Manhattan Wins Second Straight MAAC Championship - Mar 10, 2015
The Manhattan College men's basketball team is headed back to the NCAA Tournament. The third-seeded Jaspers (19-13) defeated top-seeded Iona (26-8) 79-69 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championship Game on Monday night at the Times Union Center to clinch their second consecutive MAAC title and the eighth NCAA Tournament berth in program history. It was the third straight matchup between the rivals in the MAAC Championship Game, and Manhattan has now won the last two after Iona took the title in 2013. The Jaspers became the first team to repeat as MAAC champions since Siena won three in a row from 2008-10. This is the second time that Manhattan has won back-to-back MAAC crowns. The Jaspers also did so in 2003-04. MAAC Tournament Most Outstanding Player Ashton Pankey (6'10''-F) (Jr., Bronx, N.Y. / Maryland) finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks, while All-Tournament Team selection Emmy Andujar (6'6''-F-93) (Sr., Bronx, N.Y. / Rice) also had a double-double with 18 points and 11 boards to go along with four assists. All-Tournament Team member Shane Richards (6'5''-F-94) (Jr., New York, N.Y. / York Prep) added 11 points and eight rebounds while Donovan Kates (6'6''-G-93) (Sr., Hopkinsville, Ky. / Christian County) tallied 13 points. Rashawn Stores (5'11''-PG-91) (Sr., Bronx, N.Y. / Robinson School (N.J.)) notched nine points and handed out a game-high five assists. The Jaspers shot 43.3 percent (26-of-60) from the field and outrebounded the Gaels 41-34. Manhattan shot 40.9 percent (9-of-22) from three-point range and 64.3 percent (18-of-28) at the free throw line. All-Tournament Team choice David Laury (6'9''-F) had a game-high 24 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for Iona. Kelvin Amayo (6'4''-G) also had a double-double for the Gaels, posting 11 points and 10 boards to go along with four assists. Schadrac Casimir (5'10''-PG) and A.J. English (6'4''-G), who was also named to the All-Tournament Team, contributed 10 points apiece for Iona. The Gaels shot 39 percent (23-of-59) from the floor and 75 percent (18-of-24) at the charity stripe. Iona, which entered the contest ranked fourth nationally in three-pointers and seventh in three-point percentage, was held to just 22.7 percent (5-of-22) from beyond the arc. Iona scored the first four points of the contest, but that would turn out to be the Gaels' largest lead of the game. The Jaspers quickly rallied to tie the score at 7-7, then went up 10-7 on the first of Kates' four three-pointers on the night. After Manhattan opened up a five-point lead at 16-11 on an Andujar layup with 14:38 left in the first half, Iona went on a 9-3 run to go back in front, 20-19, at the 10:04 mark. However, a layup and free throw by Stores on the next possession made it 22-20 Manhattan, and Stores then sank a trey to push the Jaspers' lead to five, 25-20. After a bucket by Iona's Jeylani Dublin (6'6''-F), Manhattan rattled off 13 of the next 18 points to open up its biggest cushion of the game, a 38-27 advantage with 4:05 left before halftime. The Gaels closed the half on a 10-1 run, though, as English scored eight points in the final 1:53 to cut the Jaspers' lead to two, 39-37, at the break. The Jaspers extended the margin to seven at 49-42, but Iona responded with eight straight points to take a 50-49 lead. The teams then traded baskets before Pankey hit a jumper and a pair of free throws to put Manhattan up 58-54. It was tied at 60-60 at the 6:39 mark when Richards drained two foul shots to give the Jaspers the lead for good. After an Andujar layup made it 64-60, Laury converted a traditional three-point play to again pull Iona within one at 64-63. However, a Kates trey on the other end started a 10-3 rally that broke the game open. The Jaspers built an 11-point cushion, 77-66, on two Pankey free throws with 23 seconds left. Pankey then closed out the scoring with two more foul shots before the final five seconds of Manhattan's 79-69 triumph ticked off the clock. With the win, the Jaspers became the seventh team to lock up their place in this year's NCAA Tournament field.
All-Tournament MVP: Ashton Pankey (6'10''-F) of Manhattan Player of the Year: David Laury (6'9''-F) of Iona Defensive Player of the Year: Ousmane Drame (6'9''-F) of Quinnipiac Rookie of the Year: Schadrac Casimir (5'10''-PG) of Iona Co-Sixth Player of the Year: Andrew Nicholas (6'6''-G-93) of Monmouth Co-Sixth Player of the Year: Zedric Sadler (6'3''-G) of Rider Coach of the Year: Kevin Baggett of Rider
Masiello
