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Riverdale, NY - Manhattan (5-9; 0-3 MAAC) will host Fairfield (7-5; 2-1 MAAC) on Thursday, January 5 at 8:00 pm in a game that will be streamed on ESPN3.
TOP STORYLINES
#1 - The Jaspers will be looking for their third-straight home victory at Draddy Gymnasium.
#2 - Head Coach Steve Masiello is a perfect 5-0 against Fairfield at home with the teams splitting a pair of meetings a year ago.
#3 - Manhattan most recently dropped a 90-88 overtime decision at Marist despite 18 points from junior Calvin Crawford and 17 points and nine rebounds from classmate Zane Waterman.
QUICK HITS
* Manhattan most recently dropped a 90-88 overtime decision at Marist despite 18 points from junior Calvin Crawford and 17 points and nine rebounds from classmate Zane Waterman.
* Crawford, who scored a season-high 19 in the win over EKU, is averaging 18.5 ppg over his last two games. He has now notched double-figures in points four times in his last six games after doing so just three times in the first eight contests and is averaging 8.8 ppg.
* Thanks to Crawford's production, the Jasper bench outscored the starters in the win over EKU (45-36) before matching the second unit against Marist (44-44).
* Junior Zavier Turner pulled down a career-high eight rebounds while handing out six assists on Monday.
* Manhattan pulled down 51 rebounds while notching their highest total since grabbing 51 in a season-opening 99-90 win at La Salle on November 9, 2013.
* Masiello has led the Jaspers to a 97-80 (.548) record, including going 58-41 (.586) during MAAC play and 45-21 (.682) at Draddy Gym over his six seasons with three MAAC Title Game appearances, three postseason berths, two Metropolitan Coach of the Year honors and two 20-win campaigns.
* Manhattan owns a 51-46 lead in the all-time series with Fairfield with Masiello owning a 7-5 record against the Stags.
* Last year against Fairfield, the Jaspers took the first meeting by a 72-66 count with the Stags winning the rematch 80-70.
* The Jaspers concluded non-conference play with a 27-point come-from-behind victory over EKU thanks to recording a season-high 13 steals.
* Manhattan's 13 thefts are the most since recording 13 in a win over Quinnipiac on March 1, 2015 while the 27-point margin of victory was the third-highest in Masiello's six years on campus.
* Over the last three-plus years, the Jaspers are 25-3 when recording double-figures in steals and 36-6 since Masiello took over prior to the 2011-2012 season.
* In Manhattan's last three wins, the Jaspers have held EKU to just 54 points, SFBK to 54 and Fordham 53 in moving to 38-4 in the Masiello era when limiting teams to less than 60 points.
* Manhattan scored a season-high 53 points in the second half against EKU while shooting 68.0 percent (17-of-25) from the floor.
* Waterman, who started his 41st straight game at Marist, scored career-high matching 23 points, on 11-of-15 shooting, at Morgan State after notching his sixth double-digit rebounding performance of his career with 10 against Canisius.
* The North Carolina native ranks among the MAAC leaders in scoring (11.2 ppg-27th), rebounding (7.4 rpg-5th), field goal percentage (.518-8th) and three-point field goal percentage (.390-14th).
* Turner scored 26 points in the win over St. Francis Brooklyn, making good on 7-of-9 from long range and is now converting on 46.4 percent (32-of-69), ranking third in the MAAC.
* The Ball State transfer is fifth in the MAAC in scoring (16.4 ppg), second in free throw percentage (.916) and seventh in three pointers made (2.3) while hitting for at least 20 points four times this year and 10 in his career.
* Turner scored a game-high 18 points to go along with five assists against No. 23 Florida State after earning John “Doc” Johnson Most Outstanding Performer in the Jaspers' win over Fordham with 15 points He also scored career-high 32 points at in the victory at Detroit Mercy, including 10 in overtime, to go along with six assists and had 30 against Saint Peter's and 28 at Temple.
* Manhattan opened the second half against EKU on a 23-5 run, including 12-straight at one point after ripping off a 13-4 run to start the second half against St. Francis Brooklyn.
* The Jaspers also limited the Colonels to just 37.2 percent shooting, including 29.4 percent from deep, and the Terriers to just 30.9 percent, including 24.0 percent from long range.
* Waterman put the SFBK game on ice with a pair of late free throws and is now averaging a team-best 4.5 ppg and 2.7 rpg in the last five minutes of games decided by 10 points or less while accounting for 26.5 percent of Manhattan's scoring and 30.8 percent of its rebounding.
* Freshman Na'Quan Council scored a career-high 12 points in the win over EKU with five assists and five steals while classmate Aaron Walker Jr. matched him with 12 points to go along with six assists off the bench as the reserves outscored the starters by a 45-36 count.
* Council hit for double-digits in points for the first time in his career after previous notching nine on three occasions and is averaging 5.8 ppg.
* Walker Jr., who had 11 points and five boards in the win over St. Francis Brooklyn and 14 at Florida State, has scored in double-figures five times in his last seven games and on eight occasions.
* The Brooklyn native earned MAAC Rookie of the Week honors earlier this year after averaging 12.3 ppg and 3.3 rpg over three games during the week ending November 20, highlighted by a career-high 15-point effort against Winthrop. He is third on the Jaspers in scoring at 9.0 ppg.
* Not to be overlooked in the win over Fordham was Tyler Wilson's play as the senior converted the momentum-changing three-point play that gave Manhattan the lead for good. No stranger to big-time plays, Wilson drew the game-clinching charge in the win at Detroit Mercy.
* At Morgan State, Capuano finished with a career-high 18 points to go along with five rebounds, four assists and four steals in 48 minutes of action before following that up with 10 points, four rebounds and three assists in the victory against Fordham. He is averaging 7.8 ppg and 1.2 spg (12th MAAC).
* Junior Ahmed Ismail pulled down a team-high eight rebounds in the win over SFBK after grabbing a game-high nine caroms against Florida State and earlier set a career-high with 11 rebounds in the win over Detroit Mercy. The Egypt native ranks among the MAAC leaders in rebounding (5.5-16th) and blocks (1.1-10th).
* The Jaspers have won the rebounding battle in 11 of their 14 games while ranking fourth in the MAAC in rebounding offense (38.4), second in rebounding defense (34.4) and first in rebounding margin (+4.0) while notching at least 40 caroms six times, highlighted by a season-high 51 at Marist, including 21 offensive caroms.
* Junior Zavier Peart has scored in double-figures in scoring three times this year and is averaging 5.0 ppg and 2.8 rpg while shooting 61.4 percent (27-of-44) from the floor.
* The Miami native earned his first collegiate starting nod at Florida State as Manhattan has now used seven different line-ups this year.
* In the win over Detroit Mercy, the Jaspers went 9-for-12 from the line in overtime with Walker Jr. sinking two free throws to tie the game up with 0.7 seconds remaining in the first extra session.
* Junior Samson Usilo had a career-high nine points and seven rebounds at WVU while fellow Nigerian sophomore Ak Ojo scored a career-high nine points in the win at Detroit Mercy.
* In the final five minutes of games/ot, Turner is averaging 3.9 ppg while shooting 50.0 percent (15-of-30) from the floor and 91.3 percent (21-of-23) from the line.
* Through the first 14 games, the seven Manhattan newcomers are averaging a combined 42.2 ppg and 19.4 rpg while accounting for 57.8 percent of the team's offense and 50.7 percent of the rebounding.
* In an 80-68 win over Hofstra, the Jaspers shot a blistering 53.7 percent (29-for-54) from the floor, including a perfect 100 percent (17-for-17) from the line, and scored on seven of the Pride's nine first-half turnovers, parlaying the miscues into 17 points.
* Setting the tone was Peart, who scored 14 points in the opening half while connecting on all seven of his shots en route to finishing with a game-high 16.
* Wilson handed out five assists, against just one turnover, against Hofstra while moving past RaShawn Stores into ninth place on the program's all-time assist list and now has 329.
* Manhattan finished non-conference play with a 5-6 record after competing against squads from 11 different conferences (ACC, American, Atlantic 10, Big South, Big 12, CAA, Horizon, MEAC, NEC, OVC, Patriot). The Jaspers also played in six states: NY (5), PA (2), FL (1), MD (1), MI (1) and WV (1)
* Manhattan played two ranked teams and six games against teams that played in the postseason or won 20 games a year ago during non-conference play.
* He has participated in the NCAA Tournament in 13 of his 20 seasons as a player or coach, including being a part of eight conference champions and one National Championship.
* The Jaspers were slated to finish sixth in the annual preseason MAAC Coaches Poll with Williams earning All-MAAC Second Team honors.
* Williams and Wilson, the team's lone seniors, have helped Manhattan to a 62-49 record during their three-plus years with two MAAC titles, two trips to the NCAA Tournament and a MAAC-best 7-1 conference tourney record.
* Williams, who has yet to play due to injury, averaged 14.8 ppg and a team-best 6.0 rpg last year, highlighted by seven 20-plus point performances and three double-doubles. Additionally, he raised both his scoring (+9.3 ppg) and rebounding (+4.5 rpg) numbers and took his game to another level at the MAAC Tournament, averaging a team-leading 21.0 ppg.
* The Jaspers boast five foreign-born players in R. Williams (Jamaica), Ismail (Egypt), Usilo (Nigeria), Ojo (Nigeria) and Oliver Ehrnvall (Sweden).
* Since returning to Riverdale, Masiello has led Manhattan to a pair of MAAC Titles 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 four of the five Jaspers' MAAC Championship teams and five of the school's 12 20-win seasons in accruing a 180-116 record.
* In his 21st season as either a player or a coach, Masiello has a career collegiate record of 460-226, including 339-198 on the sidelines, with one National Title, two National Championship Game appearances, two Final Fours, six Elite Eight berths, eight conference championships, 13 NCAA Tournament appearances and 15 20-win seasons.
WHAT'S A JASPER?
The unique nickname of Manhattan College's athletic teams, the Jaspers, comes from one of the College's most memorable figures, Brother Jasper of Mary, F.S.C., who served as the College's athletic director in the late 19th century. One of the greatest achievements of Brother Jasper was that he brought the then little-known sport of baseball to Manhattan College and became the team's first coach. Since Brother Jasper was also the Prefect of Discipline, he supervised the student fans at Manhattan baseball games while also directing the team itself. During one particularly warm and humid day when the college was playing a semi-pro baseball team called the Metropolitans, Brother Jasper noticed the Manhattan students were becoming restless and edgy with the team coming to bat in the seventh inning of a close game. To relieve the tension, Brother Jasper called timeout and told the students to stand up and stretch for a few minutes until the game resumed. Since the College annually played the New York Giants in the late 1880's and into the 1890's at the old Polo Grounds, the Manhattan College practice of the “seventh inning stretch” spread into the major leagues, where it has now become a time-honored custom practiced by millions of fans annually.
THIS IS MANHATTAN COLLEGE
• U.S. News & World Report ranks Manhattan 15th out of 138 in the Best Regional Universities (North) category of its 2016-17 Best Colleges list. This is the tenth year in a row the College has placed in the regional top 20. U.S. News & World Report also ranks Manhattan College as 8th among 52 regional universities that are attractive colleges for veteran students.
• Brookings ranks Manhattan College 9th out of more than 7,000 two- and four-year schools in an analysis that examined how well schools prepare students for successful careers.
• Why is Manhattan College in the Bronx? Our campus was originally located in Manhattan at the intersection of 131st Street and Broadway. In 1923, Manhattan College moved to its present Riverdale location in order to accommodate a growing student body. But with more than 60 years of history established as Manhattan College, the institution decided to retain the name despite the geographic misnomer.
• 17 alumni are members of the prestigious National Academy of Engineering — an impressive number for an institution the size of Manhattan College.
• Alumni include Rudy Giuliani '65, former mayor of New York City; James Patterson '69, best-selling author; and Raymond Kelly '63, former commissioner of the NYPD.
• Manhattan is one of only 182 remaining colleges founded in the United States before the Civil War.
SCOUTING FAIRFIELD
The Stags are a balanced squad with six players averaging at least eight points a game, led by Tyler Nelson (20.0 ppg), Curtis Cobb (14.8 ppg) and Jerry Johnson (11.8 ppg).
KEY MANHATTAN MATCH-UPS
1. Protect The Glass: Manhattan be squaring off with the MAAC's top rebounder in Amadou Sidibe (10.5 rpg) and will need to continue to rebound effectively.
2. Make Nelson Work: Nelson is one of the top scorers in the league and the Jaspers will need to make him earn each of his points.
3. Protect Homecourt: Manhattan has won two in a row at Draddy Gymnasium and has been playing extremely well at home.
TOUGH SCHEDULE
Included in Manhattan's 11-game non-conference schedule are six games (Temple (NCAA), WVU (NCAA), Bucknell (NIT), Florida State (NIT), Hofstra (NIT) and Fordham (CIT)) against teams that qualified for the postseason a year ago.
THE MASIELLO WAY
Since Masiello took over the program in 2011-2012, the Jaspers are 36-6 when notching 10 steals, including 25-3 over the last three years, and 20-11 when forcing at least 20 turnovers.
NOT SHABBY
Over the last three-plus years, the Jaspers are 46-8 when leading at the half, 25-8 when limiting teams to less than 40 percent shooting, 31-15 when winning the battle of the boards and 40-20 when forcing more turnovers than the opposition.
MASIELLO AT MANHATTAN
Masiello has been a part of four of Manhattan's five MAAC Championships while helping lead the Jaspers to a 180-116 record in this his 10th season in Riverdale.
THE WORLDWIDE LEADER
Manhattan is slated to appear on the ESPN family of networks 10 times during the 2016-2017 season, including seven during MAAC play, once on Fox Sports, once on SNY and once on Root Sports.
NIGERIA REVIVAL
Usilo and Ojo both have returned to action this year after missing the bulk of the game action a year ago.
NEWCOMERS
The Jaspers welcome seven student-athletes to the fold this season S. Williams (Tuckahoe), Turner (Ball State), Ismail (Colby CC/Egypt), Peart (Eastern Florida State), Council (Scotland Performance (PA)), Ehrnvall (Swedan), Walker Jr. (Cardozo).
NEW YORK STATE OF MIND
Seven of Manhattan's 15 student-athletes - R. Williams, S. Williams, Wilson, Crawford, Capuano, Maloney, Walker Jr. - hail from the state of New York.
REPRESENTING THE USA
The Jaspers also boast players from Florida (Peart), New Jersey (Council), North Carolina (Waterman).
UP NEXT
Manhattan travels to Quinnipiac on Saturday, January 7 with opening tip tabbed for 2:00 pm.
