2019–20 Iona Gaels men's basketball team

The 2019–20 Iona Gaels men's basketball team represented Iona College in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Gaels were to be led by 10th-year head coach Tim Cluess, but he never coached a game due to health reasons. Associate head coach Tra Arnold took over the head coaching duties for this season.[1] They played their home games at the Hynes Athletic Center in New Rochelle, New York as members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. They finished the season 12–17, 9–11 in MAAC play to finish in a tie for sixth place. As the No. 7 seed in the MAAC tournament, they defeated Canisius before losing to Saint Peter's in the quarterfinals.

2019–20 Iona Gaels men's basketball
ConferenceMetro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Record12–17 (9–11 MAAC)
Head coach
  • Tra Arnold (1st season)
Assistant coaches
  • Jeff Mailhot
  • Ricky Johns
Home arenaHynes Athletic Center
2019–20 MAAC men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Siena155 .7502010  .667
Saint Peter's146 .7001812  .600
Rider128 .6001812  .600
Monmouth128 .6001813  .581
Quinnipiac1010 .5001515  .500
Niagara911 .4501220  .375
Iona911 .4501216  .429
Fairfield812 .4001220  .375
Manhattan812 .4001317  .433
Canisius713 .3501220  .375
Marist614 .300723  .233
Note: The 2020 MAAC tournament was canceled during the quarterfinals due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Following the season, Cluess stepped down as head coach of the Gaels due to health concerns.[2] A day later, the school named former Louisville coach Rick Pitino the Gaels' new head coach.[3]

Previous season

The Gaels finished the 2018–19 season 17–16 overall, 12–6 in MAAC play to win the regular season championship. They defeated Saint Peter's,[4] Siena,[5] and Monmouth[6] to win the MAAC tournament for a record fourth consecutive time.[7] As a result, they received the MAAC's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 16 seed in the Midwest region. There they lost to No. 1 seeded North Carolina in the first round 73–88, despite leading by 5 at halftime.[8]

Roster

2019–20 Iona Gaels men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearHometown
F 0 Mo Thiam 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)210 lb (95 kg) Sr Dakar, Senegal
G 1 A.J. McNeil 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)185 lb (84 kg) Jr Stone Mountain, Georgia
G/F 2 E.J. Crawford 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)210 lb (95 kg) Sr Hartford, Connecticut
G 3 Asante Gist 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)185 lb (84 kg) Jr East Orange, New Jersey
G 4 Parker Weiss 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)170 lb (77 kg) Fr Naples, Florida
G 5 Ben Perez 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)180 lb (82 kg) Sr San Marcos, California
F 10 Andrija Ristanovic 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)215 lb (98 kg) So Belgrade, Serbia
G 11 Isaiah Washington 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)195 lb (88 kg) Jr Harlem, New York
F 12 Tajuan Agee 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)225 lb (102 kg) Sr Chicago, Illinois
G 13 Colton Cashaw 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)190 lb (86 kg) Jr Charlotte, North Carolina
G 20 Isaiah Ross 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)200 lb (91 kg) Jr Davenport, Iowa
G 23 Michael Ortale Jr. 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)200 lb (91 kg) Fr Delmar, New York
F 24 Dylan van Eyck 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)210 lb (95 kg) Jr Boskoop, Netherlands
F 44 Niksa Nikolic 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)235 lb (107 kg) Sr Belgrade, Serbia
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: November 20, 2019

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
November 2, 2019*
7:30 pm
Mount Saint Vincent W 112–79 
Hynes Athletic Center 
New Rochelle, NY
Non-conference regular season
November 9, 2019*
4:00 pm, NBCSN
at La Salle L 64–70 OT 0–1
Tom Gola Arena (3,135)
Philadelphia, PA
November 13, 2019*
7:00 pm, ESPN+
Ohio L 72–81  0–2
Hynes Athletic Center (2,013)
New Rochelle, NY
November 22, 2019*
6:00 pm, ESPN3
vs. Stetson
MAAC/ASUN Challenge
W 60–55  1–2
HP Field House (148)
Lake Buena Vista, FL
November 23, 2019*
6:00 pm, ESPN3
vs. Kennesaw State
MAAC/ASUN Challenge
W 75–52  2–2
HP Field House (113)
Lake Buena Vista, FL
December 4, 2019*
7:00 pm, SNY/ESPN3
at UConn L 62–80  2–3
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (5,909)
Storrs, CT
December 17, 2019*
4:30 pm
vs. Princeton
Basketball Hall of Fame Invitational
L 86–90 OT 2–4
Barclays Center (5,064)
Brooklyn, NY
December 29, 2019*
2:00 pm, P12N
at Colorado L 54–99  2–5
CU Events Center (6,753)
Boulder, CO
MAAC regular season
January 3, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN+
Saint Peter's L 74–75  2–6
(0–1)
Hynes Athletic Center (1,388)
New Rochelle, NY
January 5, 2020
2:00 pm, ESPN3
at Monmouth L 61–73  2–7
(0–2)
OceanFirst Bank Center (2,261)
West Long Branch, NJ
January 10, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPNU
at Rider W 69–66  3–7
(1–2)
Alumni Gymnasium (1,611)
Lawrenceville, NJ
January 12, 2020
1:00 pm, ESPN+
Niagara L 69–70  3–8
(1–3)
Hynes Athletic Center (1,317)
New Rochelle, NY
January 17, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Fairfield W 64–57  4–8
(2–3)
Hynes Athletic Center (1,428)
New Rochelle, NY
January 19, 2020
2:00 pm, ESPN3
at Marist L 73–83  4–9
(2–4)
McCann Arena (1,205)
Poughkeepsie, NY
January 24, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Canisius W 69–66  5–9
(3–4)
Hynes Athletic Center (1,538)
New Rochelle, NY
January 26, 2020
1:00 pm, ESPN+
Monmouth L 88–94  5–10
(3–5)
Hynes Athletic Center (1,313)
New Rochelle, NY
January 31, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN+
Siena L 64–87  5–11
(3–6)
Hynes Athletic Center (1,780)
New Rochelle, NY
February 2, 2020
12:00 pm, ESPN+
at Manhattan L 49–72  5–12
(3–7)
Draddy Gymnasium (1,289)
Riverdale, NY
February 7, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3
at Quinnipiac W 73–52  6–12
(4–7)
People's United Center (2,257)
Hamden, CT
February 9, 2020
2:00 pm, ESPN+
at Fairfield W 78–54  7–12
(5–7)
Webster Bank Arena (1,531)
Bridgeport, CT
February 14, 2020
7 or 9:00 pm, ESPN3
Manhattan W 80–57  8–12
(6–7)
Hynes Athletic Center (1,694)
New Rochelle, NY
February 16, 2020
1:00 pm, ESPN+
Marist W 78–70  9–12
(7–7)
Hynes Athletic Center (1,372)
New Rochelle, NY
February 19, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3
at Siena L 64–65  9–13
(7–8)
Times Union Center (6,897)
Albany, NY
February 21, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Rider W 70–69  10–13
(8–8)
Hynes Athletic Center (1,734)
New Rochelle, NY
February 27, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Canisius W 86–65  11–13
(9–8)
Koessler Athletic Center (1,181)
Buffalo, NY
February 29, 2020
1:00 pm, ESPN3
at Niagara L 91–100 OT 11–14
(9–9)
Gallagher Center (1,193)
Lewiston, NY
March 4, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN+
Quinnipiac L 68–69  11–15
(9–10)
Hynes Athletic Center (1,592)
New Rochelle, NY
March 6, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3
at Saint Peter's L 65–68  11–16
(9–11)
Yanitelli Center (505)
Jersey City, NJ
MAAC tournament
March 10, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3
(7) vs. (10) Canisius
First round
W 70–60  12–16
Boardwalk Hall[9] (878)
Atlantic City, NJ
March 11, 2020
9:30 pm, ESPN3
(7) vs. (2) Saint Peter's
Quarterfinals
L 54–56  12–17
Boardwalk Hall 
Atlantic City, NJ
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern.

Source[10]

References

  1. "Iona College basketball coach Tim Cluess resigns due to health". lohud.com. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  2. "Iona's Cluess steps down to focus on health". ESPN.com. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  3. "Rick Pitino returns to college hoops as Iona coach". ESPN.com. March 14, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  4. "Iona MBB Survives To MAAC Championship Semifinals, 73-71". Iona College Athletics. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  5. "Iona Men's Basketball Downs Siena In MAAC Championship Semifinals". Iona College Athletics. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  6. "#MAACChamps!!! Iona Wins Fourth Straight MAAC Championship". Iona College Athletics. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  7. "Iona Becomes First Team to Win Four Straight Men's Basketball Championships". Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  8. "No. 16 Iona MBB Leads No. 1 UNC at Half, Falls In NCAA First Round". Iona College Athletics. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  9. "2020 MAAC Men's & Women's Basketball Championships". Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Archived from the original on September 8, 2019. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  10. "2019-20 Men's Basketball Schedule". Iona College Athletics. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
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