MAAC PRESEASON POLL:
- Quinnipiac
- Siena
- Sacred Heart
- Manhattan
- Marist
- Iona
- Merrimack
- Fairfield
- Mount Saint Mary’s
- Rider
- Saint Peter’s
- Niagara
- Canisius
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-MAAC 1ST TEAM:
-Devin Dinkins – JR, G – Manhattan
-Will Sydnor – SO, F – Manhattan
-Amarri Monroe – SR, F – Quinnipiac (Preseason Player of the Year)
-Anquan Hill – SR, F – Sacred Heart
-Justice Shoats – SR, G – Siena
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-MAAC 2ND TEAM:
-Elijah Lewis – SR, G – Marist
-Jaden Zimmerman – SO, G – Quinnipiac
-Mekhi Conner – SO, G – Sacred Heart
-Bryce Eaton – SO, G – Saint Peter’s
-Gavin Doty – SO, G – Siena
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-MAAC 3RD TEAM:
-Deuce Turner – SR, G – Fairfield
-Jadin Collins-Roberts – JR, G – Marist
-Xavier Lipscomb – SR, G – Mount Saint Mary’s
-Zion Cruz – SR, G – Rider
-Nyle Ralph-Beyer – SO, G – Sacred Heart
COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
-Quinnipiac has won 20+ games each of the last three seasons and finished in 1st place the last two seasons under Coach Tom Pecora, but they have yet to win the MAAC Tournament and make the NCAAs. They have two key starters back this year including Amarri Monroe, who is one of the best players in the league. Asim Jones is also a quality transfer. If some other guys can step up then they could be atop the standings again.
-Siena had an unimpressive year a season ago, so I am a little surprised to see them this high in the preseason poll. Three starters are back including Justice Shoats, who is one of the better guards in the conference, so they should improve from their 8th place finish from a year ago, but finishing as high as 2nd seems a little ambitious.
-Sacred Heart also has three starters back including Nyle Ralph-Beyer and Gavin Doty, who make up a solid backcourt. Anquan Hill also gives them a strong frontcourt presence: he averaged nearly 13 ppg last year, grabbed 6 boards a game, and can hit from the outside. Sacred Heart does not have a strong history or brand, but I really like them this year and think they have a chance to win the league. They only finished 7th last year, but were much better in the second half of conference play than they were in the first, and with the experience they have I think they can be as good as anyone.
-Manhattan is coming off their best season in at least five years, so Coach John Gallagher is definitely making some progress. The Jaspers were also very good down the stretch last year, winning seven of their last nine before losing in the conference tournament. Two key players return in Will Sydnor and Devin Dinkins, both of whom averaged 13 ppg a season ago. With the addition of some key transfers, including Terrance Jones from Norfolk State, Manhattan should continue to improve. I actually like them to finish higher than 4th.
-Marist has four starters back from a 20-win team, but must replace their best player from a season ago and were terrible down the stretch, so that would explain why they were only picked 5th. Still, as a program, they have shown consistent improvement in recent years and I look for that to continue this year.
-Iona has a new coach, and with just one returning starter they will be looking to rebuild the roster. Coach Dan Geriot has had success in the past, and given time he should be able to get Iona rolling again, but this year it just seems like there are far more questions than answers.
-Merrimack will be tasked with replacing all five starters, and like a lot of teams with complete roster overhauls it is hard to know what they will look like. Kevair Kennedy appears to be a strong point guard who they will be heavily relying on.
-Fairfield is coming off a year where they won just 12 games overall and finished 10th in the league. Two starers return including Deuce Turner, who received preseason all-conference honors. Braden Sparks is also back and should be a significant contributor, but expectations are not all that high for the Stags.
-Mount Saint Mary’s had a great year last year, winning 23 games overall and then winning the MAAC Tournament after a 4th-place finish. The problem is that nearly everyone from that team is gone. They will be relying on some upperclassmen and transfers who have limited experience as they try and rebuild.
-Rider has ten new players on the roster, but two key starters are back including Zion Cruz, who should give them some pretty good experience at the guard position. It is a transfer-heavy roster and they are likely in for a long year.
-Saint Peter’s did something that very few teams did last year: they won their last game! Nearly all D-1 teams lose their last game unless they win a postseason tournament. The problem is they won very few other games and did not play in the conference tournament. Just one starter returns and with a transfer-heavy roster they will look to improve from last season, but the expectations are not high.
-Niagara won just 11 total games last year and finished 12th in the conference. They have just one starter back and are not expected to do much better this year.
-Canisius was simply atrocious last year. They won just three games and were among the worst teams in all of D-1. This is a program with a somewhat rich history, so it is odd to see them as bad as they were a year ago. I also think Jim Christian is a fairly good coach, which makes it even more puzzling. They have overhauled their roster, which is something they probably needed, but the expectations for them are not high as they are picked to finish dead last.
