Iona Basketball

What does a mid-major college basketball team ranked in the Top 10 in the country by RealTimeRPI.com have to do to attract even one AP or Coaches poll vote? 

This week the Iona Gaels advanced to a nine ranking of 344 Division One College basketball teams while still not mentioned among 42 teams receiving votes in the Top 25 Associated Press poll.  In the ESPN/USA Today Top 25 Coaches Poll, Iona was not among the 41 schools receiving votes.

In this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll, Iona placed fifth behind Creighton, Murray State, Harvard and Cleveland State.

The Gaels have played what is the strategy for small arena, mid-major teams looking to succeed: play in major tournaments on neutral sites and then play as many quality opponents on the road as you can find.

The Iona Gaels (9-2) from New Rochelle, NY play their eighth straight December road game Wednesday in Virginia at William and Mary, looking for their seventh win of the month.  The road stretch began with solid wins at Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference rivals, Niagara 98-62, and Canisius 69-57. 

Then came the big trip to Colorado and a thrilling come from behind win 80-78 in overtime over an up-and-coming Denver Pioneer team.

Travel and an aggressive Marshall team caught up with the Gaels when they ventured to the Appalachians to play the Thundering Herd in Huntington, WV, resulting in a forgetable loss.  Then the Gaels went to Richmond and dominated the Spiders last Wednesday 88-79.  

Richmond made the NCAA "Sweet Sixteen" last year.  Days later, the Gaels headed in the opposite direction to play in the snow belt of Burlington, Vermont against the Catamounts, a team with 2010 NCAA experience. 

After trailing most of the way, Iona held onto a one-point victory.

To start the season, Iona represented the MAAC in the Five Hour Energy Puerto Rico Tip Off where they lost the opening game of the year by one to 2011 NCAA participant Purdue in a back and forth game.  The Gaels finished the event with wins over Western Michigan 94-88 and 89-63 against Maryland of the Atlantic Coast Conference.  The Gaels have won their two home games at their cozy Hynes Center gym against St. Joesph's 104-99 in double overtime and Long Island 100-84. 

Signature wins for the Gaels? Dominating Maryland and the close win over the St. Joe's Hawks, to start.  Walking into the Denver Pioneers $70 million basketball/hockey arena presented quite a challenge—the Gaels trailed by 11 in the last ten minutes, came back to tie and won in overtime. 

The Gaels five December wins against notable opponents calculated to a No. 9 ranking in the RealTimeRPI.com ranking.  Last week's back-to-back road wins were achieved over Richmond, who reached the NCAA "Sweet 16" last spring and Vermont, who played in the 2010 NCAA tournament.

The Gaels' opponent Wednesday is William & Mary of the Colonial Athletic Conference. 

The Tribe (2-9) has struggled so far this year with wins over Liberty and Division II Wesley College.  Freshman guard Marcus Thornton averages 10.2 points per game, as does senior forward Quinn McDowell.  Sophomore forward Tim Rusthaven averages 10 even. 

Iona junior forward Kyle Smyth is described as "Day to Day" by Iona SID Brian Beyrer.  Smyth missed the Vermont game after starting nine of the Gaels' first ten games.  He averages 8.9 points per game and is known as a strong defensive player. 

If Smyth does not start, expect to see smooth shooting sophomore Sean Armand at the three spot.  Armand averages 6.3 points and is the best three-point shooter on the team, averaging 43.2 percent of his shots from beyond the arc.

Superlatives abound for Iona's big three veteran starters: senior power forward Mike Glover, senior point guard Scott Machado and two guard junior Lamont "Momo' Jones—the transfer from Arizona.

Glover has picked up where he left off last season—averaging 19.3 points per game and grabbing 8.3 rebounds.  He continues to plant himself under the offensive boards often being double or triple teamed.  The Bronx native looks for passes from Machado and completes his shots 68 percent of the time, often from dunks or layups. 

He ranks third in the NCAA with 87 field goals made in 11 games.

Scott Machado has raised the level of his game this year playing with a noticeable increase in confidence while directing Iona's plays.  Machado averages 10.5 assists per game leading the entire NCAA in this mark of the playmaker. 

In three games, Machado has 15 assists.  Iona is second in the NCAA with 20.09 assists per game just behind Creighton and ahead of North Carolina, Pittsburgh and Marquette.  When taking the long shoot himself, Machado is the second-best three-point shooter, hitting 41.9 percent of the time.

Lamont "Momo" Jones now appears comfortable with the Iona offense, averaging 14.9 points per game and 3.2 assists.   The transfer from last year's Arizona "Elite Eight" team provides a great option for Machado's passes and creates a considerable challenge for the defense trying to collapse on Glover in the paint. 

Junior college transfer Taaj Ridley starts at the four position in what is often a three-guard offense.  Ridley averages 8.6 a game and is third on the team in rebounds with four per game.  Junior Kyle Smyth is the third Gael hitting three's over 40 percent of the time, and is third on the team in steals with 11.  Smyth,  known as a physical player, leads the team with six charges drawn. 

Sophomore Sean Armand has provided instance offense for the Gaels—averaging 6.2 points per game and often hitting threes from the corner.  Jermel Jenkins has been streaky this year (as he was last season), scoring 17 points against Canisius and 13 twice, but has gone scoreless in the last three games.

Randy Dezouvre and RaShad James have each been averaging over ten minutes a game for Head Coach Tim Cluess.  The Gaels have been able to run and keep up full-court pressure by ebbing able to play nine or more players in games.  Dezouvre made a career shot in overtime at the buzzer to beat Denver.

So if the Gaels keep winning, will they will attract votes or even a position in the Top 25 polls? 

It could happen. 

Their challenge is to keep winning and hope the better teams they have beaten—such as Maryland and St. joseph's—have good seasons.  The bane of the mid-major is that of all their remaining opponents: only Fairfield at 60 has an RPI below 100.  Loyola of Maryland is at 131, Manhattan is 136, Hofstra who Iona play's next week is 292 and Siena 302.  

Ken Kraetzer covers Iona basketball and West Point football for WVOX 1460 AM and Sons of the American legion Radio.  His twitter address is http://twitter.com/SAL50NYRadio

When you are playing a nine-game road trip that will take you from the Rocky Mountains to the Appalachians to the Green Mountains, sometimes you have to fight like cats and dogs to win the close games.

That is what the Iona College Gaels (9-2) men's basketball team did Saturday to hold onto a 73-72 win over the Vermont Catamounts (4-7) in Burlington. 

Mike Glover and Lamont Jones both had 16 points for Iona. Glover had seven rebounds and ended up on his back in the second half but still played 36 minutes. "Momo" Jones added four assists and two steals as he increasingly contributes to the Gael offense.

Point guard Scott Machado, who leads the NCAA in assists per game at 10.9, scored 14 points. Machado was limited to four assists on the afternoon by a Vermont defense determined to shutdown his passing lanes, but on occasion left the lane open for drives to the basket.

Sean Armand started at the 3 spot in place of Kyle Smyth who did not play in the game. Armand scored 10 points in 31 minutes of playing time—one of his longest stretches of the year. The sophomore small forward is the best three-point shooter for the Gaels, averaging 48 percent, but was held to two beyond the arc versus Vermont..

Other solid contributions came from Canadian Randy Dezouvre who had four rebounds and eight points playing 24 minutes, and Ra'Shad James with eight points in 24 minutes.

The Catamounts played Iona tough but could not make a shot in the final minute with the chance to pull ahead. The were led by Four McGlynn who had 19 points. Both Luke Apfeld and Matt Glass had 14 and Brandon Bald had 11 of the four Catamounts in double figure scoring. 

Vermont shut down much of the Gaels playmaking, limiting Iona to 13 assists. Iona had an edge in rebounding 37-27 which led to a 10-2 second half edge for the Gaels in second-chance points.

The Catamounts challenged Iona's uptempo full-court pressure, starting with an 11-point run to start the game. Inside plays by Glover and Machado led Iona back to taking the 17-16 lead with 12;27 left in the half. Matt Glass of Vermont gave his team a 43-37 lead at the half with a three-pointer from center court.

The second half saw seven lead changes as the Gaels matched each of the Catamount runs. With 9:49 left, Lamont Jones gave Iona a 59-58 lead on a three-point jumper. A moment later, Matt Glass scored on a layup to give Vermont back the lead 60-59.

With 6:46 left Machado gave Iona back the lead 64-63 making a driving layup and completing the three-point play with a free throw. After Randy Dezouvre gave Iona a 68-65 lead with two free throws, UVM's Brendan bald made a three to tie the game at 68 all.

After a timeout and a missed Dezouvre shot, Mike Glover grabbed a rebound and put back the shot to give Iona a 70-68 lead. Lamont Jones then added a three to the Gaels a five-point lead with 2:07 left.

With 47 seconds left, Vermont's Sandro Carissimo made a two-point jumper to make it a one-point game.

On the following play Machado lost the ball, giving Vermont a chance to tie or go ahead. Matt Glass missed a three-pointer but Brian Voekel of the Cats took the rebound. Off consecutive inbound plays, Voekel missed shots and the Gaels held on for the 73-72 win, just barely.

In other Metro Atlantic Conference action on Saturday, Rider (2-10) defeated UMBC, New Hampshire (3-4) outpointed Marist (4-5), and Long Island (6-6) beat St. Peter's 82-80.

The Gaels next play Wednesday at William & Mary looking for their 10th win of the season. The William & Mary Tribe is 2-8 with a game at Missouri on Sunday.This will be the last time Iona will likely have to board a plane until the postseason.

Ken Kraetzer covers Iona basketball and West Point football for WVOX 1460 in New Rochelle NY and Sons of the American legion radio.  Follow him on Twitter: Sal50nyradio.   

Iona is a veteran college basketball team that again showed this week that it knows how to win on the road.  On Wednesday afternoon, the Gaels won their sixth road game of the season, by defeating Richmond 88-79 in Virginia. 

In a game that they trailed by three early in the second half, Iona pulled away from the Spiders with a 37-16 second half run. The Gaels improve on the year to 8-2, their only losses coming in the season opener by one point to Purdue and Sunday at Marshall. Richmond fell to 6-4 on the season.

Mike Glover had another one of his monster games, contributing 24 points along with eight rebounds. Point Guard Scott Machado, who leads the NCAA in assists, had another 15 on the day.  Lamont "Momo" Jones had 14 points and continues to emerge as a major partner with Glover and Machado in the Iona offense.

Iona received big performances off the bench. Sophomore swingman Sean Armand gave Iona a big push by making five of six three point shots, including a two point field goal for 17 on the afternoon.  Ra'Shad james added 14 points and six rebounds.

Iona Head Coach Tim Cluess responded by email to my question about why his team played so well in the second half at Richmond,

"I think the team came out focused on the defensive end to start the second half and did a great job of sharing the ball on the offensive end. Our guys really wanted to play a better half and get the taste of the Marshall game out of their mouth." 

Iona plays its sixth straight game on the road Saturday in Burlington, Vermont against the Catamounts. They then trail back to play at William & Mary in Virginia next week before a Christmas break. 

The win showed the veteran toughness of the Gaels being able to come back with a big performance after a road loss at Marshall on Sunday. Preventing back to back losses is key for successful teams. Iona showed their fitness by playing forty minutes of their up tempo style.

Ken Kraetzer covers Iona basketball and West Point football for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY and Sons of the American Legion Radio. Follow him on Twitter at SAL50NYRadio.

All quotes are original unless otherwise noted.

Iona Gaels (7-2) ran out of gas Sunday on the fourth leg of their eight game December road trip and lost in Huntington, West Virginia to Marshall 82-63.

On the heels of a thrilling come-from-behind win at the University of Denver on Wednesday night, the Gaels went into the game on a seven game winning streak. 

Their RPI had risen all the way to 31st in the country.

Talk was heard of Iona attracting votes in the AP Top 25 Poll.

Mike Glover led the Gaels with 20 points and six rebounds.  Lamont "Momo" Jones had 13 points, and point guard Scott Machado had 12 points and eight assists. 

For Marshall, guard Damier Pitts led all scorers with 25 points and provided five assists. DeAndre Kane had 19 for the Thundering Herd.

Iona trailed 42-40 at the half, but Marshall went on a 19-9 run to start the second half and grabbed a lead that they would never relinquish.

The game was played before 5,918 at the Cam Henderson Center.

Iona now moves on to Richmond, Virginia Wednesday night to play the 6-3 Spiders of the Atlantic 10 Conference. 

Richmond is coming off a 73-51 loss at VCU.  They have wins over Wake Forest 70-62, William & Mary 92-61, and Rutgers 58-53. Two of their losses were to Illinois 70-61 and Davidson 74-61.

Later in the week, Iona travels north to play Vermont in Burlington on Saturday afternoon. 

The Catamounts are 4-6 on the season and have just lost four straight to Quinnipiac 62-58, at Saint Louis 62-43, at Yale 68-52, and 55-48 to Harvard.

Earlier in the year, Vermont defeated two MAAC teams-Siena and Marist.

Next week Iona heads back to Virginia to play at William and Mary before a short Christmas break and you guessed it, a bus trip to Hofstra before New Year's. 

I imagine the change in athletic directors last spring at Iona had something to do with a horrendous schedule like this.

Pat Lyons left in March for Seton Hall and Gene Marshall started in May.

Lyons left the program with a strong team but in a weak scheduling position. 

The Gaels play in the 2,700 seat Hynes Center in New Rochelle, New York which does not enable them to provide much compensation to opponents, simply scheduling home and homes at best. 

Very few teams from the BCS level conferences will come play at mid-major gym sites like Iona, so the Gaels have to play a lot of games at other campus sites or at tournaments and hope to catch a win against a top team.

The Gaels have a history at winning games at Big East sites such as Providence, so they don't receive that many invitations.

Hopefully, the Gaels can get through this tough road stretch with wins in 2 of these last three before Christmas.

Let's also hope that Gene Marshall can straighten out the scheduling and provide a few more home games for next year.

Ken Kraetzer covers Iona basketball and West Point football for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY and Sons of the American Legion Radio.  His Twitter address is SAL50NYRadio.

Many New York viewers gave up on Iona's late game Wednesday night from Denver, when the Pioneers  took a 61-48 lead on Brian Stafford jumper with 11:43 left in the second half. 

Iona leading scorer Mike Glover picked up his third foul with 8:03 left in the first half, followed by a 9-0 Pioneer run.

Denver challenged the passing lanes that point guard Scott Machado usually finds so productive.  It looked like a long night in the middle of month long road trip. Iona trailed 43-32 at the half,

The second half proceed with more of the same.  Mike Glover committed his fourth foul with 12:11 left and Iona trailing 59-48.  It looked like the end of the night for Iona. 

Then it turned around.

Iona coach Tim Cluess put in a small line-up with two seniors 5-11 guard Jermel Jenkins, and 6-5 forward Randy Dezouvre, joining starters 6-4 junior Kyle Smyth, and guards Scott Machado, and Lamont Jones.  Basically a line-up of three guards and two small forwards. 

The small line-up and veteran experience worked!

Kyle Smyth knocked down a three.  Machado drove inside for two.  Lamont "Momo" Jones makes two lay-ups and a free throw.  Randy Dezouvre makes a couple of inside two pointers.

All of a sudden the Gaels went on a 16 to 7 run, it is a four point game 68-64 with 7:15 left!

Down the stretch, Iona applied full court pressure to the young Denver team.  Smyth made another three.  "Momo" Jones turned a jumper into a three point play.  Machado made a lay-up to make it a two point game with 74-72 with 1:55 left.  Glover came back into the game.

After a Denver turnover, Mike Glover was fouled and made two key free throws to finally tie the game at 74 all 1:12 left.  After a missed Pioneer jumper by Stafford, Iona set-up for a last shot.

"Momo" Jones forced an off balance shot that missed giving Denver a chance with seven seconds left.  A drive to the basket by Brian Stafford resulted in a turnover when the crowd was calling for a foul on Mike Glover.

The game went into overtime. 

Iona scored four on inside plays by Glover and Machado.  Denver's Brett Olson scored two on a lay-up then with 19 seconds left Denver's Chris Udofia made two free throws after being fouled by Dezouvre.

Just 19 seconds left in OT and tie score.

Iona's Machado plays for last shot and drives the lane but is blocked from the basket. Iona's veteran point guard looks to the top of the key, sees and passes to the open Randy Dezouvre. 

Dezouvre then had a moment basketball players train for, dream about, practice for every day of their lives. Iona is playing on the road in a $70 million arena, in front of 5,886 fans, in what amounted to a nationally televised game with cable networks all over the country showing this battle of top mid-major college basketball teams.  Seedings in the NCAA tournament could hang in the balance.

The senior from Montreal, Canada had played two years of college ball at Monroe College in the Bronx. and averaged eight minutes and eight points per game last year for the Gaels.  A strong role playing back-up player.

In a move practiced in gyms and playgrounds thousands of times, Dezouvre catches the ball beyond the free throw line, and in one move, shoots and drains the game winning jumper.  The Gaels win 80-78, their seventh win in a row and second in overtime on the season.

"Momo" Jones starting to find his role as the two guard in Iona's offense contributing a game high 21 points. 

Scott Machado was frustrated much of the night with the Denver defense that tried to cut off his normal passing plays, had just six assists.  Machado did have 19 points on 7 of 15 from the field including a pair of threes.  The Iona point guard withstood a second half shot to the mid-section while trying to draw a charge that had him bent over recovering for several minutes.

Mike Glover was slowed by an aggressive Denver defense, the first half technical foul, and a shot to his hip suffered on defense that limited him to 24 minutes of playing time. 

Kyle Smyth contributed a pair of key second half  three point shots.  Dezouvre made eight points and two steals.in twenty minutes of play and what may be his most memorable college basketball moment.  

The night will be long remembered for the huge come from behind win that showed the team has determination and heart.  Iona is now 7-1 on the year, their only loss an opening game last second defeat to Purdue in the Puerto Rico tournament.  This win will be remembered in March when the NCAA seedings are developed. It could generate votes for Iona on the AP Top 25 poll.

Coach Tim Cluess will now take his team to Huntington, West Virginia on Sunday afternoon to play Marshall. This will be game four of an eight game December road trip.  After Sunday the Gaels have road games left this month Wednesday at Richmond, next Saturday at Vermont, and the following Wednesday at William & Mary.  After Christmas they go to long Island to play Hofstra.

If the Gaels continue to win on the road, by the end of the month they could be in the AP Top 25 Poll.

Ken Kraetzer covers Iona basketball and West Point football for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY and Sons of the American Legion Radio.  Following Ken on Twitter at SAL50NYRADIO.  

The Iona Gaels (6-1) are getting used to performing well on the road, winning two of three in Puerto Rico to start the season, and now completing their annual western New York State trip with a dominating 98-62 win at Niagara (3-5).

Iona senior power forward Mike Glover had another headline performance going 7 of 11 from the field and 13 of 16 from the foul line to score a game high total of 27 points. Glover who is normally double teamed under the boards added six rebounds. 

A bunch of long bounces off the rim at Niagara's Gallagher Center were gathered in by Iona guards. Surprisingly, point guard Scott Machado led Iona with seven rebounds while guard Jermel Jenkins gathered five boards coming off the bench. Machado who went into the game leading the NCAA in assists per game, added 12 more assists to his total for the year.

Lamont "Momo" Jones had 20 points, his highest scoring total for Iona since transferring in from Arizona over the summer. The junior guard made four three point shots on the afternoon. Taaj Ridley, the second junior transfer starting for Iona this year at the four spot had 12 points and five rebounds.

Sophomore swing-man Sean Armand had a hot day, as he can do on occasion coming off the bench, shot a perfect four of four from the field, including a pair of three point shots to score 10 points in 11 minutes.

For the Purple Eagles, Juan'ya Green scored 25, including four three point shots. Antoine Mason had 12 points.

Sunday MAAC Results:

In other Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Sunday action:  Manhattan (5-4) is now 2-0 in the MAAC with a 68-42 win over St.Peter's, and  Marist (3-5) won its first in the MAAC 95-75 over Rider(1-8). Fairfield (5-4) earned their second conference win 68-59 at Canisius (1-5).  Saturday Loyola of Maryland improved to (6-1) on the year with a 66-59 win over Siena (2-5).

Iona keeps on traveling this week:

The Gaels have now won the second of their eight straight December games on the road. They will return home briefly to New Rochelle then head to the Rocky Mountains for a Wednesday night date with the Denver Pioneers. Playing a Sunbelt opponent in Colorado may seem a bit unusual, but that is the way conference alignments work. Geography makes little difference.

The Pioneers are a good team now at 6-1 on the year with an Real Time Sports RPI at 9th in the nation. They have impressive home wins over Southern Mississippi 59-52 on Nov. 17th, St. Mary's 70-58 on Nov. 23rd and an opening game win over Portland State 69-61. On the road they have wins over Texas A&M CC 65-58 and Utah State 67-54. Their lone loss on the season was in the Pac 12 at California 80-59. Their last game was a Saturday night home win over Texas Southern 62-46.

Leading Denver in scoring is guard Brian Stafford at 15.4 points per game. Forward Royce O'Neale gathers 4.6 rebounds per night. Also, Forward Chris Udofia adds 13.6 points per game who leads the team in blocks with 22. 

Iona will visit DU's 7,200 seat Magnus Arena opened in 1999 which is also the home of the school's highly competitive hockey team. I visited the old DU arena "Years ago" which this building replaced. The old place known for college hockey was a field house with a large set of stands on one side and a wall behind the player benches. It was like an aircraft hanger.  This new building cost $70 million and appears to be similar to the combination hockey/basketball arenas that Boston College and Massachusetts-Amherst have built. 

Later in the week, the Gaels will visit Huntington, West Virginia to play Marshall. Before Christmas, the Gaels will travel to Richmond on the 14th, go north to Burlington, Vermont to play the Catamounts on the 17th, then head back to Virginia to play William & Mary in Williamsburgh on the 21st. After a short Christmas break the Gaels make the short bus ride out to long Island to play Hofstra on the 29th.

Going into Sunday play, Iona's Real Time RPI stood at 46th in the country. If the Gaels can win 6 or 7 games on this road schedule it could impress the voters to move them close to the Top 25.  Last year they proved they could win on the road in unfamiliar settings by coming out ahead at Liberty in the "Bracketbusters" game, then winning at Valparaiso and Eastern Tennessee State in the CIT. 

A road schedule like this, not only challenges the team to focus on playing in tough settings, but also to be able to keep up with school work and exams while traveling. That is a tough challenge for any college student. 

Ken Kraetzer covers Iona basketball and West Point football for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY and Sons of the American Legion radio.  He can be reached on kgk914@aol.com 

Last year Iona lost the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship Game to a St. Peter's team that frustrated the Gaels shooting by slowing the game to a crawl.   

Canisius must have watched that tape and tried to slow this game down as well before Iona pulled ahead in the second half to earn a 69-57 road win in Buffalo. The game marked the start of conference play for both teams.

The Gaels, who have been leading the NCAA in team scoring per game at 94 points per outing, were held to their lowest offensive output of the season. Iona maintained a 33-32 lead at the half and pulled away in the second half with 10-1 run, which left them ahead 61-51 with 5:51 left.

The third true guard on the Gaels, senior Jermel Jenkins, was the difference maker on the night, providing 17 points on a trio of three-point shots and 4-of-5 shooting from the free-throw line. Some nights Jenkins gets a hot hand, and against Canisius coach Tim Cluess gave him 26 minutes to show what he could do at the third guard position. He split time with Kyle Smyth, who had six points on the evening.

After Jenkins, the big scorers for Iona were the two junior transfers. Taaj Ridley had 12 points in 23 minutes and Lamont "Momo" Jones had 12 along with four assists. Power forward Mike Glover, who went into the game averaging over 20 points and 10 rebounds per game, was held to six points and three rebounds by the Canisius defense. 

Point guard Scott Machado leads the NCAA in assists per game but was held to eight points and seven assists, well below his season average. 

For Canisius, Harold Washington had 22 points and seven rebounds and Chris Manhertz added 10 boards as the Griffins out-rebounded Iona 28 to 22. Reggie Groves added 11 points and Alshwan Hymes provided 10.

Iona has been out-rebounded in some games, with Mike Glover being double-teamed under the basket. The Gaels need Taaj Ridley and Kyle Smyth to add a presence in the paint to take some pressure off of Glover, who will draw a crowd all season long. Despite being out-rebounded 28-22, Iona won the battle of the boards with 32 of their points coming in the paint versus 18 for Canisius—a big factor in the game.

The Gaels had six steals, which contributed to 21 points off of turnovers compared with just six for Canisius. Iona's bench—led by the 17 from Jermel Jenkins, three from Ra'Shad James, three from Sean Armand and two from Randy Dezouvre—provided 25 points. James also added six rebounds, always a key contribution off the bench. 

The depth of the Iona bench being able to play nine deep is going to help as the Gaels have a lot of tiring road trips this year. This is the first of eight straight road games which will take them to Denver and Marshalll next week, then later in December to Richmond, Vermont and William and Mary. Right after Christmas the Gaels play at Hofstra, then at Madison Square Garden on January 3 against Sienna.

Sunday, Iona completes the annual western New York trip with a 2 PM game against Niagara. The Purple Eagles are 3-4 after a loss to Fairfield, 79-75, to open conference play. They have wins over Central Connecticut State (102-93), Sam Houston State (69-52) and St. Francis of Pennsylvania (69-52). They have lost to Missouri (83-52), South Dakota State (79-71) and Mercer (74-55).

The Gaels will need to get ready for teams that try to slow the game down and force them to play half court with constant double-teams on Glover. The Gaels to work on getting the ball to Jones to take pressure off the inside play to Glover. Should be interesting to watch as the Gaels become the big game on their opponents' schedules.

Ken Kraetzer covers Iona basketball and West Point football for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle, NY.

It is a final here in New Rochelle, the Iona Gaels (4-1) have defeated the LIU Blackbirds (2-4), 100-84. 

Iona senior forward Mike Glover led all scorers with 28 points and 14 rebounds. Point guard Scott Machado, already leading the NCAA, had 10 more assists along with 14 points. Also at 14 points for the Gaels was junior transfer Taaj Ridley, who started and played 21 minutes. 

Coming off the bench for Iona was senior guard Jermel Jenkins, who had 13 points, knocking down a trio of three-point shots and collecting five rebounds.  Kyle Smyth had nine points and six assists.  Also with a career-high six assists along with eight points was Lamont "Momo" Jones.

LIU forward Jamal Olasewere had 20 points, guard C.J. Garner had 18 along with six assists. Forward Julian Boyd had 13 points along with nine rebounds.

Game Blog: 

The Gaels hit the century mark, 100-81, on a Scott Machado drive to the basket. Machado has 14 points and 10 assists.  Less than two minutes remaining here in New Rochelle.

Scott Machado is looking for Glover most times the Gaels fast break down the court.  Glover made two straight shots underneath then "Momo" Jones added one to give the Gaels a 96-74 lead. 

The Blackbirds made a 13-point run closing the margin to 87-68.  C.J Garner has 17 for LIU.

Iona is out to a 87-55 lead with 10:54 left in the game.  Scott Machado continues to lead the Iona offense with fast breaks looking for Glover inside or Kyle Smyth in the corner. 

LIU had two technical fouls called on them, one on Jamel Olasewere and the other a moment later on their bench. Olasewere has 18 points leading the Blackbirds.

Mike Glover has 22, Taaj Ridley 14, and Jermel Jenkins 13 including three three point shots.  Scott Machado has 12 points and 9 assists. 

In the second half Iona came out running with Machado looking to feed into Glover or take the ball inside himself.  Glover put back his own missed dunk to give the Gaels a 61-41 lead.  Machado now has 20 points and Glover 16.  Machado has 9 assists.

Iona's Taaj Ridley made the opening score of the half on an inside shot, he has 16 points.

At the half, Iona leads LIU 54-38.  Iona continues to play up-tempo with Scoot Machado the leading assist maker in the NCAA setting up the plays. 

For LIU, junior forward Jamal Olasewere leads the Blackbirds with 16 points.

Iona hit the half century mark, 52-34, on sophomore Sean Armand's three point shot with 1:11 left in the half.

Iona leads LIU 31-25 with 8:07 left in the first half.  Junior forward Taaj Ridley leads the Gaels with nine points on four of seven from their floor.

Jermel Jenkins the senior guard came off the bench to score a pair of three point shots.

Long Island came into the game 2-3 with wins over Radford and Vermont in their last two games.  They are coached by Jim Ferry in his 10th season.

Iona came into the game with a 3-1 record after a double overtime win last Wednesday 104-98 over St. Joseph's.  They defeated Maryland and Western Michigan in the season opening San Juan Tournament.  Iona lost the opening game of that event on a last second shot by Purdue. 

Iona is coached by second year coach Tim Cluess who brought the Gaels within a game of the NCAA Tournament.  The Gaels came into the game ranked seventh in the College Insider.com "Mid-Major" Poll.

Iona point guard Scott Machado is leading the NCAA with 51 assists in his teams first four games.  That averages out to 12.8 assists per contest. Iona leads the NCAA in scoring with an average of 94.3 points per game. 

Ken Kraetzer covers Iona College basketball and West Point football for WVOX 1460 in New Rochelle, NY.

Scott Machado made two free throws to clinch the victory for Iona now 3-1 on the year. St. Joseph's falls to 3-2. 

Mike Glover led all scorers with 34 points and 15 rebounds. The Iona point guard Machado had a career high 33 points and ten assists. Lamont "Momo" Jones playing in his first game on the Iona home court had 11 points and five assists. Kyle Smyth had 15 points including three three point shots.

Carl Jones led St. Joe's with 25 points, Ronald Roberts had 20 and C.J. Aiken had 19. 

Just 19.6 left in second OT. Hawks Carl Jones made two pointer.  100 to 99 Gaels.  Machado is fouled, will shoot two. 

Just 54 seconds left in second OT. Gaels have hit century mark.  It is 100 to 97 Iona.  Machado has a jumper and and a three, now has 29 points on game. Glover made two free throws.  Aiken had a key jumper for Hawks, then stuffed a Glover dunk attempt.  Glover 34. Carl Jones 23 for Hawks.

Hawks Ronald Roberts tied game 93 all with shot from the lane. Desperation long shot by Jones misses. Roberts now has 20 for St. Joe's. We go to second overtime. Really great game.

Just 28 seconds left on first overtime.  Glover misses a shot on rim.  Iona gets the inbound. Gaels lead 93-91.

Momo Jones has given Iona a lead 89-84 in the first overtime on a three point shot.  We have2:21 left, it is 89-87 Iona with 2:15 left.

Its overtime in New Rochelle!  All tied 84 all.  Mike Glover has 30 points. Machado 22 and Kyle Smyth 15 for the Gaels.  For the Hawks Carl Jones has 19, Langston Galloway 17 and C.J. Aiken 15.

Less than 2 seconds left and game is tied 84 all with Iona having the possession to take last shot.  Carl Jones made one of two free throws to give Hawks a two point lead.  Then Machado took ball to the hoop and passed to Taaj Ridley who made layup to tie game.

 With 19 seconds left, Machado made one of two free throws,. St. Joe's leads by one 83-82. Great game.

 Just 45 seconds left and it is tied 81 all.  After a Kyle Smyth miss, Glover dunked.

Less than 90 seconds left, it is tied 79 all.  Momo Jones made two free throws for Iona, then the hawks Carl Jones hit a jumper to tie the game. 

Just 3:12 left, Iona sophomore Sean Armand came in the game and promptly hit a three point shot from the left corner to tie the game at 75 all.

With 5:44 left, St. Joe's leads 74 to 72.  After a Glover put back dunk, the Hawks had consecutive three pointers from Aiken and Galloway.  Glover then made another forced shot from inside, then got his own rebound and dunked, he has 28 on the night. 

With 9:05 left Iona leads by one 66 to 65.  For Iona Kyle Smyth and Scott Machado have made three point shots.  Mike Glover has 24 points, Scott Machado 18, and Kyle Smyth 10.  For the Hawks, Carl Jones leads with 12.  Glover has eight rebounds.

With 11;25 left in the game it is all tied 58 all between St. Joe's and Iona.  After a court length pass from Machado to Jones led to a miss, Mike Clove provided a put back dunk to give Iona the lead.  Ronald Roberts Jr. of St. Jose's then drove the lane to put up a short jumper to tie the game.

Iona takes the lead early in the second half on a "Momo" Jones drive and jumper from the key to make the score 47-45 St. Joe's.  Mike Glover tied the score at 47 all with a fast break lay-up.  Kyle Smyth then sunk his second three [point shot of the night to give Iona their first lead of the night. 50-47.

Down 45-41 Momo Jones ran the length of the court and passed to Glover for a dunk.  After a St. Joe's turnover, Scott Machado ran from half court to launch a soft jumper good for two to bring the Gaels within two at the half 45-43.

Iona came back from trailing by as much as 13 points with a smaller lineup of Jermel Jenkins at off guard in place of Machado, Ra'Shad James and Kyle Smyth in at forward with Glover.  Smyth made a jumper from the corner to make the score 37-33 and Machado made two straight layups to get Iona with two at 39-37.

So far the Hawks have been able to score at will in this game taking a a 33-20 lead with 9:48 left in the half.  Langston Galloway the sophomore guard scoring 11 points on 4 of 6 shooting from the field and a three point shot.  Mike Glover is playing hard with ten points on 4 of 7 from mostly inside shots his specialty.

Courtside for the home debut of Iona guard Lamont "Momo" Jones, the transfer from Arizona.  Also playing his first game at the Hynes Center in New Rochelle is Taaj Ridley, the 6'7" forward from the Bronx who played last year at Lawson State Community College in Alabama.

Ken Kraetzer covers Iona basketball and West Point football for WVOX 1460 AM in New Rochelle NY and Sons of the American Legion radio.