Ashton Pankey. Photo by: Stacy Podelski/1495 Sports
Manhattan (19-13) will be making its second-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament and the eighth in school history against Hampton (16-17) on Tuesday, March 17 at 6:40 p.m. in a game that will be televised by truTV.
TALENT
truTV analysts: Brian Anderson, Steve Smith, Lewis Johnson
Westwood One analysts: Brandon Gaudin, Alaa Abdelnaby
TOP STORYLINES
# 1 – The Jaspers won their second-straight MAAC Title and are making back-to-back NCAA appearances for the second time in program history (2003, 2004).
# 2 – Manhattan last won a NCAA Tournament game against Florida, 75-60, on March 18, 2004. Head coach Steve Masiello was an assistant on that team.
# 3 – Over the last two years, the Jaspers are 9-3 in neutral site games and 8-1 in the month of March.
NCAA TOURNAMENT QUICK HITS
* Manhattan holds an all-time record of 3-8 in seven previous NCAA Tournament trips.
* Since joining the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) for the 1981-1982 season, the Jaspers are 2-5 in five NCAA appearances, winning First Round games in 1995 and 2004.
* The MAAC is 7-33, all-time, during NCAA play and last won a game in 2009 when Siena defeated Ohio State 74-72.
* Manhattan dropped a 71-64 decision to Louisville in last year’s Second Round.
* The Jaspers are the last NYC team along with Seton Hall to win a NCAA Game (2004).
* 2015 MAAC Most Outstanding Player Ashton Pankey scored a team-high 16 points against Louisville while senior Emmy Andujar added 13.
* Manhattan is 9-3 this year in the months of February and March, 20-5 the last two years and 28-9 since the start of 2012-2013.
* The Jaspers are also 5-2 this season in neutral site games, 9-3 the last two seasons and 11-6 since the start of 2012-2013.
* Senior Donovan Kates was by all accounts the unsung hero for Manhattan, finishing with a season-high 13 points on 4-of-6 shooting from distance. Since the start of 2015, Kates had converted just 4-of-31 from long range in 20 games.
* Head Coach Steve Masiello set a school-record for MAAC Tournament wins with his eighth against Iona while breaking Fran Fraschilla’s previous mark.
* With its run to the title, Manhattan has now won four straight and seven-of-eight while averaging 73.5 ppg over the last eight. The Jaspers are also limiting the opposition to just 39.6 percent shooting, including 27.5 percent from distance, and have been led by Andujar (17.1 ppg, 8.5 rpg) and Pankey (15.8 ppg, 7.3 rpg).
UD ARENA
Manhattan has played at UD Arena once in school history, dropping a 66-58 decision to Dayton on Nov. 24, 2012 despite 12 points and six rebounds from Andujar.
MAAC IN THE FIRST FOUR
The MAAC holds a 2-1 record when playing in a NCAA First Four game. Iona lost to BYU 78-72 in 2011 before Niagara defeated Florida A&M 77-69 in 2007 and Siena bested Alcorn State 81-77 in 2002.
For more information on the Manhattan Men’s Basketball team fans are encouraged to click on the link seen here:
For more information on the NCAA Tournament fans are encouraged to click on the link seen here: