The comings and goings of Metro-Atlantic Athletic men’s basketball.
Beamon and Cline earn weekly honors
George Beamon averaged 24.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals per contest in the Jaspers’ two games last week. He shot 64.0% (16-25) from the field and 81.3% (13-16) at the free throw line. After missing the first two games of the season with an injury, Beamon made a seamless transition back into the starting line up to lead Manhattan to its first victory of the year on Wednesday against Hofstra. He exploded for a game-high 29 points with 7 rebounds, while shooting 10-for-15 (66.7%) from the field and 7-for-10 (70%) at the free throw line. It was his 19th career 20+ point performance. Then on Saturday at Atlantic 10 power Dayton, the third 2012 postseason participant the Jaspers have met on the road this season, Beamon delivered his 50th straight double-digit scoring performance, finishing with a team-high 19 points. The Roslyn, N.Y. native shot 6-for-10 (60%) from the field and was a perfect 6-for-6 at the free-throw line. He grabbed 4 rebounds, handed out 3 assists and made 3 steals against the Flyers. Beamon advanced to 16th place on Manhattan’s career scoring list last week with 1,258 points to date.
Cormier and Olson spur Loyola over Towson
BALTIMORE – Dylon Cormier and Robert Olson combined for 34 points, and Loyola University Maryland held Towson University to 32-percent shooting, as the Greyhounds defeated the Tigers, 65-53, in non-conference action on Monday night in Reitz Arena.
Olson hit four first-half 3-pointers and went into the locker room with 12 points, while Cormier scored 12 of his 19 in the second half. Earlier in the day, the Greyhounds were ranked in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 for the first time this season, checking in at No. 21.
Canisius rumbles past Buffalo
BUFFALO, NY — Five Canisius College players scored in double figures, led by junior Billy Baron and his team-high 18 points, and the Golden Griffins were able to turn 24 Buffalo turnovers into 27 points as Canisius improved to 3-0 on the year with a 71-64 victory over the visiting Bulls Tuesday night in front of a sellout crowd in the Koessler Athletic Center. Buffalo dropped its third straight overall and is now 1-5 on the season.
Stan Van Gundy to speak at Canisius Cage Club
The Canisius College Athletic Department has announced that former NBA head coach and Canisius men’s basketball assistant coach Stan Van Gundy will be speaking at the Cage Club Luncheon Dec. 4, at the Hyatt Regency Buffalo, located at Two Fountain Plaza in downtown Buffalo. The event will run from 12-1:30 p.m.
Niagara falls to St. Bonaventure in Thanksgiving Throwdown
ROCHESTER, N.Y. – A couple of last-minute free throws denied the Niagara Purple Eagles a win over Little 3 rival St. Bonaventure, 80-75, on Saturday at the Blue Cross Arena.
The Purple Eagles (2-3), who entered the game having won eight of the last nine in the series, were locked with St. Bonaventure (3-1) at 75-75 with 58 seconds left. NU had trailed by six with three minutes left, but an 8-2 run, capped by a 3-pointer by Antoine Mason, tied the game at 75-75.
Siena to compete in 2013 Old Spice Classic
All eight teams are confirmed for the 2013 Old Spice Classic, to be held Thanksgiving weekend, Thursday, Friday and Sunday, Nov. 28, 29 & Dec. 1, at the HP Field House at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando, Fla.
Brookins stars in return
In the end, it was worth the wait. Rakeem Brookins made a triumphant return to Siena’s active rotation Saturday night, draining a tough fadeaway from just inside the 3-point line with 3.9 seconds left that broke a 52-52 tie and lifted the Saints to a 56-52 victory over Northern Kentucky in San Diego.
Manhattan rallies past Hofstra in home opener
RIVERDALE, N.Y. – The Manhattan men’s basketball team did not disappoint the Jasper faithful in its home opener on Wednesday earning a 67-56 victory over Hofstra (3-3). Senior guard George Beamon made a splash in his season debut scoring a game-high 29 points, despite coming off an injury that sidelined him for the first two contests. Manhattan junior forward Rhamel Brown shot a perfect 7-for-7 from the field for 15 points, while junior point guard Michael Alvarado added 12 points to snap the Pride’s three-game win streak.
Iona falls to UIC
ST. THOMAS, USVI – The Iona College men’s basketball team dropped an 86-81 decision to the University of Illinois-Chicago in its final contest at the 2012 Ezybonds Global Payments USVI Paradise Jam. By virtue of the loss, the Gaels (2-2) finished sixth in the tournament.
Bowie honored as student-athlete of the week
EDISON, N.J. — The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) has honored Marist men’s basketball junior forward Jay Bowie (Tampa, Fla.) as its male student-athlete of the week.
Marist earns historic victory over Vanderbilt
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – One day after suffering a substantial loss to a strong West Virginia squad, the Marist Men’s Basketball team came out with monumental response. Instead of wallowing on a sub-par performance, the Red Foxes put together 40 minutes of hard-nosed basketball and earned their first-ever win over an SEC team with a program-low 33 points allowed in its 50-33 win versus Vanderbilt on Friday in the second round of the Old Spice Classic. Senior Devin Price (Inglewood, Calif.) and sophomore Isaiah Morton (Vineland, N.J.) led the Red Foxes’ offensive efforts with 13 points a piece.
Siena Has Talent, Needs Experience
2011-12 RESULT: 8-10 in MAAC play, 14-17 overall. Defeated Manhattan, 82-80, in overtime of the MAAC tournament’s quarterfinal round. Lost to Loyola, 70-60, in the semifinal round.
KEY RETURNEES: 6-8 senior forward O.D. Anosike (15.0 points, 12.5 rebounds per game last season), 5-8 sophomore guard Evan Hymes (13.4), 6-5 sophomore forward Rob Poole (7.0, 3.3), 5-9 sophomore guard Rakeem Brookins (9.0 in the 2010-11 season; sat out last season with a back injury).
KEY LOSSES: Guard Kyle Downey (13.3), forward Owen Wignot (7.3), forward Brandon Walters (6.8, 6.0).
Mihalich’s Mom Loses Lengthy Bout With Cancer
Say a prayer in remembrance of Dolores Mihalich, the mom of Niagara coach Joe Mihalich, who passed away at age 88 on Wednesday after a lengthy bout with colon cancer.
Mrs. Mihalich became a wonderful story line in 2005 when her son revealed that she was battling the disease and that he hoped to give her an emotional lift with his team’s success.
End the charade: let athletes major in sports
That collegiate sports is tainted by chicanery and a host of moral dilemmas is nothing new. Rarely does a week pass without some embarrassing deviance being uncovered and scrutinized by the ever-vigilant news media. A steady stream of scandalous disclosures depicting illicit communications and relationships among athletes, agents, and coaches, not to mention forced resignations, expulsions, and sanctions, reveals deep dysfunction in college athletics.
How to save college basketball
THE SPORT OF college basketball is now a dumpster fire. The smoke can be seen rising over Los Angeles and Memphis and Bloomington, over Durham and Chapel Hill and even Lexington. At the highest levels, the game has devolved into a mere showcase for its top players, whose coaches allow them the freedom to display their individual awesomeness at the expense of the team. And I realize this makes me sound a bit like a right-winger, but the sport suffers from a crippling culture of entitlement that begins when players are barely out of grade school. That’s because college basketball’s values are now relentlessly commercial. The game has become an ersatz version of the NBA, professionalized for all the wrong reasons.
MAAC teams take to the road in late November
MAAC teams have been playing plenty of road and neutral site games during the past two weeks. Siena and Iona traveled long distances to play three games in four days. Siena went to San Diego and Iona went to St. Thomas for the Paradise Jam. While Canisius, off to their best start since 2000-01, went out to the road for the first time Saturday at Stony Brook.
The Saints played three games as part of the NUCDF Challenge, falling to Cal State Northridge and San Diego while squeaking out a win over Northern Kentucky who is in their first year of Division I play.
#Purpnation #NUMBB starters for today’s game: Juan’ya Green, Antoine Mason, Marvin Jordan, Ameen Tanksley and Joe Thomas
— Aaron M Smith (@PicknSplinters) November 24, 2012
How do you erase a 24-9 rebounding advantage? Have a 15-2 advantage in points off turnovers #Griffs lead 40-38 #UBBulls #Big4hoops
— Aaron M Smith (@PicknSplinters) November 21, 2012
Stony Brook, remember, was 22-10 last year (14-2 America East), just missed the tournament and has already beat Marist and Rider this year.
— Nick Veronica (@NickVeronica) November 24, 2012
Man it’s fun watching a guy who’s 6-10 snatch rebounds. …And a point guy who can distribute with one hand and not throw it away
— Nick Veronica (@NickVeronica) November 21, 2012
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