Men's Basketball 11/18/2014 12:36:00 AM Manhattan Athletic Department

Manhattan, Massachusetts To Clash Tuesday On ESPN2 At 11 AM

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AMHERST, Mass. - Manhattan (0-1) returns to action tomorrow against Massachusetts (2-0) at 11 a.m. in a game that will be televised on ESPN2 as part of the annual ESPN Tip-Off Marathon that will feature live basketball over a 24-hour period.

TOP STORYLINES
#1 - Manhattan, which lost its opener 81-66 at Florida State, will continue play in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament event against Massachusetts, The 11 a.m. match-up will be televised on ESPN2 as part of the annual ESPN Tip-Off Marathon.

#2 - Both teams lost in the Second Round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament.

#3 - The teams will be meeting for the first time since Feb. 18, 1994 when the No. 10 Minutemen bested the Jaspers 68-54 in a game that started at midnight.

QUICK HITS
* Today's match-up is the second of a season-opening six-game road trip that will take Manhattan to five different venues and four different states.

* The Jaspers will be looking to rebound from a rare non-conference road loss to the Seminoles and were 6-1 following setbacks a year ago.

* Manhattan's last setback in a non-conference road game was at Columbia by a 69-58 score on Dec. 29, 2012.

* Head Coach Steve Masiello and his Massachusetts counterpart Derek Kellogg both led their respective programs to the NCAA Tournament last season while snapping 10-plus year droughts for the institutions.

* The teams will be meeting for the eighth time with UMass holding a 6-1 in the all-time series.

* The Jaspers will be looking to avenge a season-opening 15-point defeat at the hands of Florida State on Saturday and lost back-to-back games just once a year ago.

* Junior Shane Richards led all players with 17 points while pacing Manhattan in scoring for the ninth time in his career.

* Richards also drained three triples in the first half to move into a tie with Steve McDowell in the all-time annals with 145 three pointers. A year ago, Richards tied Jeff Xavier's single-season record of 77 a year ago. Richards transferred and finished his career at Providence under Tim Welsh.

* Manhattan made good on 4-for-7 from the floor to start the game, but finished up just 12-for-49 en route to converting on less than 30.0 percent (.286) for the first time since the 2012-2013 season.

* The Jaspers saw their 38-game streak of limiting the opposition to less than 50.0 percent shooting snapped while also losing for just the second time since the start of last season when leading by double-digits.

* Junior Ashton Pankey scored 12 of his 14 points after halftime while converting a career-high 10 free throws.

* The game was plagued a combined 65 fouls, including 35 infractions by the visitors that were one off the school-record of 36 set on two times (last-Southern Connecticut - 1963-1964).

* Senior Emmy Andujar fell just one point and one rebound short of his fifth career double-double ... He also had two assists and is just 28 shy of cracking the school's top-10 career list and is 169 points short of 1,000.

* This will be the third all-time meeting on the Massachusetts campus while the teams have also played in six different venues.

* In the team's last meeting, a rare February non-conference tilt with a Midnight tip time, current UMass staff member Lou Roe scored 14 points with seven rebound while Kellogg had six assists and four rebounds in leading the No. 10 Minutemen to a 68-54 win. Jamal Marshall scored a team-best 15 points to pace Manhattan.

* Following Tuesday's game, the Jaspers will conclude the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament this weekend with games against Binghamton and either Northeastern or Navy in Uncasville, Conn.

* The 11 a.m. match-up marks the earliest Jasper game since besting Maryland 87-84 on March 18, 2006 in the First Round of the NIT.

* Manhattan first four games and five of the Jaspers' nine non-conference games will appear on the ESPN family of networks. All told, Manhattan currently has five games slated for ESPN3 and one each for ESPN2 and ESPNU.

* This Jaspers will play eight of their nine non-conference games either on the road or in neutral venues. Last season, Manhattan won seven of those games, highlighted by a victory at SEC member South Carolina.

* Contesting arguably one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the Division I ranks, Manhattan will play six of its nine non-league games against teams from the Atlantic 10 (3), ACC (2) and Big Ten (1) while also potentially facing the CAA Preseason favorite (Northeastern).

* This marks the third-straight season that Masiello will play three A-10 schools and holds a career record of 3-4 against the league.

* The ESPN2 match-up also marks the second-ever meeting between Masiello and UMass, as the fourth-year head coach dropped a 72-68 decision while a member of the Louisville coaching staff in the 2006-2007 season.

* A year ago, Masiello and Manhattan went 2-0 when playing on ESPN2 and are 15-12 when playing on some form of the Worldwide Sports Network in the last three-plus season.

* In the annual MAAC Preseason Men's Basketball Poll, Manhattan was tabbed to finish third Andujar named to the Second Team and Pankey named to the Third Team.

* Since Masiello assumed the reigns of the program prior to the 2011-2012 season, the Jaspers have posted an 18-17 record against non-MAAC opposition, inlcuding going 14-13 away from the friendly confines of Draddy Gymnasium.

* Since returning to Riverdale, Masiello has led Manhattan to the program's fourth MAAC Championship as well as a pair of 20-plus win campaigns. In his first tenure, he was a part of two MAAC Championships and three 20-plus win seasons.

* All told, Masiello has been a part of three of the Jaspers' four MAAC championships and five of their 12 20-win seasons while accruing a combined 143-76 record.

* Now in his 19th season as either a player or a coach, Masiello has a career collegiate record of 421-186, including 300-158 on the sidelines, with one National Title, one National Championship appearance, two Final Four appearances, six Elite Eight berths, seven conference championships, 12 NCAA Tournament appearances and 15 20-win seasons.

* Manhattan will play its first 13 games in 11 different venues.

* The Jaspers ranked among the National Leaders a year ago in blocks per game (6.1-9th), steals per game (8.3-14th), winning percentage (.758-26th), scoring margin (+6.9-50th), field-goal percentage defense (.409-50th), offensive rebounds (12.6-52nd), three-point field-goal percentage (.369-68th), turnover margin (+1.42-82nd), three-point field-goal percentage defense (.327-88th) and defensive rebounds (24.8-93rd) while also ranking fourth nationally with 1,019 free throw attempts and 10th with 676 free throw makes. BOLD = led the MAAC

HISTORY LESSON
Last year all seven of Manhattan's non-conference wins came either on the road or neutral courts. This season the Jaspers will play four road and four neutral site games during their non-league match-ups.

CLOSING IT OUT
Manhattan went 20-1 when leading at halftime a year ago, including 16-1 when limiting the opposition to less than 70 points.

KEY MATCH-UPS
* Manhattan Defense - The Jaspers allowed Florida State to shoot 57.5 percent (23-for-40) from the floor in the opener and will have to improve against a Massachusetts team that is converting on 46.9 percent (45-for-96) in the early part of hte season.
* Rebounding - Manhattan outrebounded a Seminole team that featured three seven-footers and will have to control the glass against the Minutemen, which are are being outrebounded by 6.5 caroms each time out.
* Stopping The Big Four - UMass' Big Four of Maxie Esho, Trey Davis, Derrick Gordon and Cady Lalanne have accounted for 81.5 percent (135-of-166) of the team's scoring and 75.3 percent (55-of-73) of the rebounding.
* Offensive Consistency - The Jaspers converted on just 28.6 percent (16-of-56) from the floor and 32.1 percent (9-of-28) from deep and will need to improve those numbers against a Massachusetts defense that is allowing an average of 74.5 points per game.

SO HARD TO SAY GOODBYE
For the first time in Masiello's tenure on Riverdale he will not have the luxury of having the aforementioned trio of Michael Alvarado, George Beamon and Rhamel Brown at his disposal. All three notched over 1,000 points and have begun their professional careers. Beamon, a two-time MAAC First Team Selection and MAAC Championships MVP, was recently picked in the Third Round of the NBA Development League Draft by the Oklahoma City Blue while Brown, a three-time MAAC Defensive Player of the Year, is playing in Israel. Alvarado, a Third Team All-MAAC pick, played this past summer in Puerto Rico.

LENDING A HELPING HAND
While Andujar is expected to shoulder an increase in the scoring for Manhattan this season, he also has been an adept facilitator during his time in Riverdale and has 258 career assists.

MANHATTAN TABBED THIRD IN PRESEASON POLL
Defending champion Manhattan was tabbed third in the MAAC Preseason Men's Basketball Poll after receiving 97 points. Iona was selected to win with 112 points followed by Siena in second with 107 points.

MASIELLO, WILLIAMS SPOTLIGHTED BY ROTHSTEIN
Masiello was tabbed as one of “10 Coaches On The Rise” by CBS Sports personality Jon Rothstein while sophomore Rich Williams, who averaged 4.4 points and 2.2 rebounds each time out a year ago. was named as one of “20 Under-The-Radar Breakout Players.”
Masiello write-up:
“New York native may have lost an opportunity to get the South Florida job last spring, but he's still the same coach that nearly beat Rick Pitino and Louisville in last March's NCAA Tournament. Masiello has regularly talked about making his program one of the elite mid-majors in the country and he can take a step in that direction if he's able to sustain the Jaspers' success this season. Expect Manhattan to beat at least one team they're not supposed to in November and December with Masiello on the sidelines --- he's that good.”

Williams write-up:
“ If there were no jerseys or preconceived notions going into a Jaspers' practice, you'd think Williams was a BCS guard. The 6-5 guard has changed his body since the end of last season and will look to become Manhattan's alpha dog following the losses of Michael Alvarado, George Beamon and Rhamel Brown.”

INTRESTING
Masiello was also named at one of the “25 Most Intriguing Coaches” in college basketball by Yahoo.

STRANGE BUT TRUE
Masiello has twice been named as the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association Coach of the Year (2012 | 2014) but has never earned top billing from the MAAC.

MANHATTAN WELCOMES FIVE TO THE FOLD
Sophomore Jermaine Lawrence as well as freshmen Samson Akilo, Calvin Crawford, Samson Usilo and Zane Waterman will join the Jasper family for the 2014-2015 season. Lawrence, who was named as the 23rd-best transfer in the Division I ranks by ESPN's Jeff Goodman.

Lawrence Write-Up:
“He played sparingly as a freshman at Cincinnati last season, and opted to transfer closer to home and drop down a level and play for Steve Masiello at Manhattan. He received a hardship waiver and the former top 50 player should get no shortage of run for the Jaspers. He's long, athletic and skilled, a pretty good combo for success at the mid-major level.”

MEET THE STAFF
Masiello will be joined on the bench by Matt Grady, Rasheen Davis, Mike Bramucci, Stephen Elmore, Roberto Colonette, Heshimu Evans and Kidani Brutus. Grady, who is in his fourth year, and Davis, who is in his third, will serve as Associate Head Coaches while Bramucci will be an assistant coach in his second season after returning to Riverdale last year as the Director of Men's Basketball Operations. Elmore, who arrives from The Citadel, will assume Bramucci's position from a year ago while Colonette will again be the Strength & Conditioning Coach. Evans, meanwhile, joins the staff as an Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach after a 15-year professional career. Evans played two seasons at Manhattan as a collegian and two more at Kentucky where he helped the Wildcats to the 1998 NCAA National Championship. The appointment of Brutus, a former Manhattan standout like Colonette, as a Special Assistant to Masiello rounds out the coaching staff.

NEW YORK STATE OF MIND
Manhattan boasts a roster of eight New York City natives and returns two starters and five key reserves that averaged at least 10 minutes a game a year ago.

FILLING THE VOID
The Jaspers lost the trio of Alvarado, Beamon and Brown, who combined to account for 50.4 percent of the team's offense and 38.7 percent of the rebounding.

A YEAR AGO
Leading the returners is Andujar, who averaged 8.6 points and 5.3 rebounds a year ago off the bench and picked up his play down the stretch. The Bronx native averaged 13.3 points and 6.0 rebounds each time out in Manhattan's run to the league title before notching 13 against Louisville in the NCAA Tournament.

PANKEY PICKS IT UP
Pankey closed out last season in style with a team-best 16 points in just 20 minutes against Louisville. He notched 7.1 points and 4.3 rebounds each time out in his first season in Riverdale after transferring from Maryland.

RICHARDS LIGHTS IT UP FROM DOWNTOWN
Richards, the 2012-2013 MAAC Co-Rookie of the Year, averaged 8.3 points each time out en route to matching the single-season school-record with 77 three pointers and ranking fourth in the MAAC. He is curently tied for third in school history with 145 career triples.

WELCOME TO THE CLUB
Former Denver Nuggett and two-time MAAC Player of the Year Luis Flores '04 and former Manhattan, Villanova and Massachusetts head coach Steve Lappas were recently inducted to the Manhattan College Athletic Hall of Fame.

UP NEXT
The Jaspers return to action against Binghamton on Saturday, November 22 at 5:30 pm.

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