Three Remain Unbeaten In MAAC Play
MAAC Sports
EDISON, NJ – Three men’s basketball teams remain unbeaten, and a total of five sport winning league records, after the first weekend of Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action in the 2014 calendar year.
Manhattan extended its overall win streak to eight and improved to 11-2 overall with MAAC victories over Saint Peter’s and Fairfield. The Jaspers are 4-0 in league play, and own a 9-0 record in games it has played on the road or at neutral sites. The Jaspers visit Quinnipiac on Thursday, and host Marist on Sunday.
Canisius and Iona are unbeaten as well in the MAAC with 3-0 records. Canisius upped its overall mark to 9-5 with a league win at Saint Peter’s last Saturday.
The Golden Griffins will take their unblemished league mark into Poughkeepsie tonight to take on Marist, which is sporting a four-game win streak after opening the season with a 0-9 start. The Red Foxes are now 3-2 at their home court, McCann Arena. Canisius will also host Rider on Friday and Monmouth on Sunday, this week.
Iona is 3-0 in the MAAC, and 6-6 overall. The high-scoring Gaels, who currently lead the league in scoring at 83.1 points per game, erupted for 118 points in their last outing, a victory over Niagara. It was the second highest single-game point total in Gaels history, and the sixth highest all-time in the MAAC.
Iona will visit Quinnipiac tonight at 7, in a makeup of their game postponed last week due to weather. Game time is at 7 p.m., and the contest will be televised live on SNY-TV. Iona will also host Fairfield on Friday and visit Siena on Sunday.
Quinnipiac enters tonight’s game with Iona sporting a 2-1 mark in MAAC play, and 7-5 overall. Quinnipiac was dominant in its last outing, defeating Monmouth 94-77 as five players scored in double figures, led by Ike Azotam’s 24-points and 16 rebounds. In addition to facing Iona this week, Quinnipiac will host Manhattan on Thursday, and will visit Saint Peter’s on Sunday.
Rider is now 3-1 in MAAC action and 7-6 overall after splitting a pair of league games. The Broncs knocked off Niagara in a high-scoring affair, 85-83, before dropping its first league game, 62-47, at Siena. The Broncs will visit Canisius and Niagara in the upcoming weekend.
Siena went 1-1 in a pair of MAAC games last week, losing at Monmouth before defeating Rider to even their league mark at 2-2. The Saints will host Marist and Iona in weekend MAAC play. Marist, with one league win, will play three this week. In addition to hosting Canisius tonight, Marist will visit Albany on Friday and Manhattan on Sunday.
Monmouth and Niagara each have one league victory as well and look to build on their conference marks this week, while Saint Peter’s and Fairfield look to break into the MAAC win column. Monmouth, picked to finish last in the MAAC in the coaches’ preseason poll, is 7-8 overall and has a 5-4 record at home. The Hawks will play at Niagara and Canisius in the upcoming weekend. Saint Peter’s visits Fairfield on Wednesday and will host Quinnipiac on Sunday. In addition to hosting Saint Peter’s on Wednesday, Fairfield will visit Iona on Friday. Niagara, which has posted a 4-2 record at home, will play a pair of games at home this weekend, hosting Monmouth on Friday and Rider on Sunday.