State of the Gaels: Season Recap

Just as I was going to wrap up my thoughts and ideas about the Iona Gaels, COVID-19 took place. Just moments before the Utah Jazz was going to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder, news broke that a possible player may have contracted COVID. When this was confirmed, the NBA decided that the season will be cancelled in a move that sent shockwaves across the sports world. Soon, more and more leagues took similar stance as concerns grew more each day. It was going to be a matter of time but in a corresponding move, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) announced that all related sports activities including the ongoing MAAC basketball tournaments was cancelled until further notice. And just like that the season was done

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COVID-19 or more commonly known as Coronavirus disease is an infectious disease caused by a new virus that had not been previously identified in humans. The virus causes respiratory illness (like the flu) with symptoms such as cough and fever. It is believed to originated in late 2019 (hence the 19) in China and drastically migrated across the world. At the time of this article, over 100,000 cases has been reported globally, while in the United States over 200 cases has been confirmed.

Originally, many major sports leagues considered playing without fans as more information was being revealed but after a series of players voiced concerns and displeasure in addition to more cases being reported, it was decided to cancel the season, or cancel any scheduled offseason activity.

And as Iona was able to easily defeat Canisius 70-60 behind E.J. Crawford 25-point performance, the Gaels season came to heartbreaking end as St. Peters ended the Gaels strive for five as the team fell behind Aaron Estrada game winner with just 1.2 seconds remaining in the game.

In the losing effort, Tajuan Agee lead the Gaels scoring table with 20 points and Isaiah Washington continued his second half surge with a double-double. The Harlem native finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

But perhaps the biggest storyline of the game was how St. Peters was able to contain the team’s leading scorer, E.J Crawford. While the Hartford native finished the game with 11 points, it came with a poor efficiency. Crawford shot 20 percent from the field as it could be determined that the Peacocks made containing Crawford a major point of emphasis. The team also forced Crawford to score through free throws although he was able to hit in all 7 trips to the line. Crawford concludes his storied career as the sixth all-time leading scorer with 1,835 points and ranks top 10 in all major scoring statistical categories.

So, for the first time since 2012 Iona will not compete in the MAAC Championships. Is it fair to say that the season wasn’t a success? No, but it marked the end of their dynasty. 6 MAAC Championships is not an easy feat especially if four of those came consecutively. I must give credit to Tim Cluess and the rest of the coaching staff for accomplishing such feat. Credit should also be given to Tra Arnold for stepping in for Tim Cluess who was out for an undisclosed illness. Yes, 12-17 is not the record the team was aiming for, but considering the circumstances is was respectable.

Statistically, the Maroon and Gold was a middle of the pack squad. In conference play, the team finish 7thin conference play with a 9-11 record. They possessed t he fourth highest scoring offense in the league while leading the league in free throw percentage with 77 percent. Defensively the team wasn’t as sharp as the team was ranked dead last in 3-point FG percentage defensively and ninth in rebounding margin. This could serve as the reason why Iona fell in close competition to St. Peters in season and eventually in the MAAC tournament.

If team awards were to be picked, the team most improved player was Isaiah Washington. The jelly fam creator had a slow start to his Iona career just to finish his junior season with a solid 11.4 points and 4 assist per game. This was highlighted with a triple double in a February 27 where the St. Raymond alum finished with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists becoming just the third Gael in program history to accomplish this feat. His senior season should only see the guard gain more touches as the team losses Crawford and Agee to graduation.

Its not often that the teams most valuable player isn’t a starter, but that distinction goes to Dylan van Eyck. His energy paved the way for the Gaels gaining their late season surge in February. Forget what the statistics may suggest, van Eyck has been the difference maker for the Gaels. He has been the Draymond Greene equivalent to the Gaels with his passion fueling the team to do better. His impact was seen as the team felt the energy left the Hynes Athletic Center after his sprained his shoulder. With Agee graduating his role should increase drastically.

At the time of the writing of this article, Tim Cluess stepped down as Head Coach due to complications from his absence and his successor took the sports world by storm. Next season fans should expect to pay a bit more as the team will be led by Rick Pitino, the 1996 NCAA Tournament Champion with the Kentucky Wildcats. With Pitino storied success in transforming programs into powerhouse is something to see as the Gaels look to with their 5th conference title in six seasons.