Iona is so loaded with guards that if they played in the Big East, they would have one of the top five backcourts in the league, one Big East coach told SNY.tv.
Picked to win the MAAC, Tim Cluess’ squad will start the 6-foot-1 Scott Machado and 6-foot Arizona transfer Lamont “Momo” Jones in the backcourt.
“I think our backcourt is what really puts us up in the elite area of our league,” Cluess said on a conference call promoting the Puerto Rico Tip-Off, where the Gaels will open Nov. 17 against Purdue (1 p.m. ESPNU).
A Queens, N.Y., native who played at St. Benedict’s Prep, Machado was a member of the All-MAAC First Team last season. He was second in the nation in assists at 7.6 per game, while adding 13.2 points per game.
“To be honest, I think Scott is a much better player this year than he was a year ago,” Cluess said in a statement that should strike fear in the rest of the MAAC. “We asked him to drop some weight. He lost about 12 pounds. Worked on his shot as well as some quickness. [He’s] playing at a whole ‘nother level. [I’m] very proud with the effort he put into the game.”
Cluess expects Jones, a Harlem native who obtained a waiver to play immediately, to bring toughness to a team that lost to St. Peter’s in the MAAC championship game. He averaged 9.7 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists while starting all 38 games for an Arizona team that made the Elite 8 last year.
“He adds leadership to our team we were missing last year,” Cluess said. “He made a deep run into the NCAA tournament last year. I think that will be invaluable to our team to have a player who is a natural born leader. He is a guard that can play the one, the two, even some three for us because he is a physically strong kid. Gives us more versatility in the backcourt. I just like his competitive nature on the offensive and defensive end.”
On top of Machado and Jones, the Gaels also feature a slew of talented guards in Rashad James, Kyle Smythe, Sean Armand and Jermel Jenkins. Smyth, out of Don Bosco Prep, was named to the Preseason All-MAAC Third Team.
And oh by the way, Iona features senior forward Mike Glover, the Preseason MAAC Player of the Year. The father of a two-and-half-year-old Mike Jr., is especially motivated to have a steppingstone type of season to launch his pro career next year.
“He’s somebody that has had some national recognition,” Cluess said. “He’s a 6-7 forward who can go inside, outside, plays very hard, one of the leaders of our team. I think he’ll go a long way for us this year to keep us competitive.
Purdue coach Matt Painter, who now has Robbie Hummel cleared to play after he tore his right ACL in February 2010, said he expects Iona to be a tough out in Puerto Rico.
“[I’m] very impressed with their overall league and obviously with Iona,” Painter said. “They got the transfer from Arizona to go on top of what they already had returning. It’s going to be a difficult task for us. A lot of times when I see those teams like Iona, it reminds me like our teams at Southern Illinois.
“[They’re] waiting for the opportunity to get on that neutral court whether that’s early in the season in an exempt tournament or the NCAA tournament to make your mark. We know they’re a good team, they’re hungry and we’re going to have our hands full.”
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