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2020–21 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference men's basketball season

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2020–21 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference men's basketball season
LeagueNCAA Division I
SportBasketball
DurationNovember 25, 2020–March 20, 2021
Number of teams11
Regular Season
Regular season co-championsSiena Saints &
Monmouth Hawks
  Runners-upSaint Peter's Peacocks &
Marist Red Foxes
Season MVPManny Camper (Siena)
Top scorerIsaiah Ross (Iona) 18.4
2021 MAAC Tournament
ChampionsIona Gaels (13th)
  Runners-upFairfield Stags
Finals MVPAsante Gist (Iona)
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference men's basketball seasons
2020–21 MAAC men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Siena 12 – 4   .750 12 – 5   .706
Monmouth 12 – 6   .667 12 – 8   .600
Saint Peter's 10 – 8   .556 14 – 11   .560
Marist 10 – 8   .556 12 – 9   .571
Niagara 7 – 9   .438 9 – 11   .450
Canisius 7 – 5   .583 7 – 6   .538
Fairfield 7 – 11   .389 10 – 17   .370
Quinnipiac 7 – 10   .412 9 – 13   .409
Iona † 6 – 3   .667 12 – 6   .667
Manhattan 6 – 12   .333 7 – 13   .350
Rider 5 – 13   .278 6 – 17   .261
Note: The MAAC has ordered standings based on league wins, not winning percentage, since all teams did not reach 20 conference games played. These standings were also used for seeding purposes in the 2021 MAAC tournament.[1][2]
† 2021 MAAC tournament winner


The 2020–21 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) men's basketball season began with practices in October 2020, followed by the start of the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season on November 25. Conference play started in December and concluded in March 2021. This season was the 40th season of MAAC basketball.

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, the MAAC revised their scheduling policy for conference games as follows:[3]

  • A 20-game double round robin conference schedule with five home series and five away series for each team.
  • A Friday/Saturday playing schedule at the same venue for both games, with 24 hours of spacing between the two contests. The men’s and women’s schedules will mirror each other so that the women’s program may be playing a team for a 2-game home series, with the men’s program playing the same opponent on the road - and vice versa in subsequent weeks.
  • Make up week retained for the second to last week of the season.
  • The use of the same officiating crew for both games of a series, when possible.
  • When teams are traveling, only institutional staff and student-athletes that are designated as Tier 1, along with Tier 2 Presidents, Athletic Directors, Senior Woman Administrators and key conference staff members are permitted entrance to a team’s facility.
  • Retained a ban on fan attendance at venues through December.
  • Approved the threshold for the minimum number of players available for the game to be contested as 8 counter (scholarship) players and at least one coach.

The 2021 MAAC tournament was held from March 8 through March 13 at the Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey for the second year in a row. For this season, since it was official that not all MAAC teams would reach the originally scheduled 20 conference game mark, team seeding in the tournament was based on overall conference regular season wins – not including any third games scheduled between teams in lieu of non-conference opponents. A tiebreaker system to seed teams with identical conference records was also used.[4]

Head Coaches

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Coaching changes

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On March 13, 2020, Tim Cluess stepped down as head coach of the Iona Gaels due to health concerns.[5] A day later, the school named former Louisville coach Rick Pitino the Gaels' new head coach.[6]

Coaches

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Team Head coach Previous job Year at school Overall record MAAC record MAAC Tournament championships
Canisius Reggie Witherspoon Chattanooga
(asst.) 		5 66–65 43–33 0
Fairfield Jay Young Rutgers
(asst.) 		2 12–20 8–12 0
Iona Rick Pitino Louisville 1 0–0 0–0 0
Manhattan Steve Masiello Louisville
(asst.) 		10 140–149 88–84 2
Marist John Dunne Saint Peter's 3 19–42 13–25 1
Monmouth King Rice Vanderbilt
(asst.) 		10 149–146 82–54 0
Niagara Greg Paulus George Washington
(asst.) 		2 12–20 9–11 0
Quinnipiac Baker Dunleavy Villanova
(asst.) 		4 43–51 28–28 0
Rider Kevin Baggett Rider
(assoc. HC) 		9 141–116 92–62 0
Saint Peter's Shaheen Holloway Seton Hall
(asst.) 		3 28–34 20–18 0
Siena Carmen Maciariello Siena
(asst.) 		2 20–10 15–5 0

Notes:

  • All records, appearances, titles, etc. are from time with current school only.
  • Year at school includes 2020–21 season.
  • Overall and MAAC records are from time at current school and are before the beginning of the 2020–21 season.
  • Previous jobs are head coaching jobs unless otherwise noted.

Preseason

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Preseason Coaches Poll

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Rank Team [7]
1. Siena (11)
2. Iona
T3. Monmouth
T3. Saint Peter's
5. Manhattan
6. Niagara
7. Quinnipiac
8. Fairfield
9. Marist
10. Canisius
11. Rider

( ) first place votes

Preseason All-MAAC teams

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2020-21 MAAC Men's Basketball Preseason All-MAAC Teams [7]
First Team Second Team Third Team
  • Majesty Brandon – Canisius
  • Asante Gist – Iona
  • Isaiah Ross – Iona
  • Warren Williams – Manhattan
  • Tyrese Williams – Quinnipiac
  • Jesus Cruz – Fairfield
  • Raheem Solomon – Niagara
  • Jacob Rigoni – Quinnipiac
  • Daryl Banks – Saint Peter's
  • Doug Edert – Saint Peter's

† denotes unanimous selection

Preseason Player of the Year

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Recipient School
†Jalen Pickett Siena

MAAC Regular Season

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Conference matrix

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This table summarizes the final head-to-head results between teams in conference play.

  Canisius Fairfield Iona Manhattan Marist Monmouth Niagara Quinnipiac Rider Saint Peter's Siena
vs. Canisius 1–1 1–1 2–0 0–2 0–2 1–1
vs. Fairfield 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–0
vs. Iona 1–1 1–1 0–2 1–0 0–2
vs. Manhattan 1–1 1–1 2–0 2–0 0–2 1–1 1–1 2–0 2–0
vs. Marist 1–1 1–1 0–2 2–0 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 1–1
vs. Monmouth 0–2 2–0 0–2 0–2 1–1 0–2 0–2 1–1 2–0
vs. Niagara 0–2 2–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–1
vs. Quinnipiac 2–0 1–1 0–1 1–1 2–0 2–0 1–1 0–2 1–1
vs. Rider 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 2–0
vs. Saint Peter's 2–0 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 1–1
vs. Siena 1–1 0–2 0–2 1–1 0–2 1–1 0–2 1–1
Total 7–5 7–11 6–3 6–12 10–8 12–6 7–9 7–10 5–13 10–8 12–4

Player of the week

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Throughout the regular season, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference offices named player(s) of the week and rookie(s) of the week.[8]

Week Player of the week Rookie of the week
November 30, 2020 Fousseyni Drame, Saint Peter's Tymu Chenery, Quinnipiac
December 7, 2020 Isaiah Ross, Iona Nelly Junior Joseph, Iona
December 14, 2020 Ant Nelson, Manhattan Hakim Byrd, Marist
December 21, 2020 Isaiah Ross (2), Iona Nelly Junior Joseph (2), Iona
December 28, 2020 Isaiah Ross (3), Iona Nelly Junior Joseph (3), Iona
January 4, 2021 Marcus Hammond, Niagara Ricardo Wright, Marist
January 11, 2021 Manny Camper, Siena Aidan Carpenter, Siena
January 18, 2021 Jordan King, Siena Colin Golson, Jr., Siena
January 25, 2021 Dwight Murray, Jr., Rider Ricardo Wright (2), Marist
February 1, 2021 Kobi Nwandu, Niagara Ricardo Wright (3), Marist
February 8, 2021 Melik Martin, Monmouth Luis Kortright, Quinnipiac
February 15, 2021 Elijah Buchanan, Manhattan Nelly Junior Joseph (4), Iona
February 22, 2021 Malek Green, Canisius Luis Kortright (2), Quinnipiac
March 1, 2021 Manny Camper (2), Siena Luis Kortright (3), Quinnipiac
March 8, 2021 Jalen Pickett, Siena Ricardo Wright (4), Marist

Records against other conferences

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Records against non-conference foes for the 2020–21 season. Records shown for regular season only.

Power 7 Conferences[9] Record
American 0–0
ACC 0–2
Big East 0–5
Big Ten –––
Big 12 –––
Pac-12 –––
SEC –––
Power 7 Total 0–7
Other NCAA Division I Conferences Record
America East 5–4
A-10 1–0
ASUN –––
Big Sky –––
Big South –––
Big West –––
CAA 1–3
C-USA –––
Horizon League –––
Ivy League –––
MAC –––
MEAC 2–1
MVC –––
Mountain West –––
NEC 2–1
OVC –––
Patriot League –––
Pacific West –––
SoCon –––
Southland –––
SWAC –––
The Summit –––
Sun Belt –––
WAC –––
WCC –––
Other Division I Total 11–9
NCAA Division I Total 11–16

Postseason

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MAAC Tournament

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Main article: 2021 MAAC men's basketball tournament
First Round
Monday/Tuesday, March 8/9 		Quarterfinals
Wednesday/Thursday, March 10/11 		Semifinals
Friday, March 12 		Championship
Saturday, March 13
            
1 Siena 52
9 Iona 55
8 Quinnipiac 48
9 Iona 72
9 Iona 70
5 Niagara 64
4 Marist 62
5 Niagara 67
9 Iona 60
7 Fairfield 51
2 Monmouth 60
7 Fairfield 79
7 Fairfield 59*
10 Manhattan 58
7 Fairfield 52
3 Saint Peter's 47
3 Saint Peter's 75
11 Rider 58
6 Canisius 76
11 Rider 78

* denotes number of overtimes

NCAA Tournament

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Main article: 2021 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
Seed Region School 1st Round
15 East Iona[10] L 55–68 vs. (2) Alabama – (Hinkle Fieldhouse|Indianapolis, IN

Game summary

March 20, 2021
4:00 pm
No. 15 Iona 55, No. 2 #5 Alabama 68
Scoring by half: 32–33, 23–35
Pts: Ross – 19
Rebs: Jr. Joseph – 6
Asts: 3 tied – 2
JeanLouis – 6 pts, 4 blk; Jr. Joseph – 6 pts, 3 blk		 Pts: H. Jones – 20
Rebs: Petty, Jr. – 7
Asts: Ellis – 3
Quinerly – 11 pts, 3 reb, 2 ast
NCAA tournament first round
Hinkle Fieldhouse
Indianapolis, IN
Attendance:  
Referees: Bo Boroski, Bill Covington, Todd Austin

Honors and awards

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MAAC Awards

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2020-21 MAAC Men's Basketball Major Individual Awards [11][12]
Award Recipient(s)
Player of the Year Manny Camper, Sr, G Siena
Coach of the Year King Rice, Monmouth
Rookie of the Year Nelly Junior Joseph, F, Iona
Defensive Player of the Year KC Ndefo, Jr, G, Saint Peter's
Sixth Player of the Year Malek Green, Jr, F, Canisius
2020-21 MAAC Men's Basketball All-Conference Teams[13][14]
First Team Second Team Third Team Rookie Team
  • †Manny Camper, Sr, G, Siena
  • †Deion Hammond, Sr, G, Monmouth
  • †KC Ndefo, Jr, G, Saint Peter's
  • Jalen Pickett, Jr, G, Siena
  • †Isaiah Ross, Sr, G, Iona
  • Marcus Hammond, Jr, G, Niagara
  • Dwight Murray, Jr., Jr, G, Rider
  • Kobi Nwandu, Sr, F, Niagara
  • George Papas, Sr, G, Monmouth
  • Jacob Rigoni, Sr, F, Quinnipiac
  • Darryl Banks III, So, G, Saint Peter's
  • Malek Green, Jr, F, Canisius
  • Jordan King, So, G, Siena
  • Melik Martin, Sr, F, Monmouth
  • Ant Nelson, Jr, G, Manhattan
  • Warren Williams, Jr, F, Manhattan
  • Hakim Byrd, Fr, G, Marist
  • †Tymu Chenery, Fr, G/F, Quinnipiac
  • †Nelly Junior Joseph, Fr, F, Iona
  • †Luis Kortright, Fr, G, Quinnipiac
  • †Ricardo Wright, Fr, G, Marist

† denotes unanimous selection

All-MAAC tournament team

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2021 MAAC Men's Basketball All-Championship Team[15]
  • Raheem Solomon, Niagara
  • KC Ndefo, Saint Peter's
  • Jake Wojcik, Fairfield
  • Taj Benning, Fairfield
  • Berrick Jeanlouis, Iona
  • Isaiah Ross, Iona
  • MVP Asante Gist, Iona

2020–21 Season statistic leaders

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Completed for 2020–21 season [16][17]

Individual statistic NCAA Top 100 leaders

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Scoring

  • Isaiah Ross, Iona (18.4/game): 57th

Rebounding

  • Manny Camper, Siena (9.7/game): 22nd

Field Goal Percentage (minimum avg 5 made per game)

  • KC Ndefo, Saint Peter's (127–252 .504): 82nd

Assists per game

  • Jalen Pickett, Siena (4.8/game): 57th

Blocks per game

  • KC Ndefo, Saint Peter's (3.64/game): 1st (3rd in total blocks)
  • Seth Pinkney, Quinnipiac (2.32/game): 22nd
  • Jordan Jones, Marist (1.90/game): 39th
  • Nelly Jr. Joseph, Iona (1.61/game): 65th
  • Warren Williams, Manhattan (1.60/game): 68th

Free Throw Percentage (minimum avg 2.5 made per game)

  • Asante Gist, Iona (74–83 .891): 16th
  • Dwight Murray, Jr., Rider (67–78 .859): 49th
  • Jacob Rigoni, Quinnipiac (65–76 .855): 53rd
  • Jake Wojcik, Fairfield (76–89 .853): 57th
  • Taj Benning, Fairfield (74–88 .840): 80th

Steals per game

  • Berrick JeanLouis, Iona (2.22/game): 18th
  • Miles Ruth, Monmouth (1.80/game): 66th
  • Elijah Buchanan, Manhattan (1.74/game): 76th

Three-point percentage (minimum 1.5 made per game)

  • Isaiah Ross, Iona (46–120 .383): 55th

Team statistic NCAA rankings

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of 340 Division I teams [18]

  Canisius Fairfield Iona Manhattan Marist Monmouth Niagara Quinnipiac Rider Saint Peter's Siena
Scoring/game 195 (70.4) 332 (61.8) 172 (71.3) 322 (63.4) 321 (63.4) 63 (76.0) 311 (64.7) 263 (67.5) 262 (67.5) 325 (63.2) 259 (67.6)
Defense/game 199 (71.2) 68 (66.7) 58 (66.1) 85 (67.2) 27 (63.6) 269 (74.3) 48 (65.2) 134 (69.0) 265 (74.0) 9 (61.5) 22 (63.0)
FG% 305 (.408) 323 (.398) 169 (.441) 337 (.378) 243 (.426) 260 (.422) 308 (.407) 315 (.401) 239 (.427) 317 (.400) 68 (.459)
FG% defense 254 (.452) 190 (.437) 26 (.402) 130 (.424) 11 (.391) 98 (.420) 131 (.424) 8 (.389) 284 (.462) 4 (.386) 42 (.408)
Three Point % 318 (.296) 276 (.315) 128 (.346) 339 (.264) 292 (.310) 61 (.363) 283 (.313) 240 (.323) 105 (.352) 244 (.322) 138 (.343)
Free Throw % 174 (.709) 218 (.695) 60 (.744) 290 (.665) 248 (.683) 179 (.707) 178 (.707) 236 (.687) 89 (.733) 213 (.697) 307 (.657)
Scoring margin 217 (-0.8) 276 (-4.9) 91 (5.2) 257 (-3.8) 204 (-0.2) 158 (1.7) 212 (-0.5) 224 (-1.5) 294 (-6.5) 159 (1.7) 106 (4.6)
Rebound margin 246 (-1.9) 160 (0.8) 47 (4.7) 199 (-0.6) 168 (0.4) 252 (-2.1) 307 (-4.5) 285 (-3.7) 215 (-0.8) 127 (1.8) 107 (2.3)

References

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  1. ^ "2020-21 Basketball Tiebreakers" (PDF). MAAC Sports. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  2. ^ "2020-21 Men's Basketball Standings". MAAC Sports. Retrieved February 16, 2021.
  3. ^ "MAAC Council of Presidents Revises 2020-21 Basketball Scheduling Policy for COVID-19 Impacted Season". MAAC Sports. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  4. ^ "MAAC Men's Basketball Schedule Update". MAAC Sports. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
  5. ^ "Iona's Cluess steps down to focus on health". ESPN.com. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  6. ^ "Rick Pitino returns to college hoops as Iona coach". ESPN.com. March 14, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  7. ^ a b "Siena Selected as Unanimous Men's Basketball Preseason Favorite; Jalen Pickett Named Unanimous Preseason Player of the Year". MAAC Sports. Retrieved November 5, 2020.
  8. ^ "Athlete Awards". MAAC Sports. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  9. ^ Connors, Kevin (January 6, 2022). "Loyola Chicago Ramblers lead Kevin Connors' weekly Mid-Major Top 10". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  10. ^ "Iona, Rick Pitino back in NCAA Tournament as 15-seed, will play SEC champion Alabama". lohud.com. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
  11. ^ "Siena's Manny Camper Named Player of the Year, Saint Peter's Ndefo, Canisius' Green and Iona's Joseph Take Home Awards". MAAC Sports. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  12. ^ "King Rice Named "The Rock" MAAC Coach of the Year". MAAC Sports. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  13. ^ "MAAC Announces 2020-21 Men's Basketball All-MAAC Teams". MAAC Sports. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  14. ^ "MAAC Announces 2020-21 Men's Basketball All-Rookie Team". MAAC Sports. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  15. ^ "Iona Wins the 2021 MAAC Men's Basketball Championship". MAAC Sports. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  16. ^ "2020-2021 Men's Basketball - Overall Statistics". MAAC Sports. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  17. ^ "Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Statistics". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 24, 2021.[dead link‍]
  18. ^ "NCAA College Men's Basketball DI Stats". ncaa.com. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
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