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RIVERDALE, N.Y. - Winners of a season-high four in a row and six-of-seven, Manhattan (8-8; 5-2 MAAC) will welcome Rider (11-7; 5-2 MAAC) to Draddy Gymnasium on Sunday, Jan. 18 at 2 p.m. in a game that will have far-reaching ramifications in the race of the Regular Season MAAC Championship.
TOP STORYLINES
#1 - The teams are currently part of a three-way tie for second place, one game back of Iona.
#2 - The Jaspers will be looking for their season-high fifth-straight victory and have won six-of-seven since starting 2-7.
#3 - Manhattan is a perfect 4-0 at home this season and has won seven-straight and 13-of-14 at Draddy Gymnasium dating back to last season.
QUICK HITS
* The Jaspers return home after posting a thrilling 72-65 overtime victory at Saint Peter's before a nationally televised ESPN3 audience.
* Rider leads the all-time series between the teams by a 22-21 count, including a 21-15 advantage since the Broncs joined the MAAC for the 1997-1998 campaign.
* Manhattan swept the season series a year ago, winning by an average of 16.5 points ppg and is 10-7 against Rider at home since 1997-1998.
* Senior Emmy Andujar scored a game-high 22 points while junior Shane Richards added 21 to lead the way for the Jaspers against the Peacocks.
* The performance by Andujar and Richards marked the first time this season that Manhattan each go for 20 points in the same game.
* For Andujar, it marked his fourth 20-point performance of the season and the sixth of his career.
* Andujar also grabbed five rebounds and handed out three assists while becoming the first player in school history with 1,000 points, 600 rebounds and 300 assists with his first helper of the game.
* Over two games against Saint Peter's this year, he averaged 21.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.5 steals each time out.
* He now leads the Jaspers and ranks among the league leaders in scoring (14.5-7th), rebounding (6.9-5th), assists (3.1-7th), steals (1.9-3rd), field goal percentage (.520-5th), offensive rebounds (2.5-4th) and defensive rebounds (4.3-10th).
* Richards notched at least 20 points for the fourth time this year, including the second-straight game after hitting for 22 in the win over Niagara.
* On the season, Andujar and Richards have each hit for 20 points a team-best matching four times. In those games, Manhattan is 4-0 when Richards scores at least 20 and 2-2 when Andujar hits for 20.
* Richards ranks among the MAAC leaders in scoring (13.1-13th), three pointers per game (2.8-3rd), three-point field goal percentage (.378-11th) and free throw percentage (.756-12th),
* In four career games against Rider, Richards is averaging 12.3 points per game while shooting a blistering 56.7 percent (17-for-30) from the floor, including 53.8 percent (14-for-26) from long range.
* Over his last seven games, which have included six Jasper wins, Richards is averaging 15.9 ppg - highlighted by three 20-point performances - while shooting 44.6 percent (25-for-56) from long range and 90.0 percent (18-for-20) from the line.
* Also during that time, the Jaspers are limiting opposing three-point shooters to just 27.8 percent (30-for-108) from deep while making good on 80.0 percent (52-for-65) from the line over the final five minutes.
* Manhattan's current defensive domination from behind the arc helped the squad rank 47th nationally and tops in the MAAC in three-point defense (.299).
* The Jaspers rank fifth nationally with 17.5 forced turnovers per game and has pressured the opposition into at least 16 miscues in 12 of its 16 games while also placing 49th nationally with a +2.4 turnover margin.
* Manhattan has won each of their last four games by 10 points or less and has five victories when doing so this season. Additionally, the Jaspers have held opposing three-point shooters to 20.9 percent (14-for-67) from the field, including just 16.7 percent (5-for-30) over two games against Saint Peter's.
* During the current four-game run, senior RaShawn Stores has four three pointers with less than five minutes to play while reclaiming the momentum for the Jaspers.
* Stores finished up with eight points, three assists and three steals over a career-high 37 minutes against Saint Peter's on Friday and has 21 assists, against just five turnovers, over his last six games. Additionally, during MAAC play, he has 15 assists and just four turnovers.
* On Friday in Jersey City, Manhattan won for just the second time this season on the road, when trailing at the half and when playing on an ESPN network.
* Masiello is now 9-0, all-time, against Saint Peter's since assuming the head coaching reigns in 2011-2012 and was 7-2 against the Peacocks as an assistant during his first tenure in Riverdale.
* He is also 8-0 in the state of New Jersey and will have two more games in the Garden State this season.
* During their current nine-game winning streak against the Peacocks, the Jaspers have been victorious by an average of 12.8 ppg while holding Saint Peter's to less than 70 points in each game.
* Lost amidst the Andujar and Richards show in Jersey City was the play of former St. Anthony standout Ashton Pankey. After failing to score or grab a rebound in the first half, the former Friar had eight points and five rebounds after halftime - highlighted by a pair of offensive rebounds that led to four second-chance points.
* Pankey ranks among the MAAC leaders in points (10.9 ppg-20th), rebounds (6.4-9th), offensive rebounds (2.3-8th), defensive rebounds (4.2-12th), field goal percentage (.504-7th) and blocks (1.1-9th).
* The trio of Andujar, Pankey and Richards have notched double-figures in scoring in the same game twice this season while accounting for 28 of the Jaspers' 37 double-figure performances.
* In its last home game, an 84-75 win over Niagara, Manhattan forced a season-high matching 23 turnovers and rank fifth nationally with 17.5 forced turnovers per game.
* This year at home, the Jaspers are outscoring the opposition by 10.0 points per game, shooting 46.3 percent (94-for-203) from the floor and 71.8 percent (74-for-103) from the line while limiting opposing three-point shooters to just 25.4 percent (16-for-63).
* Leading the way at Draddy has been Andujar, who is averaging 17.0 points each time out while shooting a scorching 64.7 percent (22-for-34) from the field with Richards checks in with 14.0 points per game on 40.7 percent (11-for-27) from deep.
* Sophomore Tyler Wilson had a solid game against Canisius, finishing with six points and four assists, against just one turnover, and has now handed out at least four helpers seven times this season. Wilson continues to rank among the MAAC leaders in assists (3.0-8th), steals (1.3-12th) and assist/turnover ratio (1.3-6th).
* Manhattan will appear on the ESPN family of networks 12 times this year. The Jaspers currently have nine games slated for ESPN3, two for ESPNU and one for ESPN2.
* Senior Donovan Kates became the sixth different Jasper to miss a game this season against Morgan State. Kates (1), Stores (2), sophomore Jermaine Lawrence (4), classmate Carlton Allen (9), freshman Samson Usilo (16) and classmate Zane Waterman (5) have combined to miss 37 games this season.
* Since returning to Riverdale, Masiello has led the 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 member of three of the Jaspers' four MAAC Championship teams and five of their 12 20-win seasons while accruing a 151-83 record.
* In his 19th season as either a player or a coach, Masiello has a career collegiate record of 429-193, including 308-172 on the sidelines, with one National Title, two National Championship appearances, two Final Four appearances, six Elite Eight berths, seven conference championships, 12 NCAA Tournament appearances and 15 20-win seasons.
KEY MANHATTAN MATCH-UPS
* The Line - Manhattan hit on a season-high 84.0 percent from the line in its win over Saint Peter's and will need to continue to take advantage at the line against a Rider squad that is averaging a MAAC-low 16.8 fouls per game.
* Defense - The Jaspers have been excellent of late defensively and must not allow the Broncs to put points on the board and limit runs as Rider is allowing just 63.2 points per game, including 59.0 during league play.
* Maintain Consistency - It is no surprise that a main reason behind Manhattan's improved play has been the consistent play of Andujar, Pankey and Richards.
* Bench - The Broncs boast arguably the deepest bench of any team in the MAAC and routinely go 10-11 deep and the Jaspers will need to match their productivity.
HOME COOKING
Manhattan is a perfect 4-0 at home this year and has won seven-straight and 13-of-14 dating back to last season. Masiello is also 29-11 at Draddy since taking over as head coach. This year at home, the Jaspers are limiting the opposition to just 61.2 ppg and 41.9 percent shooting, including 25.4 percent from deep.
LOCK IT UP
Manhattan is a perfect 6-0 when leading at the half and 6-1 when holding an advantage with five minutes to play.
LAWRENCE NOTCHES CAREER-HIGH
Cincinnati transfer sophomore Jermaine Lawrence scored a career-high 11 points with five rebounds and two blocks against Niagara.
FROM THE LINE
Despite making good on just 66.6 percent from the line this year, the Jaspers converted on a season-high 84.0 percent (21-of-25) from the line against Saint Peter's and closed out the victory by making good on 90.9 percent (10-of-11) after sealing the Niagara win by converting 14-straight. Manhattan previously made good on 75.0 percent (9-of-12) over the final five minutes in the first victory against Saint Peter's, 83.3 (10-of-12) to seal the Fordham win and 80.0 percent (8-of-10 in the Morgan State victory.
HOME SWEET HOME
The Jaspers are in the midst of a six-game stretch that includes four home games after playing 11 of their first 13 games in different venues.
I FINALLY GOT THE VENUE I WANTED
Manhattan played in its 12th different venue this year when the Jaspers took the court vs. Saint Peter's at the Yanitelli Center.
SECOND-HALF IMPROVEMENT
Andujar (8.5 ppg - 5.5 ppg) and Pankey (6.8 ppg - 3.9 ppg) have improved their scoring by more than two points after halftime this season compared to the first half.
WATCH/LISTEN
For the 17th year, Manhattan Men's Basketball games will be broadcast live over the internet on leslieschultz.com. Each broadcast will begin with the Steve Masiello pregame report.
109TH SEASON OF JASPERS BASKETBALL
In its 109th season, the Manhattan men's basketball program boasts a 1316-1164 overall record and 263-277 MAAC mark in 35 seasons as a conference member.
UP NEXT
The Jaspers will play at Quinnipiac on Friday, Jan. 23 at 7 p.m. in a game that will be televised on ESPNU.
