Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference 2006-07 Season Recap
by Matthew Moll
Unpredictability – the sine quan non of college basketball – took a year hiatus from the sport as a whole and from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference regular season.
Marist, prognosticators’ pick for the regular season crown, dispensed all those who threatened the top spot. But the encumbrance of being in the number-one and having to defeat a team for the third time proved too much for the Red Foxes. Marist could not outlast Siena, a team they defeated twice in classic regular season overtime battles, halting the school’s first trip to the MAAC final. The Red Foxes recovered in the first round of the NIT, upsetting the Big 12’s Oklahoma State 67-64. The win was the second straight NIT first round upset by a MAAC school and marked only the third loss in 140 non-conference home games for the Cowboys.
Predictable struggles were also the rule.
Last season’s MAAC tournament finals reps encountered the capriciousness of success, falling to the bottom of the league. This is not unusual for senior-heavy teams, but both St. Peter’s and Iona suffered colossal breakdowns in losing for extended parts of the season. The Peacocks lost 17 consecutive games midway through the 2006-2007 campaign, while Iona was the last team in Division I to record a victory, coming out of the gates 0-22.
Fresh faces on the MAAC sidelines shocked no one by faltering at times as the growing pains of implementing new systems and trying to rejuvenate a crippled program loomed. New coaches from Manhattan, Fairfield, Canisius and St. Peter’s combined for a 29-43 MAAC record and each school finished in the bottom half of the league.
At season’s end there was a bit of surprise as the Niagara Purple Ealges swooped in to claim the MAAC. Niagara’s season began marred by off-season suspensions. But the Purple Eagles recovered to win 12 straight heading into the NCAA tournament. Niagara’s coach Joe Mihalich voiced his displeasure in Niagara’s seed in the play-in game, but the Eagles defeated Florida International 77-69 before losing in the first round to Kansas.
MAAC Tournament Recap
The MAAC tournament was highlighted by Marist vs. Siena the thrice. The pair exchanged blows in two overtime bouts during the regular season, but unlike the previous two match-ups Siena was victorious 86-78. For the second time in two years the MAAC tournament number-one seed was ousted before reaching the final.
In the end, it was Niagara who represented the MAAC in the NCAA’s. The Eagles defeated Rider and Loyola handily and sent back all efforts by the young Siena team to go on to the field of 65 for the second time in three seasons.
Player of the Year: Jared Jordan (Marist)
Co-Rookies of the Year: Frank Turner (Canisius), Edwin Ubiles (Siena)
Coach of the Year: Matt Brady (Marist)
Sixth Player of the Year: Michael Tuck (Loyola)
Defensive Player of the Year: Jason Thompson (Rider)
First Team:
Gerald Brown (Loyola)
Jared Jordan (Marist)
Charron Fisher (Niagara)
Jason Thompson (Rider)
Michael Haddix (Siena)
Second Team:
Michael Van Schaick (Fairfield)
Arturo Dubois (Manhattan)
Will Whittington (Marist)
Cliff Brown (Niagara)
Kenny Hasbrouck (Siena)
Third Team:
Chuck Harris (Canisius)
Darnell Wilson (Canisius)
Marquis Sullivan (Loyola)
Devon Austin (Manhattan)
Lorenzo Miles (Niagara)
All-Rookie Team:
Frank Turner (Canisius)
Greg Nero (Fairfield)
Antoine Pearson (Manhattan)
Tyrone Lewis (Niagara)
Edwin Ubiles (Siena)
Marist Red Foxes (25-9 Overall, 14-4 MAAC)
Still no MAAC tourney Final, but a win in the NIT: The Red Foxes came into the season as the prohibitive favorite to play in the MAAC tournament final, but the moniker of having “never played in the MAAC final” remains. Marist finished the regular season with eight consecutive wins, having the all-important momentum going into the tournament, but it could not be sustained against a young Siena team who stunned the regular season champs in the tourney.
Marist was able to recover to defeat Oklahoma State in the opening round of the NIT before losing to N.C. State three nights later.
Team MVP: Jared Jordan 8.7 apg,
Top Scorer: Will Whittington 17.5 ppg
Top Rebounder: James Smith 6.0 rpg
Top Assists: Jordan
Starters Leaving: Jordan (graduation), Whittington (graduation), Smith (graduation)
Key players returning: Ryan Stilphen, Benjamin Wilfred
Outlook for next season: The loss of the nation’s leading assist man and the team’s three highest scorers will put Marist in the same position as other previous MAAC winners. The rebuilding effort will center on big man Stilphen, but the Red Fox faithful should expect a significant drop in the standings.
Niagara Purple Eagles (23-12, 13-5)
Twice in three years: For the second time in three years, Niagara represented the MAAC in the NCAA tournament. The Purple Eagles won 12 straight games, including three wins in the MAAC tourney, before getting stomped by Kansas in the first round of the Dance.
Niagara was able to overcome preseason suspensions of six players, including leading scorer Charon Fisher – who was benched by the school for eight games – for assault charges brought last August to be one of the hottest teams in the nation entering the NCAAs.
Team MVP: Charron Fisher, 20.6 ppg., 8.0 apg.
Top Scorer: Fisher
Top Rebounder: Cliff Brown 9.7 rpg.
Top Assists: Stanley Hodge, 4.0 apg.
Starters Leaving: Brown, J.R. Duffey, Lorenzo Miles
Key players returning: Fisher
Outlook for next season: Joe Mihalich and Niagara agreed on a contract extension and Fisher will be back for the entire season which means the Purple Eagles will always have a chance. Brown’s toughness will have to be replaced, but after last season’s short bench and this season’s off-court adversity Niagara is poised to hold to true while they reload.
Loyola Md. Greyhounds (18-13, 12-6)
Two from 20: The Greyhounds were unable to string together more than four consecutive wins, but played well enough all season to be within a sniff of first in the MAAC. Loyola brought their regular season success into the MAAC tournament, tallying the first MAAC tourney victory in the Jimmy Patsos era, but fell to Niagara in the next round. It was the second loss to the Purple Eagles in three tries.
Team MVP: Gerald Brown 22.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg., 1.8 steals per game (first in the MAAC)
Top Scorer: Brown
Top Rebounder: Brown
Top Assists: Brett Harvey, 4.1 apg
Starters Leaving: Shane James (graduation)
Key players returning: Brown, Marquis Sullivan, Harvey, Michael Tuck
Outlook for next season: Jimmy P and company have overcome the proverbial first round MAAC tournament hump, but having a winning season is no longer enough and next season will be this team’s MAAC title to lose.
Siena Saints (20-12, 12-6)
A season of almost: Siena jockeyed all season with Marist, Loyola and Niagara for the double-bye in the MAAC tournament, but the Saints could not close out pivotal regular season match-ups and fell to fourth in the standings. Siena’s inexperience did not prevent them from engaging in some of the most exciting games of the season. The Saints fell twice to Marist in the regular season, both in overtime, but consecrated the rivalry by defeating Marist in the MAAC tournament to advance to the finals. In the MAAC finals Siena pushed Niagara until the closing minutes, but were unable to hold off the Purple Eagles ending its tournament run and season.
Team MVP: Michael Haddix, 16.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg
Top Scorer: Haddix, 16.3 ppg.
Top Rebounder: Haddix, 7.5 rpg.
Top Assists: Ronald Moore, 4.9 apg
Starters Leaving: Haddix (graduation), David Ryan (graduation)
Key players returning: Moore, Kenny Hasbrouck, Edwin Ubiles, Alex Franklin
Outlook for next season: Losing Haddix will be a major blow, not just in the box score, but in the locker room. Haddix’s battle back from injury may have meant as much as his actual play. But with the return of a core group of sophomores and juniors, maybe next year is next year for the Saints.
Manhattan Jaspers (13-17, 10-8)
Just about as expected: The Jaspers showed signs of promise this season, stringing together a winning streak of six games, but could not put together enough runs to contend with the top teams in the last weeks of the season. Manhattan’s season ended with a loss to Siena in the first round of the MAAC tournament, the third time the Jaspers fell to Siena in three tries this season. The loss marked the second straight season where the Jaspers lost in the team’s first game in the conference tourney.
Team MVP: Devon Austin 12.4 ppg, 5.1 rpg.
Top Scorer: Austin
Top Rebounder: Arturo Dubois 6.0 rpg.
Top Assists: Patrick Bouli, 2.7 apg
Starters Leaving: None
Key players returning: Austin, Dubois, Bouli, Antoine Pearson
Outlook for next season: The second year of the Barry Rohrssen era might be the first season he is coaching a Manhattan team favored to win the MAAC. The return of all major contributors coupled with the attrition at the top should result in a push for MAAC supremacy.
Fairfield Stags (13-19, 10-8)
Improve-isation: First-year coach Ed Cooley inherited a team which lost its leading scorer and could not manage double-digits victories the season before and turned them into a MAAC contender. The Stags hit some snags on the way to upping the MAAC win total, at one point losing five straight from the end of December through the first two weeks of 2007. Fairfield managed to rattle off seven consecutive MAAC wins to end the losing streak and position themselves as contenders. But the Stags were unable to sustain the momentum in the MAAC tournament, falling to Loyola, a team they defeated twice in the regular season, in the first round.
Team MVP: Mike Van Schaick 15.4 ppg., 3.9rpg
Top Scorer: Van Schaick
Top Rebounder: Marty O’Sullivan 5.5 rpg.
Top Assists: Jonathan Han 4.5 apg
Starters Leaving: Van Schaick (graduating), O’Sullivan (graduating)
Key players returning: Han, Greg Nero, Anthony Johnson
Outlook for next season: Cooley’s second season will look similar to his first with a roster full of unproven scorers and guards who are able to distribute. Both Nero and Johnson will need to up their scoring load as Han continues to establish himself as one of the MAAC’s best distributors.
Rider Broncos (16-15, 9-9)
Fully non-interim: In Tommy Dempsey’s first season not as an interim head coach, the Broncos doubled the number of wins from last season. Rider began the season 4-0, but could not match those numbers during the regular season or in MAAC play. The Broncos opened the MAAC Tournament with a win over the lowly Gaels, but lost in the second round to eventual champion Niagara.
Team MVP: Jason Thompson 19.9 ppg, 9.9 rpg.
Top Scorer: Thompson (2nd in the MAAC)
Top Rebounder: Thompson (1st in the MAAC)
Top Assists: Terrance Mouton 4.3 apg.
Starters Leaving: Mouton (graduation)
Key players returning: The Thompson brothers (Jason and Ryan), Harris Mansell, Lamar Johnson
Outlook for next season: Jason Thompson will contend for the MAAC POY honors with a team that continues to improve. The loss of Mouton must be accounted for or else this team, which continues to flirt with its potential, will run its course and Thompson’s years of potential will be exhausted.
Canisius Golden Griffins (12-19, 6-12)
More wins, but not a winning season: The Golden Griffins slotted more W’s than last season’s single-digit performance, but are now six straight seasons without a winning one. First-year coach Tom Parrotta managed to extend the streak of flummoxing first round opponents, but fell in the second round to Marist. The Griffins have not advanced past the quarterfinal round since 2002.
Team MVP: Chuck Harris, 14.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg.
Top Scorer: Harris
Top Rebounder: Darnell Wilson, 7.5 rpg.
Top Assists: Frank Turner 5.6 apg.
Starters Leaving: Wilson, Harris and Herring (graduation)
Key players returning: Turner and Pawel Malesa
Outlook for next season: Freshman phenom Frank Turner was the second-best dime-dropper in the MAAC this season and appears to be a potential force as he matures. Turner was able to make noise with the pass despite the second-worst team field goal percentage in the MAAC. Next season Turner will need new targets with the departure of the three seniors. If no one rises to the new role, the Griffs will continue to languish in the lower rungs of the league.
Saint Peter’s Peacocks (5-25, 3-15)
Offense catatonic without Clark: Scoring machine Keydren Clark’s graduation meant the Peacocks would be without their leading basket maker, but also meant they would be without their spark. John Dunne, taking over for the legendary Bob Leckie, who last season led Saint Peter’s to the MAAC tourney final, was unable to continue the Peacocks’ streak of winning seasons, stopping the streak at four.
The senior-less squad could never get on a track and struggled at all points during the season, losing 17 straight from the end of December to the second week in February.
Team MVP: Todd Sowell 13.0 ppg, 8.5 rpg
Top Scorer: Raul Orta 13.3 ppg
Top Rebounder: Sowell
Top Assists: 3.5 apg
Starters Leaving: none
Key players returning: Orta, Sowell, Akeem Gooding
Outlook for next season: The Saints will return one of the best rebounders in the MAAC next season in Sowell and the rest of the starting five, but this group was the second-worst in record and scoring and will need a jumpstart to the stagnant offense.
Iona Gaels (2-28, 1-17)
From First to Worst: This season was slated as a rebuilding year for the defending MAAC champs, but Jeff Ruland and the young Gaels had the worst start in school history. Iona was the last team in Division I to win a game, beginning the season 0-22. The Gaels managed to lose in creative ways, losing three times in overtime and two others in the closing seconds.
Team MVP: Anthony Bruin (12.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg)
Top Scorer: Bruin
Top Rebounder: Bruin
Top Assists: De ‘Shaune Griffin (2.0 apg)
Starters Leaving: Bruin (graduation), Justin Marshall (graduation)
Key players returning: Gary Springer, Griffin
Outlook for next season: Rick Pitino disciple Kevin Willard will replace Jeff Ruland, who led the Gaels for nine years to three MAAC titles and three NCAA tournaments.
Willard spent six seasons at Louisville and will be one of six former Pitino assistants to have a D-I head coaching position, including his father Ralph, who coaches at his alma mater Holy Cross.
Willard will inherit a young team that has nowhere to go but up, and by season two will be expected to conjure up his mentor’s recruiting magic.
