When it’s all said and done, just two games will separate first place from sixth place in the MAAC. A few things are still undecided after Friday night, but the clear top six is noteworthy in what has been a down year overall. Even with that, the conference has been as competitive as ever as a couple of teams have rebounded from especially bad non-conference showings to contend.
Iona clinched at least a share of the regular season title on Friday night by going to Rider and taking out the Broncs 86-79 behind 22 points from Asante Gist. It’s the culmination of quite a turnaround for a team that went just 2-9 in non-conference play, which is uncharacteristic. It will surprise no one if they were to win again, as they have become the signature program of the conference.
The only team that can catch the Gaels is Quinnipiac, who went to Jersey City and pulled away from St. Peter’s 77-60. The Bobcats host Manhattan on Sunday and can tie the Gaels at 12-6 in MAAC play with a win there. They have won six of eight and eight of 11 to surge into this position already; even more impressive is that five of those six wins in the last eight have come on the road.
Canisius will be somewhere in the middle of that pack, as they finish 11-7 after coming from ten points down to beat Siena 68-62. Down 48-38 with over 11 minutes left, Canisius scored the next 14 points to take the lead for good, with another seven straight shortly thereafter making that a 21-3 run that gave them some cushion at the end. It hasn’t been a smooth ride for the Golden Griffins, as star guard Isaiah Reese, the preseason MAAC Player of the Year, has been suspended for a month now.
Siena can still finish 11-7 if they win at Niagara on Sunday. Jamion Christian should be the MAAC Coach of the Year for getting this team into contention in his first season at the helm and about to finish no worse than fifth place. The Saints were picked to finish last in the MAAC preseason poll and were fresh off a disappointing season and didn’t have an off-season to remember before the hire of one of the young rising stars in the coaching profession.
Monmouth’s regular season is over, and they finish 10-8 in MAAC play after beating Manhattan 62-54. They will be two games back of the regular season champions, and like Iona they regrouped in conference play after a rough non-conference showing – the Hawks were 1-12 in non-conference play.
The MAAC is always a fiercely competitive conference, and its tournaments follow that tradition. This year, that competitiveness was at a little different level, which is reason to believe next weekend’s tournament in Albany will be as good as ever.
Side Dishes
Buffalo clinched at least a share of the MAC regular season title with a 77-69 win at Miami (Ohio) behind 20 points and 10 rebounds from C.J. Massinburg. This was expected of the Bulls, and an outright title can be clinched in their next game.
It’s been a tough year for Rhode Island in the first year of the post-Dan Hurley era. The Rams lost a ton from last season’s team in terms of production, and on top of some struggles, they’ve watched assistant coach John Carroll get hospitalized recently with an illness. But on Friday night, they dug deep and edged Dayton 72-70 in overtime on the road, getting 26 points and eight rebounds from Cyril Langevine. That will be a damaging loss for Dayton, even though the Flyers probably lost most, if not all, their margin for error already regarding any hope of an NCAA Tournament at-large bid.
The Atlantic Sun is all set for its tournament, with Lipscomb nabbing the top seed after both they and Liberty won on Friday night to finish 14-2 in the conference. Lipscomb got the tiebreaker, and they will host Kennesaw State, who edged Stetson 83-82 behind 36 points from Tyler Hooker. Kennesaw State now extends the tenure of Al Skinner at least one more game as Skinner is stepping down at the end of the season.
Nothing materially changed in the Ivy League on Friday night, as Yale blew out Cornell 88-65 in New Haven, Harvard edged Penn 59-53 in Cambridge and Princeton just got by Dartmouth 77-76 in Hanover. With Brown losing at home to Columbia 80-77, they remain tied with Cornell for the fourth and final spot in the league tournament, with Penn a game back.
Ohio State will short a man for at least Saturday’s trip to Purdue as big man Kaleb Wesson has been suspended for a violation of athletic department policy. While the release announcing the suspension does not specify how long it will be, the release does say the sophomore will return this season. Heading into a big road game at Purdue, this is not good news as the Buckeyes need to put some more wins on the board with their 8-9 Big Ten mark.
San Diego State star Jalen McDaniels made his first media appearance since being sued by two women on Friday. The redshirt sophomore forward, one of the most talented players in the Mountain West, said he is now okay talking to the media after consulting with his family and his lawyer. McDaniels is accused of filming sex acts in high school and sharing them through social media. He didn’t say much, largely citing the fact that this is a pending legal matter, and that was echoed by head coach Brian Dutcher. The Aztecs have been up and down this season, looking very good at times and very ordinary at others, and McDaniels has valiantly tried to play through this in the background.
Tonight’s Menu
The last Saturday of solely regular season games is upon us, and as usual, it’s full of important games.
- They get going right away in the ACC with Florida State hosting NC State (noon), and later on Clemson hosts North Carolina (6 p.m.)
- The regular season concludes in America East, with the big game being the battle for the top spot as Vermont hosts Stony Brook, with the Seawolves a game back (7 p.m.)
- American Athletic Conference play is highlighted by UCF getting a big quality win opportunity as they head to Houston (4 p.m.), and later on Cincinnati hosts Memphis (8 p.m.)
- A rivalry game is on tap in the Atlantic 10 as Richmond hosts VCU (4 p.m.)
- In the Big 12, Oklahoma State hosts Kansas in a must-win for the Jayhawks if they want any real chance at another regular season title (noon), then Texas tries to bounce back from letting one get away at Baylor as they host Iowa State while Oklahoma hosts West Virginia (2 p.m.) Later, TCU hosts Texas Tech (4 p.m.) and Kansas State hosts Baylor (8 p.m.)
- Big East play features Butler with a must-win at Villanova (2 p.m.) and Georgetown hosting Seton Hall (6:30 p.m.)
- The top spot is on the line in the Big South as high-scoring Chris Clemons and Campbell host Radford (2 p.m.)
- The important ones in the Big Ten start right away with Indiana hosting Michigan State (noon), Purdue hosting Ohio State (2 p.m.)
- The top three seeds are already set in the CAA, but Hofstra seeks to claim an outright regular season title as they travel to Delaware, while Northeastern could still grab a share of the title as they head to Drexel (4 p.m.)
- The Ivy League looks pretty well set as far as the top three teams go for the league tournament, but a big game in deciding that fourth and final team is on tap tonight as Brown hosts Cornell (6 p.m.) Also, one team will be all alone in second place when the night is done as Harvard hosts Princeton (7 p.m.)
- There is much to still shake out in the Missouri Valley, with some of the big matchups including Southern Illinois hosting Illinois State (2 p.m.), Missouri State hosting Drake (4 p.m.) and Loyola-Chicago hosting Bradley (6 p.m.)
- A showdown is on tap in the Mountain West as Utah State hosts Nevada (8:30 p.m.)
- Much also remains to be decided in the Ohio Valley Conference, including the regular season title. Jacksonville State is a game back of the top two and visits SIUE (6 p.m.), while Belmont travels to Southeast Missouri State and Murray State hosts Austin Peay (8 p.m.)
- The Patriot League has a three-way tie at the top entering the final weekend, and two of those teams play early. Bucknell hosts Army and Colgate is at Lafayette (noon), while Lehigh plays in the last league game of the regular season at Loyola (Md.) (7 p.m.)
- SEC play starts with Alabama hosting LSU (noon), then Arkansas gets a chance to play spoiler as they host Ole Miss (1 p.m.) before the big game of the day as Tennessee hosts Kentucky (2 p.m.) Later on, Auburn hosts Mississippi State (4 p.m.)
- Out west, a rivalry game comes late in the evening as Saint Mary’s hosts Gonzaga (10 p.m.)
