Busting Brackets
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MAAC Basketball: Iona, Canisius top seeds in 2019 conference tournament

By Pan Karalis

SACRAMENTO, CA - MARCH 17: Jon Severe #10 of the Iona Gaels shoots the ball against Jordan Bell #1 of the Oregon Ducks in the first half during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Golden 1 Center on March 17, 2017 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CA - MARCH 17: Jon Severe #10 of the Iona Gaels shoots the ball against Jordan Bell #1 of the Oregon Ducks in the first half during the first round of the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Golden 1 Center on March 17, 2017 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /
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LAS VEGAS, NV – NOVEMBER 24: Stevie Jordan #23 and Jordan Allen #2 of the Rider Broncs celebrate after the team defeated the Hampton Pirates during the championship game of the 2017 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational basketball tournament at the Orleans Arena on November 24, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Rider won 94-80. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV – NOVEMBER 24: Stevie Jordan #23 and Jordan Allen #2 of the Rider Broncs celebrate after the team defeated the Hampton Pirates during the championship game of the 2017 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational basketball tournament at the Orleans Arena on November 24, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Rider won 94-80. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images) /

Teams to watch

Iona

Going a meager 2-9 in the non-conference season, the Gaels came out of nowhere to steal the 2018-19 MAAC regular season title. Winning its last seven games after sitting at 5-6 midway through the league season, they downed Rider, Quinnipiac, and Siena, three teams that eventually finished tied a single game behind Iona, during the last two weeks of the season. The improbable title comes after returning only three players from last year’s squad, being chosen to finish third in the preseason MAAC poll, and after the drama surrounding Roland Griffin’s fight with assistant coach Garfield Johns, and his subsequent dismissal from the program.

Iona has won the last three MAAC tournaments, and five of the last seven. Their last loss in this tournament was a 79-69 loss to Manhattan in the tournament final at Times Union Center in 2015.

Rider

Rider had an incredibly disappointing 2018-19 campaign, finishing 11-7 after returning the top six scorers from last year’s team that won the regular season MAAC title. They were the unanimous pick to win the MAAC again this year. The Broncs were the streakiest team in the league, starting 7-1 in MAAC play before losing five in a row, finishing the year 4-1. Rider is probably still the deepest team in the conference, and will rely on a balanced effort to try to push them through the tougher side of the MAAC bracket. They have to face hosts Siena in the first round, who have an identical 11-7 record, and they’ll likely have to go through Iona in the semis if they get through the Saints.

Quinnipiac

The Bobcats were picked to finish second in the preseason poll, and were another team to finish with an 11-7 record. They earned the three seed based on a couple of tie-breakers, and will play either Monmouth or Niagara in the quarterfinal round. Cam Young might be the ultimate x-factor this weekend, the senior guard averaging 23 points on the season. Quinnipiac has a serious shot at advancing to their first NCAA tournament in program history

Canisius

Canisius might be the favorite as the two seed to come out of their side of the bracket and potentially challenge Iona in the title game. They’ve beaten their expected semi-final opponent Quinnipiac twice, but they have lost to Manahattan, who they may play in the quarterfinals. Like half of the league, Canisius entered the final week with a chance to win the MAAC title, but like so many other teams, suffered a tough loss late in the year to a weaker opponent to fall short.

Sleeper – Niagara

The parity in the league has produced some strange scenarios in the seeding for the tournament, from the top all the way to the bottom. The bottom of the league is just as log jammed as the rest, with the bottom three teams finishing 6-12. But due to the MAAC tiebreaking procedures, the strongest of the 6-12 teams might have gotten the 11th and final seed. The Purple Eagles had a poor record against Saint Peter’s and Fairfield, the other two 6-12 squads, but have one of the best records in the league against top half teams.

If the rest of the tournament goes chalk, Niagara will be 5-2 against the teams it would play on its way to a championship. They swept Buffalo area rival Canisius, went 1-1 against Iona and Quinnipiac, and beat Monmouth in their only meeting this season. They’re 1-4 against the major contenders from the other side of the tournament bracket, so the stars might just align for a Niagara run.