jimmy patsos – Rush The Court

O26 Programs on the Rise: Eight Teams Poised to Break Out

Tommy Lemoine — Fri, 28 Oct 2016 15:01:33 +0000

On Monday, we brought you a list of under-the-radar O26 players primed for big seasons in 2016-17. This time around, we’re examining several programs on the cusp of making serious moves upward, either within their respective conferences or on the postseason stage.

Cal State Northridge – 2015-16 Record: 10-20 (5-11 Big West): Cal State Northridge (CSUN) may not have been very good last season, but it was certainly better after Kendall Smith became eligible in December. The UNLV transfer led the club in scoring (15.3 PPG) and was among the league’s best at drawing fouls. He, along with the team’s next [...]

Fright Club: The O26 All Hallows’ Eve Team

Tommy Lemoine — Fri, 31 Oct 2014 16:01:35 +0000

With Halloween upon us, it’s only natural that we examine the spookiest, scariest, creepiest, crawliest, most fear-inducing hoopsters in the O26 world. WARNING – you may experience nightmares, especially if none of these guys play for your school.

Siena’s Jimmy Patsos coaches our All Hallows’ Eve team. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union)

‘The Robbin’ Goblin’

Briante Weber – PG – Virginia Commonwealth. Weber is arguably the most terrifying player in college basketball. Over his first three years in Richmond, the 6’2’’ guard has consistently and relentlessly harassed opposing ball-handlers to the point that Phil Martelli hailed him as the best defender in the country last March. Not [...]

Conference Tournament Primer: Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference

Tommy Lemoine — Thu, 06 Mar 2014 16:31:25 +0000

Day four of Championship Fortnight means three more conferences tipping off today, so what better way to get you through the next two weeks of games than to break down each of the Other 26′s conference tournaments. Today, the MAAC, MVC and WCC get started.

Dates: March 6, 8-10 Site: MassMutual Center (Springfield, MA)

What to expect: The highest seed has not won this tournament since 2010, but that could change this year with Iona atop the league standings. The offensive-minded Gaels have advanced to the Big Dance in each of the last two seasons – including as an at-large bid in 2012 – and look poised to make [...]

If Canisius Goes Dancing, Billy Baron Could Become the Next March Star

Tommy Lemoine — Wed, 19 Feb 2014 19:01:11 +0000

Ice Bath, and watch Stephen Curry highlights for an hour.

According to a “10 Questions With…” feature on the Canisius mens’ basketball page, that’s the sum of Billy Baron’s pregame routine. And it makes perfect sense, when you think about it. An ice bath for the ice water that runs through his veins — evident from the game-winning shots he so often takes, and hits — and the Curry highlights to remind him of just how captivating a player he can be, how rare it is to possess the kind of quick-release, out-of-the-gym range he has in his arsenal. Not to mention [...]

Morning Five: 04.03.13 Edition

nvr1983 — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 11:40:34 +0000

It looks like the coaching carousel should be an opening in New Jersey pretty soon after video surfaced of Mike Rice berating players and throwing basketballs at them during several practices at Rutgers. By now pretty much every sports fan has seen it and the only question we have at this point is why Rice still has a job. When Rice was suspended for three games back in December for his behavior in practice we had no idea what could have led to that level of punishment as it appeared too harsh for something minor and too soft for something significant. [...]

2012-13 RTC Conference Primers: MAAC

Brian Goodman — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 17:44:01 +0000

Ray Floriani is the RTC correspondent for the MAAC.

Top Storylines

The Redshirts: We are not talking about individual players but a program. In the latter part of the summer, Loyola announced its intention to exit the MAAC for the Patriot League. The Greyhounds captured the postseason title this past March. Coach Jimmy Patsos has another very strong group on hand. The interesting thing is how will the last run through the MAAC affect Loyola’s play. The guess here is not too much. Caution is needed however as the MAAC contingents would love nothing to upset the Greyhounds as a ‘going away [...]

NCAA Tournament Game Analysis: Second Round — Thursday Afternoon

Brian Otskey — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 13:05:02 +0000

RTC Region correspondents Brian Otskey (East), Kevin Doyle (South), and Andrew Murawa (West) contributed to this preview.

#6 Murray State vs. #11 Colorado State – West Region Second Round (at Louisville, KY) – 12:15 PM ET on CBS

Steve Prohm Brings His One-Loss Team to the Dance (US Presswire)

Anytime you enter the NCAA Tournament with just one loss and 4-0 record over NCAA Tournament teams, you’re a big story and a threat to go deep in the tournament. That’s the situation Murray State finds itself in. The fact that they’ve got a recent history of some [...]

Bracket Prep: Creighton, Loyola (Maryland) & VCU

EJacoby — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 23:47:00 +0000

As we move through Championship Week (the second half of Championship Fortnight, of course), we’ll continue to bring you these short reviews of each of the automatic qualifiers to help you fill out your bracket next week. In this post, we’ve got the MVC, MAAC, and CAA champions ready to go…

Creighton

The Bluejays Celebrate Their First MVC Title Since 2007 (Omaha W-H/M. Miller)

Missouri Valley Champion (28-5, 17-4) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #21/#35/#24 Adjusted Scoring Margin = +10.5 Likely NCAA Seed: #5-#7

Three Bruce Pearls of Wisdom.

With Creighton’s MVC Tournament victory over Illinois State on Sunday, the Bluejays sit at 28 wins and are just one [...]

ATB: Madness Ensues During Four Classic Conference Tournament Finishes Monday Night

EJacoby — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 17:55:42 +0000

Last Night’s Lede – Not a single power conference team played on Monday night and there were only 12 total games played, yet it ended up being one of the best nights of the entire season. Why’s that? Because it was the first full night of Championship Week, in which all games taking place from here on out will come during postseason tournaments. Monday saw four conference tournament finals take place – two at 7:00 PM ET, two at 9:00 PM ET – on ESPN or ESPN2, and each game came down to the final possession. The four championships were [...]

MAAC Tournament Preview & Season Wrap-Up

rtmsf — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 15:38:59 +0000

Ray Floriani is the RTC correspondent for the MAAC and NEC conferences.

Tournament Preview

A year ago the MAAC tournament gave us a surprise with St. Peter’s coming on strong to win the title. This season Iona is the clear-cut choice. Interestingly, if Iona gets upset, the conference will be a two-bid league with the Gaels almost certain to be an at-large entry to the NCAA tournament. As it stands, Iona cutting down the nets virtually guarantees the conference one spot on Selection Sunday. Doesn’t mean there will be a lack of excitement and drama along the way.

Final Regular Season Standings

Team, MAAC record, [...]

RTC Summer Updates: MAAC

Brian Goodman — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 15:00:17 +0000

With the completion of the NBA Draft and the annual coaching and transfer carousels nearing their ends, RTC is rolling out a new series, RTC Summer Updates, to give you a crash course on each Division I conference during the summer months. Our latest update comes courtesy of our MAAC correspondent, Ray Floriani.

Reader’s Take

Take Our Poll

Summer Storylines

The MAAC should provide another interesting race for the top. Two of last year’s best programs, Iona and Fairfield, will slug it out. The Gaels were tournament runners-up to St. Peter’s while Fairfield was the conference regular [...]

Checking in on… the MAAC

Brian Goodman — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 00:12:53 +0000

Ray Floriani of College Chalk Talk is the RTC correspondent for the MAAC and NEC conferences.

A Look Back

Two conference games are in the books for every team. MAAC play will resume after the new year, but early returns show Marist undefeated. No, we are not talking about Brian Giorgis’ women’s team. The unblemished group is Chucky Martin’s club, 2-0 and after one weekend, they’ve doubled their win total of a year ago. Can they stay around and be a factor? Probably not. Suffice it to say, conference teams are now considering their trip [...]

Checking in on… the MAAC

rtmsf — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 00:50:28 +0000

Ray Floriani of College Chalktalk is the RTC correspondent for the MAAC and NEC conferences.

LYNDHURST, NJ – Virtually every MAAC team has two conference games in the books as we head into the holidays. By Christmas everyone will have played a pair as Siena hosts Rider on December 23 in a meeting of 1-0 teams with title aspirations (not just sugar plums) ‘dancing in their heads’…

Early on in league play things are shaping up as expected but it is very early. The one mark that stands out is Iona at 0-2. The Gaels, off their win [...]

Checking in on the… MAAC

rtmsf — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 00:36:12 +0000

Ray Floriani of College Chalktalk is the RTC correspondent for the MAAC and NEC Conferences.

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ – The MAAC regular season winds up on Sunday. The conference tournament will begin the latter part of next week in Albany and there is no drama or speculation on the top two seeds, even with Siena visiting Niagara this evening.

We are taking the tempo free look at the MAAC. Only conference games are figured and the EM (efficiency margin) is the vital difference between offensive and defensive points per possession.

Notes: [...]

Checking in on the… MAAC

rtmsf — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 01:43:00 +0000

Ray Floriani of College Chalktalk is the RTC correspondent for the NEC and MAAC conferences.

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ – The standings of the MAAC as of January 16th.

Siena 7-0 Fairfield 5-2 Niagara 4-2 Rider 4-2 Manhattan 3-3 Iona 3-4 Marist 3-4 St.Peter’s 2-5 Loyola 1-5 Canisius 1-6

About the only constant in the MAAC these days is Siena just keeps on posting the Ws. The Saints are off to their best start over their 19 year history in the conference. Trivia question, what conference did Siena play in prior to the MAAC ? The old North Atlantic which many of its members today [...]