Manhattan Seeks Fourth-Straight Win Tonight

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Riverdale, NY - Manhattan (7-16; 5-6 MAAC) will be in search of its fourth-straight win on Friday, February 8 at 7:00 pm when it welcomes Siena to Draddy Gymnasium.
 
Series History
* The Jaspers lead the all-time series by a 54-49 count.
* In the teams' first meeting, the Saints claimed a 53-40 victory despite 12 points from junior Tyler Reynolds.
* Manhattan won the last match-up in Draddy Gymnasium 72-61 thanks to forcing 25 turnovers.

Jaspers Tame Broncs
* Manhattan defeated MAAC Preseason favorite Rider 73-66 in collecting its third-straight victory.
* The Jaspers overcame a four-point halftime deficit, fueled by a game-changing 12-0 run.
* For the first time in 10 MAAC games, the Broncs were outscored after halftime (42-31).
* Reynolds notched a career-high 23 points while freshman Samir Stewart added 19 points.
* The duo combined to go 10-for-16 from long range.
* Stewart's 44.4 percent conversion rate from deep is the second-best mark in the MAAC while his 62.2 percent mark during league play is first.
* Reynolds is averaging 7.7 ppg, including a team-best 10.3 ppg during league play, while making good on 41.3 percent (10th MAAC) from beyond the arc.
* Manhattan also snapped a five-game losing streak to the defending MAAC Regular Season champions.

Rider Highlights 

Good afternoon #JasperNation! Here are some of the top plays from last night's thrilling win against Rider! pic.twitter.com/veNRpNhAZA

— Manhattan Basketball (@JaspersMBB) February 6, 2019

 In The Last Three Wins
* In the Jaspers three-game winning streak, Reynolds and Stewart are each averaging 16.3 ppg. 
* During that time, Stewart is shooting 83.3 percent (10-of-12) from deep while Reynolds is making good on 50.0 percent (10-of-20).
* Opponents are averaging just 55.0 ppg, on 39.3 percent shooting, including 25.4 percent from deep.
* The Jaspers are 7-1 on the year when outshooting the opposition.

Samir Named MAAC Rookie Of The Week
* Stewart scored a 19 points in the win over Saint Peter's after going for 11 in the victory vs. Fairfield en route to earning top rookie honors from the league on Monday.
 
* Stewart averaged 15.0 ppg and 3.5 spg while shooting 81.8 percent (9-of-11) from the field, including 85.7 percent (6-of-7) from distance.

When The Calender Turns
* The Jaspers are 46-33 in the months of February/March after winning their last two games.
 

From The Saint Peter's Victory ...
* Manhattan swept the season series thanks to registering a season-high matching 13 steals.
* The Jaspers registered double-digits in steals for the fifth time this year and are 42-13 (.762) in Masiello's eight years when notching at least 10.
* Manhattan ranks second in the MAAC in turnovers forced (15.7/game) and have has paced the league in the category three times in the last five years (2015-16, 2014-15, 2013-14). The Jaspers are 26-14 (.650) under Masiello when turning the opposition over at least 20 times.

Manhattan-Fairfield Tidbits
* Manhattan has now won three-straight games against Fairfield while holding the Stags to less than 60 points each time out.
* The Stags, which entered the game averaging 71.0 ppg, were limited to just 49 points, on 34.7 percent (17-of-49) shooting, including just 21.4 percent (6-of-28) from deep.

60-Point Club
* The Jaspers improved to 48-8 (.857) under Masiello when limiting the opposition to less than 60 points after their victories over Saint Peter's and Fairfield.

Ebube Squared
* Sophomore Ebube Ebube had 10 points, five rebounds and a a career-high six drawn offensive fouls in the victory over Rider.
* Thanks to Ebube, Manhattan set a season-high by drawing nine Bronc offensive fouls.
* The Puerto Rico native added a career-high 15 points against Fairfield, finishing up 7-for-12 from the floor and grabbed a career-high 12 caroms in the win over Coastal Carolina.
* Ebube, who also notched double-figures in rebounds against Fordham and GW, leads the team with 24 offensive fouls drawn to go along with 5.1 ppg and a team-best 4.6 rpg, including 2.1 on the offensive end (5th MAAC).

The Keystone State Standout
* Sophomore Nehemiah Mack, who scored a career-high 21 points at UAlbany, is the lone Jasper player to start all 23 games and is averaging 5.7 ppg, 1.4 spg (11th MAAC) and 2.6 apg (13th MAAC).
* During league play, the Pennsylvania native has handed out a career-high matching five assists three times en route to registering 2.6 assist/turnover ratio. 

Dialing It Up From Deep
* The foursome of Capuano, Mack, Reynolds and Stewart are combining to make good on 40.7 percent (123-of-302) from long range.

Numbers
* Manhattan ranks 18th nationally in scoring defense, yielding a MAAC-low 63.1 ppg, 43rd in turnovers forced (15.7/game) and 70th in steals (7.5/game).
 
Newcomers Break Out
* The Manhattan newcomers have accounted for 58.2 percent of the team's scoring, 48.7 percent of the rebounding and 53.8 percent of the minutes.
 
* Stewart scored a career-high 22 points in the win over Niagara and was a perfect 6-of-6 from the floor, including 5-for-5 from deep, and 5-of-5 from the line. 
* The Sunshine State native also canned the game-winning three pointer in the first meeting with Saint Peter's with just 2.7 seconds remaining.
* Freshman Tykei Greene scored a career-high 13 points against Quinnipiac and pulled down a personal-best eight rebounds at Monmouth.
* Classmate Elijah Buchanan had a personal-best 10 points against UMBC and in the victory over Saint Peter's.

Getting Offensive
* Manhattan set season-highs in points (90), field goal percentage (.630), three-point percentage (.591) and assists (19) against while overcoming a 14-point second-half deficit.
* The Jaspers had a season-high four double-figure scorers: Stewart (22), Capuano (10), Paulicap (10) and Reynolds (10).
* Manhattan's bench scored a season-high 47 points and has posted a scoring advantage over the opposition in 20 of its 23 games.
* The Jaspers put on an offensive show over the final nine-plus minutes, converting on 14 of their final 15 offensive possessions while outscoring Niagara 47-23 to end the game.

Double Your Pleasure
* Manhattan has overcome double-digit deficits in its wins over Coastal Carolina (13) and Niagara (14).

We're Going Streaking
* The Jaspers have used 16-2 second-half runs in victories over Niagara and UNC Asheville.

Closing It Out
* Over the last five minutes of their 10-point games, the Jaspers are dominating the glass by a 61-43 count, including 32-15 on the offensive end.

Sammy Steps Up
* Senior Samson Usilo was inducted into the prestigious Chi Epsilon National Engineering Honor Society, which is dedicated to the purpose of maintaining and promoting the status of civil engineering. 
* Usilo added a season-high nine points and six rebounds against Marist and was recently featured in the New York Post. Click HERE for the article.

Pauly Being Pauly
* Junior Pauly Paulicap, the reigning MAAC Defensive POTY, notched a game-high 17 points at St. Francis Brooklyn with four blocks and now rejected at least four shots 11 times as a Jasper, including turning away at least three on 16 occasions.
* He registered his sixth career double-double against Stony Brook with a career-high 24 points with 10 rebounds and five blocks and is tied with Mike Bruno for eighth in school history with 89 rejections.

KEMI NKU Basketball Classic
* Manhattan took two of three at the KEMI NKU Basketball Classic with Mack and Williams each being named to the All-Tournament Team. 
* Williams scored all of his career-high 13 points in the win over UNC Asheville after halftime and notched 12 points and seven rebounds against NKU, while Mack scored nine of his career-high 11 points in the final 3:50 of the Jaspers' comeback victory over Coastal Carolina.

Closing Time
* Manhattan dominated the opposition at the NKU Basketball Classic over the final 10 minutes of action, outscoring its three opponents by a combined 60-34 count, shooting 54.3 percent from the floor, including 57.1 percent from deep, while posting a +4.3 margin on the glass. 

Lucky Number 13
* In the win over Coastal Carolina, the Jaspers rallied from a 13-point deficit over the final 9:37 thanks to forcing the Chanticleers into 0-for-8 shooting during that time while posting a 13-7 advantage on the glass.

Congrats Coach
* Masiello earned his 200th win at the school against Coastal Carolina, which includes his time as an Assistant and a Head Coach, with the triumph. 
 
Masiello Quick Hits
* Masiello has led Manhattan to a 123-126 (.494) record, including going 77-68 (.531) during MAAC play, and 61-35 (.635) at Draddy Gym over his eight seasons, including 46-24 (.657) vs. league opposition. He has won two MAAC Titles, advanced to title game three times, claimed two Metropolitan Coach of the Year awards with a pair of 20-win campaigns. Masiello has also participated in the NCAA Tournament in 13 of his first 21 seasons as a player or coach, including being a part of eight conference champions and one National Title.
* In his first tenure as an assistant, Masiello was a part of two MAAC titles and three 20-plus win seasons. All told, Masiello has been a member of four of Manhattan's five MAAC Championship teams and five of the school's 12 20-win seasons in recording a combined 206-162 (.560) record.
* Now in his 22nd season as either a player or a coach, Masiello has a career collegiate record of 484-272 (.640), including 364-244 (.598) 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.

Preseason Musings
* Manhattan was tabbed eighth in the MAAC Preseason Poll with Paulicap selected to the preseason All-MAAC Second Team.
* Paulicap (1st) and Capuano (2nd) were each selected to preseason All-MAAC teams by Mid-Major Madness.

Congrats Smooth
* Former standout and current color analyst Chris "Smooth" Williams joined the Manhattan College Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday, November 10. Williams clinched the Jaspers' first-ever MAAC Championship in 1992-93 at the line and led the Jaspers to 72 career wins while handing out 271 assists and scoring 792 points.

This Is Manhattan Basketball
• Manhattan has three wins in NCAA Tournament play, defeating West Virginia (1958), Oklahoma (1995) and Florida (2004).
• The Jaspers have won five MAAC Tournament titles in the last 25 years (1993, 2003, 2004, 2014, 2015).
• Manhattan received an at-large berth in 1995 and defeated Oklahoma before falling to Arizona State.
* Was the first team in NCAA history to a win a game in Europe, defeating Holy Cross 70-54 on December 1, 2017 as part of the inaugural Belfast Classic.

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
• 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.
• Manhattan is one of only 182 remaining colleges founded in the United States before the Civil War.

Meet The Staff
* Masiello is joined on the bench by Matt Grady, Doug Thibault, RaShawn Stores, Brandon Kuhn and Tyler Wilson. Grady is in his eighth year as an associate head coach with Thibault beginning year one. Stores is back for his third seasons while Kuhn is in his second year as the Strength & Conditioning Assistant/Director of Operations and Wilson his second as a Special Assistants to Masiello.
* Grady was a member of Manhattan's 2014 & 2015 MAAC Championship teams while Stores and Wilson were each student-athletes on the Jaspers' title-winning teams.

113th Season Of Manhattan Basketball
* In its 113th season, the Manhattan men's basketball program boasts a 1371-1243 overall record (299-322 MAAC). The Jaspers' storied men's basketball team was established in 1904-05 and took a two-year hiatus during the 1943-44 and 1944-45 season due to World War II. 

Pretty Good
* Over the last six years, the Jaspers are 61-18 when leading at the half, 37-13 when limiting teams to less than 40 percent shooting and 55-32 when forcing more turnovers than the opposition. 

Up Next
* Manhattan will play at Niagara on Friday, February 15 at 7:00 pm.