelson, Manhattan

Josh Roberts, Manhattan

Jackson Stormo, Siena

All-MAAC third team, in alphabetical order:

Jalen Benjamin, Mount St. Mary’s

Supreme Cook, Fairfield

Dezi Jones, Quinnipiac

Luis Kortright, Quinnipiac

Javian McCollum, Siena

MAAC All-Rookie Team, in alphabetical order:

Isaiah Brickner, Marist

Cruz Davis, Iona

Michael Eley, Siena

Tahj Staveskie, Canisius

Corey Washington, Saint Peter’s

Player of the Year: Walter Clayton, Jr., Iona

Rookie of the Year: Tahj Staveskie, Canisius

Sixth Man of the Year: Samir Stewart, Manhattan

Defensive Player of the Year: Josh Roberts, Manhattan

Coach of the Year: RaShawn Stores, Manhattan

Quick Hits Around the MAAC

“There haven’t been a lot of nights where our offense bailed out our defense, but this was certainly one of them. Supreme was able to ball screen some today and got Caleb downhill, it created a couple of gaps for us. But honestly, when you have a night like that, it’s not about game planning, it’s about your guys stepping up and making shots, and that’s what they did tonight. Hopefully it continues into next week. If we’re making shots, we’re going to be a dangerous team.”

— Jay Young on Fairfield’s 92-point effort against Quinnipiac

“I think we’ve been marked by mini-stretches in games where everything collapses and we don’t get stops. I think we have these little periods in games where the floor falls out from under us. We’re a team that’s won six games in a row this year, and we’ve lost three or four in a row here or there, too. We’ve been streaky, but we’ve got to be streaky at the right time and the right way. Lately, our defense has let us down a bit.”

— Baker Dunleavy’s assessment of Quinnipiac’s season

“I thought we were ready to play, and we’re a better team than we were when we played (Iona) the first time. I just didn’t know how we were going to respond when we got punched in the mouth, but I thought we responded. We just didn’t have enough to get it done, and they’re really good.”

— John Dunne on Marist’s loss to Iona Thursday

“We wanted to keep this game in the sixties, we thought we could win it there. (Siena) started out really hot in the second half. We recommunicated that this game was on its way into the seventies, and if it gets there, we’re in trouble. I thought we really buckled down.”

— Bashir Mason on Saint Peter’s defense of Siena

“I don’t know if guys are ready for the moment. We’ve got guys that are deferring. That’s been our Achilles’ heel, and not being able to grow leads.”

“Our problem is we need to lock in and play our game toward the end of the game, too. We start off good and then toward the end of the game, we kind of lose control and people don’t know what they’re doing.”

— Carmen Maciariello and Michael Eley on the problems affecting Siena down the stretch

“His confidence has just been going through the roof. You see guys that haven’t been playing making big-time plays, and that’s because of the confidence within the brotherhood.”

— RaShawn Stores on the emergence of Nick Brennen

“Guys are making plays down the stretch that they weren’t making, like Dakota (Leffew) made his free throws, he had the dunk, he had the pull-up…he wasn’t making those plays before, so he’s stepped up. Jalen Benjamin is now our closer for us. I always said when we were hurt, talking as a staff, we just hoped the hourglass didn’t run out on this team without getting healthy. Now we’re healthy, and hopefully we can carry some momentum into Atlantic City.”

— Dan Engelstad on Mount St. Mary’s winning four of its last five games to end the regular season

“We feel confident. I think the guys know what’s at stake. We’ve been here, we’ve done this, we’ve broken the wall last year. Now we just have to do it again and push forward.”

— Ajiri Ogemuno-Johnson on Rider’s mindset entering the MAAC tournament

“24-7 was our goal. To win 11 straight, we didn’t believe we could with all the injuries, but they did it and I’m real proud of them. If six or seven players can win three games in a row, we’ll do it.”

— Rick Pitino on Iona’s season and MAAC tournament prospects

Scoring Leaders

1) Noah Thomasson, Niagara (19.7 PPG)

2) Patrick Gardner, Marist (18.8)

3) Walter Clayton, Jr., Iona (16.5)

4) Dwight Murray, Jr., Rider (15.9)

5) Jalen Benjamin, Mount St. Mary’s (15.8)

6) Javian McCollum, Siena (15.6)

7) Nelly Junior Joseph, Iona (15.4)

8) Daniss Jenkins, Iona (15.4)

9) Anthony Nelson, Manhattan (15.1)

10) Jordan Henderson, Canisius (13.8)

Rebounding Leaders

1) Josh Roberts, Manhattan (9.6 RPG)

2) Nelly Junior Joseph, Iona (9.5)

3) Supreme Cook, Fairfield (8.5)

4) Paul Otieno, Quinnipiac (6.9)

5) Mervin James, Rider (6.9)

6) Jared Billups, Siena (6.6)

7) Patrick Gardner, Marist (6.2)

8) Michael Baer, Siena (6.2)

9) Jacco Fritz, Canisius (5.9)

10) George Tinsley, Mount St. Mary’s (5.9)

Assist Leaders

1) Daniss Jenkins, Iona (5.1 APG)

2) Anthony Nelson, Manhattan (4.7)

3) Luis Kortright, Quinnipiac (3.9)

4) Dezi Jones, Quinnipiac (3.8)

5) Jalen Benjamin, Mount St. Mary’s (3.8)

6) Javian McCollum, Siena (3.7)

7) Latrell Reid, Saint Peter’s (3.7)

8) Noah Thomasson, Niagara (3.4)

9) Walter Clayton, Jr., Iona (3.3)

10) Dwight Murray, Jr., Rider (3.0)

Field Goal Percentage Leaders

1) Josh Roberts, Manhattan (.707)

2) Paul Otieno, Quinnipiac (.590)

3) Jacco Fritz, Canisius (.579)

4) Nelly Junior Joseph, Iona (.550)

5) Supreme Cook, Fairfield (.549)

6) Allan Jeanne-Rose, Fairfield (.522)

7) Jackson Stormo, Siena (.512)

8) Berrick JeanLouis, Iona (.511)

9) Patrick Gardner, Marist (.502)

10) Noah Thomasson, Niagara (.482)

Free Throw Percentage Leaders

1) Walter Clayton, Jr., Iona (.944)

2) Javian McCollum, Siena (.884)

3) Jaylen Murray, Saint Peter’s (.852)

4) Dezi Jones, Quinnipiac (.835)

5) Mervin James, Rider (.832)

6) Caleb Fields, Fairfield (.812)

7) Jackson Stormo, Siena (.806)

8) Jalen Benjamin, Mount St. Mary’s (.791)

9) Samir Stewart, Manhattan (.783)

10) Daniss Jenkins, Iona (.781)

3-Point Field Goal Percentage Leaders

1) Andrew Platek, Siena (.439)

2) Siem Uijtendaal, Canisius (.439)

3) Walter Clayton, Jr., Iona (.423)

4) Dezi Jones, Quinnipiac (.409)

5) Nick Brennen, Manhattan (.406)

6) Jalen Benjamin, Mount St. Mary’s (.395)

7) Dwight Murray, Jr., Rider (.393)

8) Anton Brookshire, Iona (.392)

9) Samir Stewart, Manhattan (.389)

10) Tyrese Williams, Quinnipiac (.384)

Steal Leaders

1) Anthony Nelson, Manhattan (2.0 SPG)

2) Walter Clayton, Jr., Iona (1.9)

3) Caleb Fields, Fairfield (1.5)

4) Dwight Murray, Jr., Rider (1.4)

5) Dakota Leffew, Mount St. Mary’s (1.3)

Blocked Shot Leaders

1) Josh Roberts, Manhattan (1.8 BPG)

2) Nelly Junior Joseph, Iona (1.5)

3) Osborn Shema, Iona (1.4)

4) Jackson Stormo, Siena (1.2)

5) Stephane Ingo, Marist (1.1)

Power Rankings

1) Iona (24-7, 17-3 MAAC)

Last Week: 1

Last Game: Saturday 3/4 at Rider (W 80-78)

Next Game: Wednesday 3/8 vs. Mount St. Mary’s or Canisius, 7 p.m.

2) Rider (16-13, 13-7 MAAC)

Last Week: 2

Last Game: Saturday 3/4 vs. Iona (L 80-78)

Next Game: Wednesday 3/8 vs. Fairfield or Saint Peter’s, 9:30 p.m.

3) Quinnipiac (20-11, 11-9 MAAC)

Last Week: 4

Last Game: Saturday 3/4 at Marist (W 88-76)

Next Game: Thursday 3/9 vs. Manhattan or Marist, 7 p.m.

4) Siena (17-14, 11-9 MAAC)

Last Week: 3

Last Game: Saturday 3/4 at Saint Peter’s (L 73-72)

Next Game: Thursday 3/9 vs. Niagara, 9:30 p.m.

5) Manhattan (12-17, 10-10 MAAC)

Last Week: 5

Last Game: Saturday 3/4 vs. Mount St. Mary’s (L 74-69)

Next Game: Tuesday 3/7 vs. Marist, approx. 10 p.m.

6) Niagara (15-14, 10-10 MAAC)

Last Week: 6

Last Game: Saturday 3/4 at Canisius (L 81-68)

Next Game: Thursday 3/9 vs. Siena, 9:30 p.m.

7) Fairfield (13-17, 9-11 MAAC)

Last Week: 7

Last Game: Thursday 3/2 vs. Quinnipiac (W 92-82)

Next Game: Tuesday 3/7 vs. Saint Peter’s, approx. 7:30 p.m.

8) Mount St. Mary’s (12-19, 8-12 MAAC)

Last Week: 8

Last Game: Saturday 3/4 at Manhattan (W 74-69)

Next Game: Tuesday 3/7 vs. Canisius, 5 p.m.

9) Canisius (10-19, 8-12 MAAC)

Last Week: 10

Last Game: Saturday 3/4 vs. Niagara (W 81-68)

Next Game: Tuesday 3/7 vs. Mount St. Mary’s, 5 p.m.

10) Saint Peter’s (12-17, 7-13 MAAC)

Last Week: 11

Last Game: Saturday 3/4 vs. Siena (W 73-72)

Next Game: Tuesday 3/7 vs. Fairfield, approx. 7:30 p.m.

11) Marist (10-19, 6-14 MAAC)

Last Week: 9

Last Game: Saturday 3/4 vs. Quinnipiac (L 88-76)

Next Game: Tuesday 3/7 vs. Manhattan, approx. 10 p.m.

MAAC Women’s Basketball Tournament Predictions

First round: Mount St. Mary’s over Canisius

Marist over Rider

Manhattan over Saint Peter’s

Quarterfinals: Iona over Mount St. Mary’s

Marist over Niagara

Quinnipiac over Manhattan

Siena over Fairfield

Semifinals: Iona over Siena

Quinnipiac over Marist

Championship: Quinnipiac over Iona

Tournament MVP: Mikala Morris, Quinnipiac

MAAC Men’s Basketball Tournament Predictions

First round: Mount St. Mary’s over Canisius

Fairfield over Saint Peter’s

Manhattan over Marist

Quarterfinals: Iona over Mount St. Mary’s

Rider over Fairfield

Quinnipiac over Manhattan

Siena over Niagara

Semifinals: Iona over Siena

Quinnipiac over Rider

Championship: Iona over Quinnipiac

Tournament MVP: Nelly Junior Joseph, Iona