College basketball’s season is still three weeks away, but that doesn’t mean we can’t begin anticipating how a favored team might fall into place for 2009-10.
This blogger has compiled a list of players joining MAAC programs, whether they be freshmen, red-shirted players becoming eligible this season, and transfers from other programs who are eligible now or will be in the second semester. In some cases, this blogger either has seen the players in question or has elicited some opinion/expertise from other sources and will pass along those insights.
I’ll be posting a team-by-team look at newcomers, in no particular order. If your team’s list isn’t up when you read this, check back soon. I’ll list the players’ pertinent stats, if they’re available. And, as always, thanks for reading.
First up ... Iona
Incoming freshmen
- Mike McFadden, 6-foot-8, 220-pound forward from Technology High School of Newark, N.J. He averaged 19 points, 12.5 rebounds last season. Sources indicate he might be ready to be in the playing group almost from the start of the season.
- Chris Pelcher, 6-10 center from Albany (N.Y.) Academy. This blogger has seen Pelcher play multiple times. He has a college-ready physique, can bang inside yet hit mid-range jumpers. Fairly mobile for his size. He could also be in the playing group early, and be a solid contributor throughout his time with the Gaels.
- Rashard McGill, 6-5 small forward, Massanutten Military Academy, a prep school in Woodstock, Va. There he averaged 17.8 points and had a one-game high of 46. As a senior at East Gadsden High School in Havana, Fla., in the 2007-08 season he averaged 21 points and 12 rebounds.
- Ben Mockford, a 6-2 guard from England who played prep school in the U.S. last year at Oak Hill Academy. Mockford played for England’s Under-20 team in this summer’s European Men’s Championship tournament. He saw action in five games, averaging 12.6 points per outing and hit 13-of-36 shots from three-point range.
Eligible Redshirts:
- Keon Williams, a 6-6, 220-pound forward who sat out last season with an Achilles injury. As a senior at Hackensack, N.J., H.S. he averaged 22 points and 14.1 rebounds in the 2007-08 season.
- Kyle Smith, a 6-4 guard who played one game last year, scoring six points in 17 minutes. After that, an ankle injury forced him to miss the rest of the season. As a high school senior at Don Bosco H.S., he averaged 13.6 points and 4.3 assists.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Coming Up ... Who's New in the MAAC
Over the next few days we'll feature newcomers, whether they be incoming freshmen eligible transfors or redshirts, joining MAAC men's programs for the coming season.
But first, some words of caution, kind of like the advisory on your car's rear-view that says "objects are closer than they appear."
Same with incoming players ... the view now isn't always accurate. Some might be closer to being ready to contribute than would appear based on statistics and reputations. Or, they might not be as ready to play yet as past performances might indicate.
Bottom line ... you don't know until everything shakes out through preseason workouts, practices and, even, some early games. So, great high school/prep school stats don't necessarily translate to college results. The fact that a player might be transferring in from a major-college program doesn't automatically ensure the individual's success either. And, sometimes, recruits who aren't highly rated emerge as standouts in college.
As a newspaper "beat" reporter covering Siena basketball for more than two decades, I'll relate two quick illustrative stories.
1) In the 1986-87 season Siena was recruiting a slender, 5-foot-10 point guard from New Jersey. For most of the season Siena was the only Division I program recruiting the player, and much of that interest came because then-coach Mike Deane had playground battles in his younger days against the recruit's father, and had an insider's knowledge of the recruit.
By late in the recruiting season, only a handful of other D-I programs got involved and the player ultimately came to Siena without much outside fanfare.
Early in his first season Siena was preparing for a game at Syracuse, a program featuring future NBA players Derrick Coleman, Rony Seikaly and Sherman Douglas.
The Siena player, then a freshman, was asked what it would be like to match up with Douglas, a point guard who would play in the NBA for more than a decade.
His response: "You should be asking Sherman Douglas if he's worried about matching up with me."
That comment was more fact than brag.
The Siena player was Marc Brown, who scored 20 points in that meeting with Douglas and quite clearly was not out of his element in that evironment. It was a sign of things to come.
Brown went on to score 2,284 career points and accumulate 786 career assists. Eighteen years after his college career ended he remains Siena's leader in those two statistics.
2) During the 1989-90 season, Siena was recruiting another slender, small point guard.
Siena's coach Deane envisioned the player as Brown's replacement at point guard. Not many others held the player in such high regard. Only a handful of small Division I programs were interested.
Only one other MAAC school, Canisius, was interested but it wanted the player to redshirt for a season. The player opted to join Siena, which wanted him to play as soon as he arrived.
The player, Doremus Bennerman, not only became Brown's understudy during his first season but the two were often on the court together.
Bennerman took over at the point full time as a sophomore and finished with 2,109 career points (second all-time at Siena behind Brown) and 577 career assists (third all-time at Siena).
Stories like those abound throughout the MAAC, not just at Siena.
The point is that while the reports written here on incoming players at MAAC programs will include some insights/background/opinions ... all of that probably doesn't mean much and it certainly won't be definitive.
Predicting how incoming players will contribute to their new programs is an inexact science, at best. So, the "reports" to come are mostly for entertainment purposes only.
Feel free to draw your own conclusions. Just don't count on them being accurate.
And, as always, thanks for reading.
But first, some words of caution, kind of like the advisory on your car's rear-view that says "objects are closer than they appear."
Same with incoming players ... the view now isn't always accurate. Some might be closer to being ready to contribute than would appear based on statistics and reputations. Or, they might not be as ready to play yet as past performances might indicate.
Bottom line ... you don't know until everything shakes out through preseason workouts, practices and, even, some early games. So, great high school/prep school stats don't necessarily translate to college results. The fact that a player might be transferring in from a major-college program doesn't automatically ensure the individual's success either. And, sometimes, recruits who aren't highly rated emerge as standouts in college.
As a newspaper "beat" reporter covering Siena basketball for more than two decades, I'll relate two quick illustrative stories.
1) In the 1986-87 season Siena was recruiting a slender, 5-foot-10 point guard from New Jersey. For most of the season Siena was the only Division I program recruiting the player, and much of that interest came because then-coach Mike Deane had playground battles in his younger days against the recruit's father, and had an insider's knowledge of the recruit.
By late in the recruiting season, only a handful of other D-I programs got involved and the player ultimately came to Siena without much outside fanfare.
Early in his first season Siena was preparing for a game at Syracuse, a program featuring future NBA players Derrick Coleman, Rony Seikaly and Sherman Douglas.
The Siena player, then a freshman, was asked what it would be like to match up with Douglas, a point guard who would play in the NBA for more than a decade.
His response: "You should be asking Sherman Douglas if he's worried about matching up with me."
That comment was more fact than brag.
The Siena player was Marc Brown, who scored 20 points in that meeting with Douglas and quite clearly was not out of his element in that evironment. It was a sign of things to come.
Brown went on to score 2,284 career points and accumulate 786 career assists. Eighteen years after his college career ended he remains Siena's leader in those two statistics.
2) During the 1989-90 season, Siena was recruiting another slender, small point guard.
Siena's coach Deane envisioned the player as Brown's replacement at point guard. Not many others held the player in such high regard. Only a handful of small Division I programs were interested.
Only one other MAAC school, Canisius, was interested but it wanted the player to redshirt for a season. The player opted to join Siena, which wanted him to play as soon as he arrived.
The player, Doremus Bennerman, not only became Brown's understudy during his first season but the two were often on the court together.
Bennerman took over at the point full time as a sophomore and finished with 2,109 career points (second all-time at Siena behind Brown) and 577 career assists (third all-time at Siena).
Stories like those abound throughout the MAAC, not just at Siena.
The point is that while the reports written here on incoming players at MAAC programs will include some insights/background/opinions ... all of that probably doesn't mean much and it certainly won't be definitive.
Predicting how incoming players will contribute to their new programs is an inexact science, at best. So, the "reports" to come are mostly for entertainment purposes only.
Feel free to draw your own conclusions. Just don't count on them being accurate.
And, as always, thanks for reading.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
At Siena ... The Rich Get Richer
Siena, earlier this week, received its first verbal commitment from a player who will join the program for the 2010-11 season.
From extensive personal observation, this is a case of the proverbial rich getting richer.
Siena, the MAAC champion in the past two seasons, will lose an outstanding senior group after the coming season. But the first verbal commitment, from 6-foot-6 swingman Trenity Burdine, appears to be a strong first step in replacing the current seniors.
Burdine is entering his senior year at Reading (Pa.) High School, and is a close friend of current Siena standout Alex Franklin (who also calls Reading, Pa., home). Franklin, according to sources, strongly extolled Siena's virtues to Burdine in recent weeks.
Burdine plays for the York (Pa.) Ballers on the spring/summer AAU circuit, and his team made a Memorial Day Weekend stop in the area appearing in the GymRat Challenge Tournament at Siena.
This blogger got to watch Burdine play several games, and helped compile the "report" for members of that event's all-star team. Here it is:
"Trenity Burdine (6-6 SF/SG) York Ballers: Very skilled player with good handle and passing ability in half court and transition. Great range on jumper and showed ability to shoot off the bounce. His length disrupts defenses and be a factor on the glass. Interest from Siena among several other mid-major D-I programs."
Observers (this one included) compare Burdine to another current Siena player, senior Edwin Ubiles. The body size and skill set is similar. Burdine isn't quite the player Ubiles is, but Ubiles, is also four years older. It's not hard to envision that Burdine could make contributions at Siena similar to Ubiles'.
Of course, that's a very tall order. But Burdine's skills and style of play create the impression that he's capable of that.
"I just love Siena basketball," Burdine told Pete Iorizzo of the Albany Times Union. "Coach Fran (McCaffery) told me I was one of his main guys."
This blogger had heard that Burdine was one of Siena's two primary targets among players appearing at the GymRat Challenge event. The other is 6-foot-7, 250-pound power forward Dominic Morris, who played for The RAIDERS, a Philadelphia-based AAU team.
In the next few days, I'll submit a list of players, along with some insight, who will join conference programs for the coming season ... either as a freshman or as a transfer. But, this commitment came up, and with considerable first-hand viewing of Burdine ... just thought I'd pass along some thoughts.
From extensive personal observation, this is a case of the proverbial rich getting richer.
Siena, the MAAC champion in the past two seasons, will lose an outstanding senior group after the coming season. But the first verbal commitment, from 6-foot-6 swingman Trenity Burdine, appears to be a strong first step in replacing the current seniors.
Burdine is entering his senior year at Reading (Pa.) High School, and is a close friend of current Siena standout Alex Franklin (who also calls Reading, Pa., home). Franklin, according to sources, strongly extolled Siena's virtues to Burdine in recent weeks.
Burdine plays for the York (Pa.) Ballers on the spring/summer AAU circuit, and his team made a Memorial Day Weekend stop in the area appearing in the GymRat Challenge Tournament at Siena.
This blogger got to watch Burdine play several games, and helped compile the "report" for members of that event's all-star team. Here it is:
"Trenity Burdine (6-6 SF/SG) York Ballers: Very skilled player with good handle and passing ability in half court and transition. Great range on jumper and showed ability to shoot off the bounce. His length disrupts defenses and be a factor on the glass. Interest from Siena among several other mid-major D-I programs."
Observers (this one included) compare Burdine to another current Siena player, senior Edwin Ubiles. The body size and skill set is similar. Burdine isn't quite the player Ubiles is, but Ubiles, is also four years older. It's not hard to envision that Burdine could make contributions at Siena similar to Ubiles'.
Of course, that's a very tall order. But Burdine's skills and style of play create the impression that he's capable of that.
"I just love Siena basketball," Burdine told Pete Iorizzo of the Albany Times Union. "Coach Fran (McCaffery) told me I was one of his main guys."
This blogger had heard that Burdine was one of Siena's two primary targets among players appearing at the GymRat Challenge event. The other is 6-foot-7, 250-pound power forward Dominic Morris, who played for The RAIDERS, a Philadelphia-based AAU team.
In the next few days, I'll submit a list of players, along with some insight, who will join conference programs for the coming season ... either as a freshman or as a transfer. But, this commitment came up, and with considerable first-hand viewing of Burdine ... just thought I'd pass along some thoughts.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
A Very Brief Look To the 2009-10 Season
OK, a brief bit of cross-advertising here.
This blogger, for the past decade, has also produced the MAAC men's basketball preview for what is now The Sporting News' College Basketball Annual issue. I had been writing the preview for Street & Smith, but that publication merged with The Sporting News a couple of years ago.
Anyway, as much as I would like to publish that preview in this forum ... The Sporting News doesn't allow that.
Still, that agreement doesn't prohibit me from making some observations.
My predicted order of finish, with some comments ...
1) Siena. Four starters back, joined by last season's Sixth Man of the Year award winner. Big surprise, right?
2) Niagara. Four starters back from a team that beat Siena by 15 points in a game during the final weekend of regular-season play.
3) Rider. Four starters back, too, including arguably the conference's best player in Ryan Thompson.
4) Saint Peter's. Probably a little bit of a surprise here. But, yours truly rates John Dunne very high as a coach. Ryan Bacon is emerging as one of the league's best big men and Jaron Belin, a 6-6 forward coming in from Monroe Community College, will be an impact newcomer.
5) Fairfield. I love how hard the Stags play under Ed Cooley. Only lingering injuries will keep the Stags from being competitive.
6) Iona. Five returnees who all saw some time in last season's starting lineups, two solid red-shirt freshmen become eligible and four touted freshmen ... if it all comes together, Gaels could be better than this.
7) Loyola. Standout perimeter players joined by 6-10 Maryland transfer Shane Walker. And, no Jimmy Patsos team will ever be anything less than competitive.
8) Canisius. All five starters back, along with a touted freshman (Rob Gagliardi). The Golden Griffins could easily do better than this.
9) Manhattan. Only one double-figure scorer (Darryl Crawford) is back. But, the Jaspars always seem to overachieve under Barry Rohrssen.
10) Marist. Its best two players have graduated. But, a Villanova transfer (6-10 Casiem Drummond) who is eligible after the first semester; an ACC transfer (guard Daye Kaba, formerly at Boston College) who is eligible immediately, and some promising freshmen create optimism.
In talking to coaches around the league this offseason, the universal theme is that there won't be any easy nights on this year's schedule, and that's my perspective, too.
Any of the bottom five teams could easily finisher higher than predicted here, and that's rarely the case. In most seasons, there has almost always been a program or two that could be counted on to struggle. But, that doesn't seem to be the case this year.
For an expanded MAAC preview ... I hope you'll rush to your local newsstand to purchase The Sporting News College Basketball Annual. It's not there yet, but will be at some point in early to mid September.
AND, NOW THAT WE'VE GOT YOUR ATTENTION (hopefully) ...
Yours truly will be taking a brief hiatus to visit an old friend in central New York's wine country.
Bully Hill, anyone?
The MAAC blog will resume by Aug. 7.
NEXT UP: I'll be taking a look at incoming players, transfers and recruits.
Again, thanks for reading.
This blogger, for the past decade, has also produced the MAAC men's basketball preview for what is now The Sporting News' College Basketball Annual issue. I had been writing the preview for Street & Smith, but that publication merged with The Sporting News a couple of years ago.
Anyway, as much as I would like to publish that preview in this forum ... The Sporting News doesn't allow that.
Still, that agreement doesn't prohibit me from making some observations.
My predicted order of finish, with some comments ...
1) Siena. Four starters back, joined by last season's Sixth Man of the Year award winner. Big surprise, right?
2) Niagara. Four starters back from a team that beat Siena by 15 points in a game during the final weekend of regular-season play.
3) Rider. Four starters back, too, including arguably the conference's best player in Ryan Thompson.
4) Saint Peter's. Probably a little bit of a surprise here. But, yours truly rates John Dunne very high as a coach. Ryan Bacon is emerging as one of the league's best big men and Jaron Belin, a 6-6 forward coming in from Monroe Community College, will be an impact newcomer.
5) Fairfield. I love how hard the Stags play under Ed Cooley. Only lingering injuries will keep the Stags from being competitive.
6) Iona. Five returnees who all saw some time in last season's starting lineups, two solid red-shirt freshmen become eligible and four touted freshmen ... if it all comes together, Gaels could be better than this.
7) Loyola. Standout perimeter players joined by 6-10 Maryland transfer Shane Walker. And, no Jimmy Patsos team will ever be anything less than competitive.
8) Canisius. All five starters back, along with a touted freshman (Rob Gagliardi). The Golden Griffins could easily do better than this.
9) Manhattan. Only one double-figure scorer (Darryl Crawford) is back. But, the Jaspars always seem to overachieve under Barry Rohrssen.
10) Marist. Its best two players have graduated. But, a Villanova transfer (6-10 Casiem Drummond) who is eligible after the first semester; an ACC transfer (guard Daye Kaba, formerly at Boston College) who is eligible immediately, and some promising freshmen create optimism.
In talking to coaches around the league this offseason, the universal theme is that there won't be any easy nights on this year's schedule, and that's my perspective, too.
Any of the bottom five teams could easily finisher higher than predicted here, and that's rarely the case. In most seasons, there has almost always been a program or two that could be counted on to struggle. But, that doesn't seem to be the case this year.
For an expanded MAAC preview ... I hope you'll rush to your local newsstand to purchase The Sporting News College Basketball Annual. It's not there yet, but will be at some point in early to mid September.
AND, NOW THAT WE'VE GOT YOUR ATTENTION (hopefully) ...
Yours truly will be taking a brief hiatus to visit an old friend in central New York's wine country.
Bully Hill, anyone?
The MAAC blog will resume by Aug. 7.
NEXT UP: I'll be taking a look at incoming players, transfers and recruits.
Again, thanks for reading.
An Early, and Welcomed, Return to Hoops
Welcome back to "Keepin' Track of the MAAC."
This is an early, unexpected but much-welcomed return to blogging about MAAC basketball happenings.
The MAAC has graciously offered the opportunity to blog about hoops year round. And, considering that yours truly is a year-round hoops junkie ... the chance to do that is just too good to pass up.
What goes on in the off-season?
Plenty, from recruiting, to scheduling, to comings and goings (players and coaches) ... just about everything and anything. It's also a good chance to opine, reminisce, whatever.
So, hopefully, this will be an internet destination for all you Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference basketball fans. And, I know, there are plenty of you out there.
This begins my 21st season of being connected with the MAAC, first as a newspaper "beat reporter" and, now, as a blogger. My experience has taught me there is a a large audience for MAAC-related content, an audience that far surpasses that of almost any other mid-major basketball conference.
Why is that? My educated guesses are that the conference programs are well-established and have fan bases that have developed over long periods of time, that the league brings in a high-level of athletes, that the league schedule is always competitive, that fans can get greater access to players and coaches at this level than at the higher levels, that MAAC athletes are students first ... in essence that the league epitomizes what college sports is meant to be.
And, as fans, we are the beneficiaries. We appreciate it.
Now, I hope, the faithful readers of this space will be the year-round beneficiaries of opinions, insights, news and anything else this blogger can find of interest to write about concerning both men's and women's basketball.
Thanks for reading.
This is an early, unexpected but much-welcomed return to blogging about MAAC basketball happenings.
The MAAC has graciously offered the opportunity to blog about hoops year round. And, considering that yours truly is a year-round hoops junkie ... the chance to do that is just too good to pass up.
What goes on in the off-season?
Plenty, from recruiting, to scheduling, to comings and goings (players and coaches) ... just about everything and anything. It's also a good chance to opine, reminisce, whatever.
So, hopefully, this will be an internet destination for all you Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference basketball fans. And, I know, there are plenty of you out there.
This begins my 21st season of being connected with the MAAC, first as a newspaper "beat reporter" and, now, as a blogger. My experience has taught me there is a a large audience for MAAC-related content, an audience that far surpasses that of almost any other mid-major basketball conference.
Why is that? My educated guesses are that the conference programs are well-established and have fan bases that have developed over long periods of time, that the league brings in a high-level of athletes, that the league schedule is always competitive, that fans can get greater access to players and coaches at this level than at the higher levels, that MAAC athletes are students first ... in essence that the league epitomizes what college sports is meant to be.
And, as fans, we are the beneficiaries. We appreciate it.
Now, I hope, the faithful readers of this space will be the year-round beneficiaries of opinions, insights, news and anything else this blogger can find of interest to write about concerning both men's and women's basketball.
Thanks for reading.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Thanks For Reading, See You in 2009-10
The preview of the 2009-10 season, below, will likely be the last post for some time, unless something unusually noteworthy occurs during the off-season. We'll get started again with season previews and anything else of note not long after the mid-October start of practices.
The break provides an opportunity to thank a few people for considerable support during the 2008-09 season.
Thanks, primarily, to my family for being excited about my opportunity to get involved with this blog and, then, for much-needed support and encouragement for keeping it going after a particular rough stretch this past November.
Thanks to MAAC administrators, particularly MAAC commissioner Rich Ensor, who offered the opportunity to create and write in this forum, and thanks to assistant commissioners Jill Skorarczak and Ken Taylor for their support and direction throughout the season.
Thanks to all the coaches, players, sports information personnel and, in many cases, fans for their cooperation and insights throughout the season.
Thanks to all of you who read the blog this season, and to those who reached out with comments and suggestions. The interest is very much appreciated.
I have covered the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference in one form or another, first as a sportswriter and, now, as a blogger, since Siena joined the league in 1989.
The conference has never disappointed, whether it be in a competitive situation or otherwise.
It is a league that fans (and writers) can be proud of. Things are done the right way. Players remain students first.
Coaches and players alike recognize the continued need to publicize the conference and are appreciative of not only media coverage but fan interest. As such, it's still possible for fans to get significantly "closer" to their favored program and have the type interaction with coaching staffs and players that usually doesn't happen at the high-major level of college basketball.
It makes the MAAC enjoyable to be around.
On top of everything else, it's a very good level of college basketball.
I look forward to a continuing my blogging efforts about the MAAC next season.
And, I hope you'll continue reading.
The break provides an opportunity to thank a few people for considerable support during the 2008-09 season.
Thanks, primarily, to my family for being excited about my opportunity to get involved with this blog and, then, for much-needed support and encouragement for keeping it going after a particular rough stretch this past November.
Thanks to MAAC administrators, particularly MAAC commissioner Rich Ensor, who offered the opportunity to create and write in this forum, and thanks to assistant commissioners Jill Skorarczak and Ken Taylor for their support and direction throughout the season.
Thanks to all the coaches, players, sports information personnel and, in many cases, fans for their cooperation and insights throughout the season.
Thanks to all of you who read the blog this season, and to those who reached out with comments and suggestions. The interest is very much appreciated.
I have covered the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference in one form or another, first as a sportswriter and, now, as a blogger, since Siena joined the league in 1989.
The conference has never disappointed, whether it be in a competitive situation or otherwise.
It is a league that fans (and writers) can be proud of. Things are done the right way. Players remain students first.
Coaches and players alike recognize the continued need to publicize the conference and are appreciative of not only media coverage but fan interest. As such, it's still possible for fans to get significantly "closer" to their favored program and have the type interaction with coaching staffs and players that usually doesn't happen at the high-major level of college basketball.
It makes the MAAC enjoyable to be around.
On top of everything else, it's a very good level of college basketball.
I look forward to a continuing my blogging efforts about the MAAC next season.
And, I hope you'll continue reading.
A Look Ahead to the 2009-10 Season
One season behind us, the next one about seven months away from beginning.
Too soon to look ahead?
No, it’s never too soon for that.
The crystal ball, the tea leaves and whatever other devices you might use to predict the future all come up with the same answer: The 2009-10 MAAC season will look a lot like this past season’s, maybe even a little better.
The top teams … Siena, Niagara and Rider … are likely to be the top teams again.
But the next tier from this past season … Saint Peter’s, Iona, and Fairfield … all look capable of being better in the foreseeable future. It wouldn’t be much of a surprise if any of those three broke into the top three of the MAAC standings.
At least two of the 2008-09 season’s lower-tier teams, Loyola and Canisius, have enough talent on board to expect improvements, too.
Manhattan and Marist both got hit by some unexpected player losses and will likely be young in a league where experience usually counts for plenty.
League coaches universally proclaimed this past season to be one of the best in conference history in terms of top-to-bottom competitiveness.
That, though, is an annual refrain tossed out merely to positively shape public perception.
This season’s play in the MAAC was very good.
Best ever? Not sure I agree with that.
But if someone wants to begin proclaiming how good the 2009-10 season will be for MAAC basketball … they won’t get any debate from this humble blogger.
Let’s take thumbnail glances at what’s ahead for the men’s programs, from the top down in predicted order of finish for 2009-10.
SIENA: The 2008-09 edition was quite possibly the 2nd-best team in MAAC history, behind only the 1989-90 La Salle squad. And, the Saints could be even better next season (although probably not as good as that La Salle team that sent three players on to the NBA).
Gone is Kenny Hasbrouck, this season’s Player of the Year, but everyone else of significance returns.
The 2009-10 starting five will include three seniors and two juniors, the type of experience that, when coupled with the type talent Siena has, traditionally results in championship-level play.
Add to that group two productive freshmen from this past season’s team, and a recruiting class that head coach Fran McCaffery raves about.
Incoming recruits include a much-needed back-up point guard in Jonathan Breeden, a standout shooting guard in Denzel Yard, and, lanky 6-foot-8 forward O.D. Anosike, who is capable of playing either in the post or on the perimeter and is likely to have the greatest impact among newcomers.
And, then, there’s talented guard Kyle Griffin, a transfer from La Salle who is recovering from a knee injury and should be ready to play by mid-season.
It means Siena will be bigger, deeper and even better than this season.
Of course expectations will be unusually high. Siena became the first MAAC men’s team in the conference’s history to advance to the second round of NCAA tournament play in back-to-back seasons. Siena fans will expect the coming season’s team to at least achieve that again, if not go even deeper in the NCAA’s.
NIAGARA: The league’s second-best team, and on one night in a late regular-season game, (a 100-85 victory over Siena) thrust itself into the conversation for the best in the MAAC.
The only loss is 6-10 center Benson Egemoyne, but it’s a big one in every sense.
The four returning starters … Bilal Benn, Rob Garrison, Tyrone Lewis and Anthony Nelson … rank right there with Siena’s four returnees. And, its depth will be better, too. Current freshman Austin Cooley looks like he’ll be a factor in years to come.
But, the Purple Eagles don’t currently have an inside presence.
They could go small, with 6-6 Demitrius Williams in the middle, or thrust slender 6-9 incoming freshman Andre Gillette into the playing group. For sure, the Purple Eagles will again be the conference’s most-athletic team, and likely be the greatest threat, again, to Siena's championship hopes.
RIDER: Like the top two, in terms of key players returning, it’s more of the same here.
Of the seven-man playing group at season’s end, the only loss will be departing senior Harris Mansell, who battled an elbow injury all year and was never at full strength.
Back is senior-to-be Ryan Thompson, possibly the preseason favorite for Player of the Year accolades. Also back will be hard-working forward Mike Ringold, and talented freshman Novar Gadson, who should have been (it says here) the conference’s Rookie of the Year.
ST. PETER’S: Coach John Dunne has turned the program around from an also-ran in recent years into a solid contender for the foreseeable future.
Every player that averaged at least two points per game last season is back, and the team’s two standouts, emerging 6-7 center Ryan Bacon and guard Wesley Jenkins, one of the MAAC’s top snipers, are both entering their junior seasons.
Add to that duo a pair of good-with-the-ball guards in Nick Leon and Brandon Hall, and do-everything small forward Akeem Gooding, and the upcoming season could be a good one for the Peacocks.
FAIRFIELD: Things should be better for the program that survived a key player defection and more than its share of injury problems this past season.
Back is an effective front-court group of Greg Nero, Warren Edney and Mike Evanovich, as well as Anthony Johnson, if he gets medical clearance after missing much of last season.
The guard spot, though, isn’t quite so solid. Lyndon Jordan, who stepped in at midseason to play the point, looked capable. But, he’ll have to take another step forward for the Stags to improve. Fairfield will also need immediate contributions from incoming freshman Colin Nickerson.
IONA: The Gaels lost two key parts to graduation, leading scorer/rebounder Gary Springer, their top inside player; and 6-6 swingman Devon Clarke, their third-leading scorer.
But, expect talented soph-to-be point guard Scott Machado to be improved after some inconsistent play as a freshman, which will be a key. Otherwise, Iona is set with Milan Predanovic at the other guard spot and, probably, 7-0 Jonathan Huffman at forward position.
Springer’s loss could be offset if junior-to-be Alejo Rodriguez returns to the form he flashed before back problems but rarely exhibited this past season.
Any chance of Iona finishing higher is predicated on quick contributions from incoming freshmen 6-9 Chris Pelcher and 6-2 guard Ben Mockford and red-shirt freshmen Keon Williams and Kyle Smith.
LOYOLA: Jimmy Patsos’s teams are always competitive, and the Greyhounds will be so in the coming season with strong perimeter play. Swingman Jamal Barney is arguably the conference’s most-explosive scorer, and guards Brett Harvey and Brian Rudolph are both experienced and effective.
How far Loyola can go this season will depend on the development of big men 6-7 Anthony Winbush and 6-9 Josh Woegand, along with 6-10 Shane Walker, a transfer from Maryland who sat out last season. If Walker is very good, then Loyola could move closer to the top of the conference standings. Traditionally, though, perimeter-position players transferring from a higher level have had more success in the MAAC than big men.
CANISIUS: One of the league’s youngest teams returns every key player, including senior point guard Frank Turner, one of the most-exciting performers in the conference.
Overall, the Golden Griffins’ top seven players are back. Natural progression is expected, and if 6-9, 320-pounder Chris Gadley gets in better condition he could be an inside force. Incoming freshman Rob Gagliardi should have an impact, too.
The Griffs will legitimately go eight deep, and more, and could push to move up a few spots.
MANHATTAN: Rumors that head coach Barry Rohrssen might be leaving for a position at Kentucky remain active. But even if the Jaspers’ coach stays, the team doesn’t look likely to move out of the bottom half of the league standings for some time.
The decision of do-everything swingman Chris Smith, the team’s second-leading scorer and leading rebounder, to leave the program hurts.
Back will be 6-5 guard Darryl Crawford and 6-2 guard Antoine Pearson, and big man 6-9 Laurence Jolicoeur, who will need to contribute more. Otherwise, there isn’t a lot in place to think Manhattan will be in the MAAC’s upper echelon in the immediate future.
MARIST: The last-place finisher of this past season will have its work cut out to avoid the cellar again in 2009-10.
The Red Foxes not only lost their best front-court player with the graduation of Ryan Schneider, but unexpectedly lost their best guard, David Devezin, who was not granted a medical redshirt year as originally expected. Devezin, it was recently ruled, did not receive a medical redshirt after playing just three games at Texas A&M in the 2005-06 season.
It leaves the team without a single player who averaged more than 6.9 points per game last season. Devezin’s loss means that junior Dujuan Goodwin and sophomore R.J. Hall will be more-prominently featured in the backcourt.
Up front, 6-9 Korey Bauer showed some promise this past season. And, help is coming in the sizeable form of 6-10 Casiem Drummond, a transfer from Villanova, who will be eligible to play after the first semester. Sam Prescott, an incoming freshman-to-be guard, could also have an impact.
Too soon to look ahead?
No, it’s never too soon for that.
The crystal ball, the tea leaves and whatever other devices you might use to predict the future all come up with the same answer: The 2009-10 MAAC season will look a lot like this past season’s, maybe even a little better.
The top teams … Siena, Niagara and Rider … are likely to be the top teams again.
But the next tier from this past season … Saint Peter’s, Iona, and Fairfield … all look capable of being better in the foreseeable future. It wouldn’t be much of a surprise if any of those three broke into the top three of the MAAC standings.
At least two of the 2008-09 season’s lower-tier teams, Loyola and Canisius, have enough talent on board to expect improvements, too.
Manhattan and Marist both got hit by some unexpected player losses and will likely be young in a league where experience usually counts for plenty.
League coaches universally proclaimed this past season to be one of the best in conference history in terms of top-to-bottom competitiveness.
That, though, is an annual refrain tossed out merely to positively shape public perception.
This season’s play in the MAAC was very good.
Best ever? Not sure I agree with that.
But if someone wants to begin proclaiming how good the 2009-10 season will be for MAAC basketball … they won’t get any debate from this humble blogger.
Let’s take thumbnail glances at what’s ahead for the men’s programs, from the top down in predicted order of finish for 2009-10.
SIENA: The 2008-09 edition was quite possibly the 2nd-best team in MAAC history, behind only the 1989-90 La Salle squad. And, the Saints could be even better next season (although probably not as good as that La Salle team that sent three players on to the NBA).
Gone is Kenny Hasbrouck, this season’s Player of the Year, but everyone else of significance returns.
The 2009-10 starting five will include three seniors and two juniors, the type of experience that, when coupled with the type talent Siena has, traditionally results in championship-level play.
Add to that group two productive freshmen from this past season’s team, and a recruiting class that head coach Fran McCaffery raves about.
Incoming recruits include a much-needed back-up point guard in Jonathan Breeden, a standout shooting guard in Denzel Yard, and, lanky 6-foot-8 forward O.D. Anosike, who is capable of playing either in the post or on the perimeter and is likely to have the greatest impact among newcomers.
And, then, there’s talented guard Kyle Griffin, a transfer from La Salle who is recovering from a knee injury and should be ready to play by mid-season.
It means Siena will be bigger, deeper and even better than this season.
Of course expectations will be unusually high. Siena became the first MAAC men’s team in the conference’s history to advance to the second round of NCAA tournament play in back-to-back seasons. Siena fans will expect the coming season’s team to at least achieve that again, if not go even deeper in the NCAA’s.
NIAGARA: The league’s second-best team, and on one night in a late regular-season game, (a 100-85 victory over Siena) thrust itself into the conversation for the best in the MAAC.
The only loss is 6-10 center Benson Egemoyne, but it’s a big one in every sense.
The four returning starters … Bilal Benn, Rob Garrison, Tyrone Lewis and Anthony Nelson … rank right there with Siena’s four returnees. And, its depth will be better, too. Current freshman Austin Cooley looks like he’ll be a factor in years to come.
But, the Purple Eagles don’t currently have an inside presence.
They could go small, with 6-6 Demitrius Williams in the middle, or thrust slender 6-9 incoming freshman Andre Gillette into the playing group. For sure, the Purple Eagles will again be the conference’s most-athletic team, and likely be the greatest threat, again, to Siena's championship hopes.
RIDER: Like the top two, in terms of key players returning, it’s more of the same here.
Of the seven-man playing group at season’s end, the only loss will be departing senior Harris Mansell, who battled an elbow injury all year and was never at full strength.
Back is senior-to-be Ryan Thompson, possibly the preseason favorite for Player of the Year accolades. Also back will be hard-working forward Mike Ringold, and talented freshman Novar Gadson, who should have been (it says here) the conference’s Rookie of the Year.
ST. PETER’S: Coach John Dunne has turned the program around from an also-ran in recent years into a solid contender for the foreseeable future.
Every player that averaged at least two points per game last season is back, and the team’s two standouts, emerging 6-7 center Ryan Bacon and guard Wesley Jenkins, one of the MAAC’s top snipers, are both entering their junior seasons.
Add to that duo a pair of good-with-the-ball guards in Nick Leon and Brandon Hall, and do-everything small forward Akeem Gooding, and the upcoming season could be a good one for the Peacocks.
FAIRFIELD: Things should be better for the program that survived a key player defection and more than its share of injury problems this past season.
Back is an effective front-court group of Greg Nero, Warren Edney and Mike Evanovich, as well as Anthony Johnson, if he gets medical clearance after missing much of last season.
The guard spot, though, isn’t quite so solid. Lyndon Jordan, who stepped in at midseason to play the point, looked capable. But, he’ll have to take another step forward for the Stags to improve. Fairfield will also need immediate contributions from incoming freshman Colin Nickerson.
IONA: The Gaels lost two key parts to graduation, leading scorer/rebounder Gary Springer, their top inside player; and 6-6 swingman Devon Clarke, their third-leading scorer.
But, expect talented soph-to-be point guard Scott Machado to be improved after some inconsistent play as a freshman, which will be a key. Otherwise, Iona is set with Milan Predanovic at the other guard spot and, probably, 7-0 Jonathan Huffman at forward position.
Springer’s loss could be offset if junior-to-be Alejo Rodriguez returns to the form he flashed before back problems but rarely exhibited this past season.
Any chance of Iona finishing higher is predicated on quick contributions from incoming freshmen 6-9 Chris Pelcher and 6-2 guard Ben Mockford and red-shirt freshmen Keon Williams and Kyle Smith.
LOYOLA: Jimmy Patsos’s teams are always competitive, and the Greyhounds will be so in the coming season with strong perimeter play. Swingman Jamal Barney is arguably the conference’s most-explosive scorer, and guards Brett Harvey and Brian Rudolph are both experienced and effective.
How far Loyola can go this season will depend on the development of big men 6-7 Anthony Winbush and 6-9 Josh Woegand, along with 6-10 Shane Walker, a transfer from Maryland who sat out last season. If Walker is very good, then Loyola could move closer to the top of the conference standings. Traditionally, though, perimeter-position players transferring from a higher level have had more success in the MAAC than big men.
CANISIUS: One of the league’s youngest teams returns every key player, including senior point guard Frank Turner, one of the most-exciting performers in the conference.
Overall, the Golden Griffins’ top seven players are back. Natural progression is expected, and if 6-9, 320-pounder Chris Gadley gets in better condition he could be an inside force. Incoming freshman Rob Gagliardi should have an impact, too.
The Griffs will legitimately go eight deep, and more, and could push to move up a few spots.
MANHATTAN: Rumors that head coach Barry Rohrssen might be leaving for a position at Kentucky remain active. But even if the Jaspers’ coach stays, the team doesn’t look likely to move out of the bottom half of the league standings for some time.
The decision of do-everything swingman Chris Smith, the team’s second-leading scorer and leading rebounder, to leave the program hurts.
Back will be 6-5 guard Darryl Crawford and 6-2 guard Antoine Pearson, and big man 6-9 Laurence Jolicoeur, who will need to contribute more. Otherwise, there isn’t a lot in place to think Manhattan will be in the MAAC’s upper echelon in the immediate future.
MARIST: The last-place finisher of this past season will have its work cut out to avoid the cellar again in 2009-10.
The Red Foxes not only lost their best front-court player with the graduation of Ryan Schneider, but unexpectedly lost their best guard, David Devezin, who was not granted a medical redshirt year as originally expected. Devezin, it was recently ruled, did not receive a medical redshirt after playing just three games at Texas A&M in the 2005-06 season.
It leaves the team without a single player who averaged more than 6.9 points per game last season. Devezin’s loss means that junior Dujuan Goodwin and sophomore R.J. Hall will be more-prominently featured in the backcourt.
Up front, 6-9 Korey Bauer showed some promise this past season. And, help is coming in the sizeable form of 6-10 Casiem Drummond, a transfer from Villanova, who will be eligible to play after the first semester. Sam Prescott, an incoming freshman-to-be guard, could also have an impact.
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