Iona @ Siena - Just shooting straight from the hip on this one. WRITE-UP!

Question

2016: 1-1 over all sports. 2015/2014/2013 70%/48%/65% respectively.

Full disclosure: I didn't cap this game like all others, that is, really sink my teeth into it.

But I have to say, this is worth a unit of my money.

Did any watch Iona @ Monmouth over the weekend? I did.

Monmouth had the table set for them:

Red hot 8 game winning streak

MAAC Championship on the line

Game at home with a raucous crowd

Best team in years

Plus they had the added motivation of avenging a brawl that broke out in their previous victory over Iona...a nasty post game slap from an Iona player on a Monmouth player that started the whole slobber knocker.

That's pretty substantial in terms of how much Monmouth had going for them huh?

And I'd like to add Monmouth is a tremendous team this year winning @ UCLA, vs. USC, vs. Notre Dame and @ Georgetown.

Don't let this Jersey Shore team fool you folks. They are outstanding.

And what did Iona do when they came to play Monmouth after they lost the first game?

They BLASTED them 83-67. What I saw in the Gaels that night is what I saw in the Warriors vs. the Clippers: a team running and gunning up and down the court relentlessly wearing you down with ball movement, threes, and attacking the basket on fast breaks. Plus they even have AJ English, a stud guard who dropped 31 and 45! the previous game vs. Monmouth.

Are the Gaels the Warriors? No. But on this night I saw glimpses of the Warriors (and even flashes of Steph) in a team that hated its rival much like the Warriors hate the Clips and they pounded them from pillar to post as they would not conced their MAAC crown.

So you say, "Scal it's time for a letdown after that one!"

I say...no way.

This will be a close game but in the end, Iona will come out on top. The best part? The spread is -1 Siena.

Don't be fooled folks, Siena is an excellent team but they are not the caliber of Monmouth this year, a team that was just destroyed and held to over 13 points below its average of 80.7 (24th in the nation).

So why is Iona not up for a letdown?

This is the second time they've played Siena in 9 days. Iona lost the last one in a fashion they'll definitely remember having been up 12 with 11 minutes and finally surrendering the lead with 2:20 left after a scoring drought, losing 81-78.

Iona, the defending MAAC champs are out for blood now. They are 1.5 behind Monmouth with 3 to play, and want to win the regular season championship and at a minimum keep the #2 seed for the conference tournament. All that is lost with a loss here.

The table is now set for them and Iona simply doesn't lose in its division twice to the same team, especially with the games this close.

You have to go back to 2009-2010 to find the last time Iona lost twice to a team it played twice in its division: coincidentally Siena beat them twice that year but that team wasn't nearly as powerful as this one and had nowhere near the stud guard this one has.

Siena has a mighty tall order on its plate tonight to take out Iona and the line shows it.

Quotes from the Siena head coach:

"They're a revenge team. They know we beat them down there and they are going to be frustrated coming in here. AJ English is a pro and he takes losses personally."

Take that quote as lip service but it sounds like Siena is prepared to come up a little short here. They can't really win the MAAC With three to play being 2.5 games back but they do want to #2 seed. Having said that Iona has a MAAC regular season championship it wants to defend from 2014 and 2015 as well as seeking a #1 seed in the tourney.

There's just too much firepower on Iona's side here as they eye the top of the division after smoking Monmouth.

It'll be a close one but I like Iona to pull it out in the clutch after a massive confidence building victory over Monmouth in a very losable spot. They avenged the loss at Monmouth when they lost to them 110-102 the first time they played, now it's time to avenge the loss to Siena just 9 days ago.

Siena is a good team...but beating Iona twice in 9 days? No...

The pick:

Iona +1 over Siena

scalabrine · Answer

2016: 1-1 over all sports. 2015/2014/2013 70%/48%/65% respectively.

Full disclosure: I didn't cap this game like all others, that is, really sink my teeth into it.

But I have to say, this is worth a unit of my money.

Did any watch Iona @ Monmouth over the weekend? I did.

Monmouth had the table set for them:

Red hot 8 game winning streak

MAAC Championship on the line

Game at home with a raucous crowd

Best team in years

Plus they had the added motivation of avenging a brawl that broke out in their previous victory over Iona...a nasty post game slap from an Iona player on a Monmouth player that started the whole slobber knocker.

That's pretty substantial in terms of how much Monmouth had going for them huh?

And I'd like to add Monmouth is a tremendous team this year winning @ UCLA, vs. USC, vs. Notre Dame and @ Georgetown.

Don't let this Jersey Shore team fool you folks. They are outstanding.

And what did Iona do when they came to play Monmouth after they lost the first game?

They BLASTED them 83-67. What I saw in the Gaels that night is what I saw in the Warriors vs. the Clippers: a team running and gunning up and down the court relentlessly wearing you down with ball movement, threes, and attacking the basket on fast breaks. Plus they even have AJ English, a stud guard who dropped 31 and 45! the previous game vs. Monmouth.

Are the Gaels the Warriors? No. But on this night I saw glimpses of the Warriors (and even flashes of Steph) in a team that hated its rival much like the Warriors hate the Clips and they pounded them from pillar to post as they would not conced their MAAC crown.

So you say, "Scal it's time for a letdown after that one!"

I say...no way.

This will be a close game but in the end, Iona will come out on top. The best part? The spread is -1 Siena.

Don't be fooled folks, Siena is an excellent team but they are not the caliber of Monmouth this year, a team that was just destroyed and held to over 13 points below its average of 80.7 (24th in the nation).

So why is Iona not up for a letdown?

This is the second time they've played Siena in 9 days. Iona lost the last one in a fashion they'll definitely remember having been up 12 with 11 minutes and finally surrendering the lead with 2:20 left after a scoring drought, losing 81-78.

Iona, the defending MAAC champs are out for blood now. They are 1.5 behind Monmouth with 3 to play, and want to win the regular season championship and at a minimum keep the #2 seed for the conference tournament. All that is lost with a loss here.

The table is now set for them and Iona simply doesn't lose in its division twice to the same team, especially with the games this close.

You have to go back to 2009-2010 to find the last time Iona lost twice to a team it played twice in its division: coincidentally Siena beat them twice that year but that team wasn't nearly as powerful as this one and had nowhere near the stud guard this one has.

Siena has a mighty tall order on its plate tonight to take out Iona and the line shows it.

Quotes from the Siena head coach:

"They're a revenge team. They know we beat them down there and they are going to be frustrated coming in here. AJ English is a pro and he takes losses personally."

Take that quote as lip service but it sounds like Siena is prepared to come up a little short here. They can't really win the MAAC With three to play being 2.5 games back but they do want to #2 seed. Having said that Iona has a MAAC regular season championship it wants to defend from 2014 and 2015 as well as seeking a #1 seed in the tourney.

There's just too much firepower on Iona's side here as they eye the top of the division after smoking Monmouth.

It'll be a close one but I like Iona to pull it out in the clutch after a massive confidence building victory over Monmouth in a very losable spot. They avenged the loss at Monmouth when they lost to them 110-102 the first time they played, now it's time to avenge the loss to Siena just 9 days ago.

Siena is a good team...but beating Iona twice in 9 days? No...

The pick:

Iona +1 over Siena

Macwestie1 · Answer

Nice write-up  like your last sentence to my equation I agree wholeheartedlyGL scalabrine

Macwestie1 · Answer

This is the second time they&#x27;ve played Siena in 9 days. Iona lost the last one in a fashion they&#x27;ll definitely remember having been up 12 with 11 minutes and finally surrendering the lead with 2:20 left after a scoring drought, losing 81-78.

1133 · Answer

Great write up.  Thanks for sharing.

KRP104 · Answer

Good write up bro. BOL

scalabrine · Answer

Mac good to see ya. And you had Iona over Monmouth which was a very astute and gutsy pick as well!@krp @1133

GDayMate · Answer

Thanks Scal - I&#x27;ll tail you and GL.

DegenerateBets · Answer

I&#x27;m leaning on Iona as well. However, the one concern I have is that is it too much to ask of them to win 2 road games in a row against 2 very good home teams? I think Siena has only one loss at home, and Monmouth was undefeated. The one thing I do like about this game is that looking at their matchup history, Iona has taken care of them the majority of the time including the last 4 @ Siena. Might wait to see if some money comes in on Iona before pulling the trigger.

Mozart · Answer

Scal~Amazing write-up.I did see vid clips of the Iona/Monmouth game and I totally agree with your point about Iona running up and down the court like mad.I was really impressed with Iona in a game in which I had thought that Monmouth would win/cover, but I did not have a bet on the game.I think that your take on this game is spot-on.I&#x27;m taking Iona 1H and for the game on ML, a unit each.

HERMES · Answer

Scal with all due respect I disagree. The biggest reason Monmouth lost was because their senior leader who is their glue guy was out with a broken hand. The team chemistry was therefore messed up and its gonna take some time for them to iron out the kinks. Exemplified by just squeaking by St.Petes. Siena is a different story way too many statistical advantages in this one and being at home is gonna help tremendously. Iona getting too much love for that win against Monmouth from the line-makers with this short line. I know they will not overlook Siena because they did lose the last time these squads faced but its not gonna matter. Siena is confident as they already beat Iona once and being at home they would love to do it again. Siena plays fantastic defense under my fellow greek Jimmy Patsos and rebounds the ball very well which will negate Iona&#x27;s awesome offense you are talking about and on the other side of the court Iona&#x27;s defense is very undisciplined. They foul way too much and are horrible in defending the perimeter and they suck at rebounding. All categories where Siena thrives on offensively. Siena number 9 in the nation in offensive rebounds, 27th in the nation in 3pt fg%, 81st in going to the free throw line where they shoot it at 72.5%. Unfortunately for Iona you need to have a great defense to win on the road against a good team like Siena and unfortunately Iona does not. Siena will win this fairly comfortably in my opinion if they limit the turnovers but even if they don&#x27;t they will still find a way to win this one with all the statistical advantages I mentioned above. Good Luck with your play though Scal I always love reading what you got but tonight I think you got it wrong. All the best though

91wildcat12 · Answer

Nice write-up! BOL

silversilver · Answer

Sorry but no. Siena will win this one by 5&#x2B;. BOL.

scalabrine · Answer

@Degen- that is my one concern. Two wins consecutively on the road against the two best teams in the MAAC. It is a legitimate concern. That is why I am only going a unit on this one.

Hermes, I Understand you point but Iona rocked this team in every which way. They also go very deep into their bench so one starter shouldn't result in a flame-out like they had. It's a good counterargument but to counter your counter you cannot discount beating Iona twice in 9 days off such a confidence-building win.

Windy8899 · Answer

I&#x27;ll pass on this one; nice write up is not going to win games guys. Iona lost at HOME and now they have to compete with Siena where they are 11-1 at home and you guys think that Iona can win this game????. GL with your play but I&#x27;ll pass.

scalabrine · Answer

Massive public support on Monmouth with a line that had Monmouth backers salivating only to go up in flames to the heavens. The first half was a complete dismantling of an excellent team.Now it all falls apart against Siena? No....not when you give me Iona plus points.

R-U-N-V-S · Answer

I sense an Over 158 here..... 2 teams with Offensive power surges...Final 87-79 For whoever is in the lead with under 3min left....

scalabrine · Answer

Yes, Monmouth has a much tougher schedule then Siena was 9-1 at home and Iona destroyed them.@91 @Gday

scalabrine · Answer

*a much tougher schedule than Siena has

scalabrine · Answer

To further,To blitz a team like Monmouth in overwhelming fashion. It really was a sight to see.I&#x27;d be much more worried about an opponent like Rider in this game where a true letdown of intensity and skill can occur when playing a middling team.Siena is right up there at the top and psychologically Iona can keep their game in 5th gear and win here as well zeroing in on the title.Just to note, Siena also played Friday night on the road against Rider so there is very little preparation here outside of a game they won.The team that wins the previous game adjusts little. Why adjust when you just won? The team that lost the previous game makes significant adjustments.That is why you typically see in-conference splits among teams of both teams are good.

USC_Holmey · Answer

Hey scal. Come on over to the $$$$ Thread if you ever have a play you love so much you want it tracked on our thread. Your write ups are certainly $$$$-worthy! Plays, any guy with a username named after the anchor of USC's best team I ever saw is alright with me!

Good luck, man!

HERMES · Answer

A counter to that is this is also a letdown spot despite it being a revenge game for Iona. It&#x27;s just like after you have amazing sex with Jenna Jameson or some other amazing porn star are you really gonna be super excited to have sex with an ex girlfriend 3 days later? I mean you will do it and you will be happy about it but you are not gonna give it the same effort like you did 3 days ago. Again good luck but I don&#x27;t see Iona winning this.

tsw · Answer

I agree on Iona I think revenge trumps any possible letdown.

scalabrine · Answer

That&#x27;s a good thread man. I read it often. A very helpful service to this forum.

scalabrine · Answer

It&#x27;s a bit different than sex with Jenna Jamesom but I get your larger point.Iona can definitely keep up the intensity with a MAAC regular season title in their reach of Monmouth slips up one more time.These conference titles, however petty to us are all these leagues have. They can never make it to the final 4. So the banners than adorn the rafters are for their conference tournament and regular season title. They are very serious about them.Iona won the title 2 years running and with the win at Monmouth they let it be known the third will not escape them without a fight. Siena is an excellent team. But when you see when I saw vs. Momouth, a beating that was similar to GS&#x27;s 30 point win over the Spurs. You take notice. That is a statement game. And that carries a ton of momentum, not letdown.

Iona @ Siena - Just shooting straight from the hip on this one. WRITE-UP!

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