All the comings and goings of MAAC men’s basketball.
Baron’s first Canisius recruiting class and coaching staff
Jermaine Johnson (Richmond, Va.) has all his paperwork in and is set to be a Griff next season. The left-handed point guard was reported to be recruited by a handful of teams in the Southern Conference while playing at St. Christopher’s School. He’s small — listed at 5-foot-10, 150 pounds — but quick. One person who saw him practice when he visited Canisius said he “makes Harold [Washington] look slow.”
Siena might not use final scholarship
Siena coach Mitch Buonaguro said today there’s a “good possibility” he won’t use the team’s final scholarship available for the 2012-13 season.
“Only if we feel (a player is) the right fit,” Buonaguro said.
Siena has been evaluating possible transfers from other Division I schools, but Buonaguro said no one has visited the campus.
The Saints have 12 players under scholarship for next season with only a single senior, forward O.D. Anosike. Siena will have 10 freshmen or sophomores on next year’s team, which gives Buonaguro less incentive to bring in another young recruit.
Fairfield, Webster Bank Arena sign five-year deal
On Thursday it was announced that Fairfield University and Webster Bank Arena came to terms on a deal that means the Stags will continue playing their home games there until the end of the 2016-17 season.
Fairfield, who prior to moving into the Bridgeport arena in 2001 played all of their home games on campus at Alumni Hall, holds an overall record of 83-53 while going 29-8 at home over the last three seasons.
Sanders putting his best foot forward leading up to NBA draft
In the short time Rakim Sanders has spent as an NBA hopeful, the Pawtucket native has learned an invaluable lesson – when opportunity knocks, it’s best to jump all in.
Fresh off spending the weekend at a draft combine in East Rutherford, N.J., at which representatives from all 30 teams were in attendance, Sanders now embarks on a vagabond tour of NBA cities scattered across the country.
According to his agent, Brian Samuels, Sanders’ workout schedule is just about filled up, a telltale sign that there’s strong interest within pro basketball’s inner sanctum with the draft on tap for June 28.
4guysinblazers interview with Kyle Downey
I’m not sure if this type of chemistry can be replicated simply because when you only have nine guys there is something unexplainable on how close everyone feels to a common goal. Every night everyone needs to play well, because if just one person didn’t, it is extremely hard to win.
Machado impresses scouts
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Former Iona point guard Scott Machado was the most impressive guard in the building Saturday when 44 draft eligible players worked out for representatives of all 30 NBA teams.
Masiello returns to his high school alma mater
KATONAH, N.Y. — Manhattan College men’s basketball coach Steve Masiello, a graduate of The Harvey School, returned to his alma mater Monday to speak to the student body at the weekly Headmaster’s Meeting.
Masiello, who graduated from Harvey in 1996 and went on to play at the University of Kentucky, was named last month as the All-Metropolitan Writer’s Association Co-Coach of the Year for his work in turning around the Manhattan basketball program. The coach spoke about “play in the game of life” telling the students to surround themselves with “people who are better” to challenge themselves.
Machado draft similarity score
This system is my answer to those tenuous connections made on the most obvious and least meaningful criteria. The idea was to create an objective method for comparing players, instead of having to rely so heavily on subjective observation. I recognize that this is largely an over-reaction which creates its own set of problems. This system is based on college statistics, and just those from the season before the player was drafted. Therefore, it doesn’t capture potential, patterns of development, personality, or athleticism; besides how they are tangentially reflected in a player’s production. What these similarity scores are meant to identify are the players who produced at the most comparable level to each draft prospect. This is merely a snapshot – at this moment in time Player A’s college production is most similar to Player B’s.
Glover joins Machado at Nets combine
One of the primary players the Nets were interested in, French guard Evan Fournier, plus one of the more recognizable names on the roster of draft hopefuls, Syracuse small forward Kris Joseph, have withdrawn from the pre-draft combine scheduled for tomorrow and Sunday in East Rutherford.
The Saints finished the 2011-12 season with the 80th highest average attendance in NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball, drawing a total of 91,128 fans for an average of 6,509.
The attendance figure is a significant dip from 2010-11′s attendance figures when the team drew 114,383 fans, in 15 games as opposed to 14 this past season, for an average of 7,626 a game, 68th in the nation.
College hoops ref DeMayo perseveres as his two battle kidney failure
They are the human piñatas of the sports world, and that’s when they’re even recognized as human beings in the first place.
They are yelled at, screamed at, their families are insulted, their eyesight and their integrity are called into question almost every time they do their job.
On a good night, they go unnoticed.
Of course, we would have sports mayhem without refs, or officials, or whatever you want to call them. And man, they’ve been called some things that would make a crime-family hit man blush.
But those guys in blue or stripes also have hearts that beat, eyes that tear and families they love. When one of them hurts, they all hurt.
The NCAA is examining transfer rules after a spate of high-profile cases that has critics saying too much power is in the hands of athletic directors and coaches.
The issue came to the forefront in men’s basketball over the winter when 7-foot center Todd O’Brien went public with St. Joseph’s coach Phil Martelli’s decision to block his transfer to UAB. Neither Martelli nor school officials have said why.
Elsewhere, Jarrod Uthoff said he had restrictions placed on where he could transfer by Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan before he was allowed to go anywhere outside the Big Ten. Florida International’s Dominique Ferguson said he was flatly denied when he requested a scholarship release following the firing of coach Isiah Thomas, and he declared for the NBA draft rather than go back to FIU.
Basketball rules committees address court surface issues
Citing temporary decals and logos that may cause players to slip, the Men’s and Women’s Basketball Rules Committees are recommending a rules change that requires the court be “of a consistent surface” so student-athlete safety is not compromised.
The committees believe most surfaces already are in compliance, but no rule exists requiring a consistent surface. In some cases, temporary decals can create a difference on the floor that may cause players to lose their footing.
All rules proposal must be approved by the Playing Rules Oversight Panel, which is scheduled to meet via conference call June 12.
SUNY Binghamton targets Tommy Dempsey for vacant head coaching position
LAWRENCE – Has Tommy Dempsey coached his final basketball game for Rider University?
The Broncs’ head coach acknowledged Thursday that he has spoken with Binghamton University and its athletic director, Patrick Elliott, about the Bearcats’ vacant coaching position.
Former Greyhound Lacy honored by the Baltimore Sun
Lacy was a forward for the Loyola men’s basketball team during the 1943-44 season and then again from 1946-49. He was the first player in college history to top 2,000 points, even though his career was interrupted by a hitch in the Navy during World War II. He still holds the all-time school record with 2,199 points, set in 1949, before the advent of shot clocks and 3-point baskets. He also led Loyola to an upset of Seton Hall (18-0), then the nation’s No. 1 team.
Site’s report on Anosike doesn’t make sense
Warning … Be careful where you get your MAAC information.
College Basketball’s Bleacher Report recently posted a list of the top 15 rebounders from this past season returning for 2012-13.
Here’s what the site(the report is written by an individual who, clearly, has very little knowledge of MAAC teams) had to say about Siena’s O.D. Anosike, who led all Division I players last season with 12.5 rebounds per game:
Manhattan Report: Good year, more ahead
Tough to see classy, nice guy head coach Barry Rohrssen forced out after a 6-25 injury plagued 2010-11 season. But, his replacement, Steve Masiello, was a welcome and energetic force who promised to change the culture of his program, promised to bring winning back to the once-proud program … and delivered in a big way. The Jaspers’ 21 victories marked a 15-victory improvement off the previous year, the best jump in wins of any team on the Division I level.
Fairfield Report: Transition continues
Much was expected of Fairfield, but it took the Stags time to deliver. That, though, was understandable considering all the transition. Former coach Ed Cooley moved on to Providence after the 2010-11 season, meaning Fairfield not only had to adjust to a new coach (Sydney Johnson), but a new playing style (a Princeton-type offense), some new players (transfers Rakim Sanders and Desmond Wade became eligible for the recently concluded season) and a roster of returnees all brought in to play Cooley’s style.
Seton Hall reportedly adds Iona transfer Kyle Smyth
Kyle Smyth, a 6-4 guard who last month announced his intent to transfer from Iona, has committed to Seton Hall, according to J.P. Pelzman of The Record.
Smyth averaged 5.7 points and two rebounds per game last year for an Iona team that finished 25-8 and lost in the NCAA tournament to BYU.
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