IONA05, thanks for your take. I have to disagree with your #8, and if I were a Jasper fan I'd be very unhappy, this morning. Why do you think he kept Brown out so long?
In a perfect world, at halftime, after the unveiling of the retired number, Richie posed for pictures with his fellow Marines. In my perfect world, OT would have been in the picture.
I wasn't at the pre-game reception, but I understand that some of Richie's former teammates were in attendance, including John McIvor. A great touch. Also heard that Richie got choked up at the reception. As many others have said, RG is a great ambassador for Iona. And not just for BB.
I didn't think Masiello coached a great game, just don't think the blame should fall on him. Actually thought they made some nice adjustments at halftime and came out in a new look zone that put us into a bit of a funk for the first 5-6 minutes. Good point about leaving Brown on the bench though, hard to argue with that. Overall though didn't think he lost this game as much as our guys won it.
1. Best atmosphere in a long time (perhaps ever?) at Hynes. Now that was a college basketball environment, made you feel like you were at an event, not just a game.
2. Guerin total class act and can't think of a better ambassador for Iona than him.
3. MVP of the night is the administration, who showed the vision, commitment and creativity to give Iona fans and alumni a memory and not just a victory.
4. Sean has truly arrived as a leader, doing all the little things like diving for loose balls and drawing hard fouls, to set an example and give the team the energy it needs to win.
5. Can we appeal to the NCAA for a fifth year of eligibility for Poole? One thing I will say is that the Curtis Dennis experiment really soured me on the one year transfer projects however Poole has proven that it can work after all.
6. Only negatives in my mind were bowman - who we got nothing from, and English - who despite hitting some huge shots late, made some bad decisions and could have really cost us in some crucial spots.
7. DL3 best performance as a Gael so far in his career. Forget about the points and FT efficiency, I was most impressed with his tenacity on the boards and his will to win.
8. Didn't think Massiello coached a bad game as much as it was simply that we are the more talented team.
9. Team showed a ton of maturity to withstand the early second half run by the Jaspers and come back to blow the game open. Last two years' team would have lost this game after sustaining that blow.
10. Gomez was an unsung hero, playing meaningful minutes and bringing calm to the game when we most needed it.
Need to avoid letdown game against monnmouth now. Go Gaels!!!
Good Points, just wanted to add:
AJ had 2 turnovers and some are talking like he almost gave the game away. He played 39 minutes and his 2 threes when it was 50-50 were huge.
Worst shot of the night- Sean Armand. We were up 7 with 1:35 left in the game and Sean took a deep 3 with 30 seconds left on the 35 second clock. Not a good move at all.
Poole was unreal. Where did that offense come from?
No subs at all in second half. Coach went with who was hot and stayed with them. It just wasn't Tre's night. It happens. Again, I think the key has been that at least 3 or 4 guys are playing really well every game now.
I am a huge fan of AJ's. He definitely stepped it up in the 2nd half, but this was not a vintage AJ game. Still a bit sloppy with ballhandling in spots, a few lazy passes here and there, missed assignments on defense. He bailed us out with some huge makes down the stretch, but overall don't think he played particularly well. Good point about him playing 39 minutes, and we also need to remember he's still only a soph and is relatively new to the PG position on this team, so I guess we need to take all of that into consideration.
Totally agreed on Armand's shot with 1:35 left. Said the same thing as soon as the shot left his hands. In that particular spot seconds matter more than points. Of course, tough to knock one of the best 3 pt shooters in the country for taking a shot when he has an open look.
Believe Tre came in for about 15 secs in the 2nd half, didn't box out on the defensive end and was immediately pulled.
AJ had 2 turnovers and some are talking like he almost gave the game away. He played 39 minutes and his 2 threes when it was 50-50 were huge.
Worst shot of the night- Sean Armand. We were up 7 with 1:35 left in the game and Sean took a deep 3 with 30 seconds left on the 35 second clock. Not a good move at all.
Poole was unreal. Where did that offense come from?
No subs at all in second half. Coach went with who was hot and stayed with them. It just wasn't Tre's night. It happens. Again, I think the key has been that at least 3 or 4 guys are playing really well every game now.
I am a huge fan of AJ's. He definitely stepped it up in the 2nd half, but this was not a vintage AJ game. Still a bit sloppy with ballhandling in spots, a few lazy passes here and there, missed assignments on defense. He bailed us out with some huge makes down the stretch, but overall don't think he played particularly well. Good point about him playing 39 minutes, and we also need to remember he's still only a soph and is relatively new to the PG position on this team, so I guess we need to take all of that into consideration.
Totally agreed on Armand's shot with 1:35 left. Said the same thing as soon as the shot left his hands. In that particular spot seconds matter more than points. Of course, tough to knock one of the best 3 pt shooters in the country for taking a shot when he has an open look.
Believe Tre came in for about 15 secs in the 2nd half, didn't box out on the defensive end and was immediately pulled.
05,
Agree on AJ. Didn't see Tre come in and out, but I am sure you are right. My point on Sean, who is a very good player, is that he is touted as a great leader. That shot was not a shot that a leader would take.
I was never a fan of 1 year transfers, particularly the signing of Mike Poole who had shown little in his previous 3 years. I realize now that he was a victim of circumstances, poor use and coaching...He was a typical case of ''What might have been''...Much credit to Coach Cluess for seeing his true ability and even during some doubtful periods sticking with him...That foresight is paying off big time...IMO as Cluess career grows I realize that one of his biggest assists is patience...
We have a game tomorrow (Monmouth) that we have to approach with the same confident effort we have recently shown...We have 9 games more to go...Lets continue to show that we are the ''Class of the MAAC'', as today's N.Y.Post shows by listing us as moving up to NO. 1 in their local power poll.......
I am a huge fan of AJ's. He definitely stepped it up in the 2nd half, but this was not a vintage AJ game. Still a bit sloppy with ballhandling in spots, a few lazy passes here and there, missed assignments on defense. He bailed us out with some huge makes down the stretch, but overall don't think he played particularly well. Good point about him playing 39 minutes, and we also need to remember he's still only a soph and is relatively new to the PG position on this team, so I guess we need to take all of that into consideration.
Totally agreed on Armand's shot with 1:35 left. Said the same thing as soon as the shot left his hands. In that particular spot seconds matter more than points. Of course, tough to knock one of the best 3 pt shooters in the country for taking a shot when he has an open look.
Believe Tre came in for about 15 secs in the 2nd half, didn't box out on the defensive end and was immediately pulled.
05,
Agree on AJ. Didn't see Tre come in and out, but I am sure you are right. My point on Sean, who is a very good player, is that he is touted as a great leader. That shot was not a shot that a leader would take.
Agree it was a dumb shot (Said it at the time in the chat room) But disagree with it's relationship to his leadership. Sometimes leaders try to do too much and make bad decisions. Sean probably was thinking he could shut the door with a wide open 3. I am very impressed with Sean's leadership and his ability to quickly shake off adversity. Still was a terrible idea to take that shot.
Iona beat a top tier MAAC team with minimal contribution from AJ & Tre. We had four players carry the majority of the work load last night (DL, Sean, Poole, and IW). If we can continue to have 4 guys each game step up, we can win the conference if a couple guys are "off" that night.
The thing I love about AJ is he continues to persevere. While he struggled in the first half, you could clearly see the physical relief he experienced once that 3-pointer went down to break the 50-50 tie. ESPN had a great camera angle of his response to that made basket.
Also, as was pointed out in another post, the little things like Gomez effort and calmness in the first half should not be overlooked. The kid always makes good decisions.
Iona beat a top tier MAAC team with minimal contribution from AJ & Tre. We had four players carry the majority of the work load last night (DL, Sean, Poole, and IW). If we can continue to have 4 guys each game step up, we can win the conference if a couple guys are "off" that night.
The thing I love about AJ is he continues to persevere. While he struggled in the first half, you could clearly see the physical relief he experienced once that 3-pointer went down to break the 50-50 tie. ESPN had a great camera angle of his response to that made basket.
Also, as was pointed out in another post, the little things like Gomez effort and calmness in the first half should not be overlooked. The kid always makes good decisions.
AJ did not have a typical "AJ" game. He clearly struggled in the 1st half and while he did make those 2 3's in the 2nd half, I would suggest his contibution was minimal, based on the body of work we have seen from him over the entirety of the season. It's just my personal opinion.
AJ did not have a typical "AJ" game. He clearly struggled in the 1st half and while he did make those 2 3's in the 2nd half, I would suggest his contibution was minimal, based on the body of work we have seen from him over the entirety of the season. It's just my personal opinion.
Understand. Look at his stat line vs Sean. Almost identical. Yet AJ was minimal contribution?
As one who had a "howdy" relationship with Guerin as a student, it was thrilling to hear the kids shouting "Richie Guerin!" and making a loving, generational new connection--the Iona of quonset huts and Cardboard Coliseum connected to the dynamic school of today. Hats off to Dr. Nyre and SID and the kids!