MAAC

ALBANY, N.Y.- To say that things didn't look good from a depth standpoint heading into tonight's MAAC Tournament semifinal for Rider would be an understatement. Both Ryan Thompson and Justin Robinson missed the game due to injury, but Jason Thompson showed the Times Union Center crowd why he's Player of the Year and Matt Griffin and Kamron Warner stepped up to get the Broncs a 76-71 victory over Marist.

ALBANY, N.Y.- On paper, the matchup between conference co-champion Rider and last-place Canisius looked like an absolute snoozer. The Broncs, in sweeping the Golden Griffins, won the two games in blowout fashion. The second of which was a 102-51 whipping that underscored just how bad Canisius has been all year. But a not so funny thing happened: Canisius didn't fold.

As many as six teams have a shot at automatic bid
By Raphielle Johnson

 

The Report Card

 

Tonight's battle between Marist and Fairfield went just about as expected for a game between schools tied with 9-6 league records. Double overtime, won in the end by the home-standing Stags, now winners of five straight. But how this game got to its conclusion is something that will be talked about from now until the entire conference shows up in Albany, NY for the conference tournament.

I’d be a fool not to mention the New York Giants’ 17-14 victory in Super Bowl XLII. Congratulations to the organization and all you Giants who helped this team achieve their 3-5 home record. Just kidding, enjoy the moment and the fact that just when everyone said this team couldn’t win, they went ahead and did it. Now, let’s move on to the week that was in the metropolitan area on the hardwood.

 

Team of the Week:

Rider

No one follows the team in the NYC Metropolitan area more than Raphielle Johnson. He previews the 19 local teams and ranks them throughout the season.

 

Click each link for a full preview.

 

In the era of the "superconference", more leagues are tipping off conference games in the month of December. Tonight, the MAAC, NEC, Ohio Valley and Horizon all had at least one conference game on tap. And with this being a blog on the northeast, I'll focus on the MAAC and NEC openers.

Niagara 89, Rider 77

Fairfield (13-19, 10-8)

Loyola MD (18-13, 12-6)

Rider (16-15, 9-9)

Siena (20-12, 12-6)

Other (Manhattan, Marist, Niagara, etc)

In a season that saw teams picked to finish in the middle of the MAAC when the season began compete for the regular season title, it all comes to a climax in Bridgeport, CT this weekend. Marist, preseason pick to win the conference, held up their end of the bargain in winning the conference’s regular season title, their first ever outright MAAC crown. Led by the dynamic backcourt of seniors Jared Jordan and Will Whittington, the Red Foxes went 14-4 in conference play, finishing a game ahead of streaking Niagara. The versatile Charron Fisher, a junior who averaged