RIVERDALE, N.Y. – If you surveyed everybody around the MAAC in the preseason on who the best shooter in the conference was, you’d be sure to get a lot of “Brendan Coyle” responses. This season hasn’t been extremely kind to him, though; he is shooting just 28% from deep heading into Saturday’s matchup with Manhattan.
But inside Draddy Gym, we saw the Coyle that we all expected to see. The one who made 94 triples last season at a 39% clip. The one who drilled six treys in the span of six minutes against Mount St. Mary’s.
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Coyle tied his career-high by making seven 3s, and matched his season-best scoring mark at 23 points as Siena cruised to a 74-59 win against Manhattan. He started hot, and kept it rolling, and it carried through the rest of the team, which made a season-best 13 triples. The win pushes the Saints to 5-3 in the MAAC, and gives the team its third consecutive road win.
Siena came down the floor on the first possession of the game and Coyle knocked down a triple, relocating against the Manhattan zone and connecting from the right wing. It was off from there.
“It builds a lot of confidence within myself (to make the first shot),” Coyle said. “It also expands our offense tremendously because it creates gaps for our guards to get downhill.”
As Coyle rained three more 3s in the first half as the Jaspers switched between zone and man, Siena’s advantage expanded. He made his fourth 3 off a Francis Folefac screen early in the shot clock to extend the lead to 37-21, forcing a Manhattan timeout, allowing the Saints bench to erupt.
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Defenses are always worried about Coyle’s 3-point shooting ability, but the Jaspers allowed him to get off a few too many good looks. For John Gallagher, it wasn’t for a lack of scouting.
“I thought we missed the assignments,” Gallagher said. “Their transition offensive play, we went through. All their fade stuff, all his ghost stuff, we went through, we covered it. I just think our attention to detail was not where it needed to be.”
The Jaspers have now dropped four of their last five games, falling to to 4-5 in MAAC play after a 3-1 start. This was the second consecutive loss that wasn’t even close, following up a 98-62 drubbing at the hands of Fairfield on Wednesday night.
Neither Jaden Winston nor Devin Dinkins could get going, and that’s a losing formula for Manhattan, as those two have carried a significant load this season in the wake of Will Sydnor’s ineligibility.
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“Everybody’s role changed within this team,” Gallagher said. “And guys that were supposed to be the second or third option became the first or second option without Will. We’ve survived it because of Jaden’s play, and tonight, when Jaden doesn’t have his A game, it puts too much pressure on us.”
Gallagher maintains that the Jaspers have what it takes – even without Sydnor – to put everything back together, but recognizes that it’s far from where it needs to be right now.
“We’re a team that’s built a certain way, and we have certain guys that just aren’t playing to the level we know they can play,” Gallagher said. “There’s no panic, we will get this right, it’s just when will it get right?”
The seven 3s that Coyle made were his most of the season, eclipsing his five from the game against Longwood back in November. It was his first time making four threes in the first half this season as well.
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Siena got 23 minutes off the bench from Riley Mulvey, who dished out five assists, but also claimed a few more in the form of screen assists. He cleared the way for multiple Coyle triples in the second half.
“Riley is a very large individual,” Coyle said. “He sets hard screens, we’ve all felt him in practice, so when it’s game time, and you can come off him, and you’re wide open, it’s a great feeling.”
Siena head coach Gerry McNamara added that Mulvey is the team’s best screener by far. It was easy to see why on Saturday.
The Saints aren’t the type of squad to live and die by the three-ball, which is why Coyle’s struggles throughout the season haven’t necessarily been a death blow. In fact, the seven threes that Coyle made would’ve tied for the third most triples that Siena has made in a game all season – not including Saturday.
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But those three games? 13 threes against Manhattan, a 15-point win. 11 threes against Niagara, a 29-point win. 11 threes against Canisius, a 22-point win.
Siena hasn’t played a close game this year when it makes more than seven threes. If Coyle gets going, the Saints can hit eight or nine or more much easier, which excites McNamara about where his team is headed. Especially now that Justice Shoats has been less shy about shooting threes.
“I’ve got four guys that made threes today,” McNamara said. “If you have more than two, it’s a big difference. I’ve got multiple people on the court that are taking the right shots and making them with confidence. If we defend at the level that we have all season for the most part, and we play the type of offense that we’re ultimately capable of playing, we’re pretty darn good.”
Other Games
Marist 82, Fairfield 67: Marist is the top team in the MAAC on KenPom at 128th, and has now scored at least 71 points in four straight MAAC games. For all the talk about Marist’s defense – which is well-earned – the offense is clicking right now, and it comes from different sources on any given night. Nobody on this team averages more than 12.8 points per game.
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Mount St. Mary’s 78, Canisius 68: The Mount has won four of its bottom five games this season in 3P attempt ratio, and that includes all three conference wins, and this Canisius game, where the Mountaineers had their second-best offensive efficiency of the season despite just 19 3PA. It helps when eight of those attempts go in.
Saint Peter’s 69, Rider 58: A career-best 20 points for Zaakir Williamson led the Peacocks to a 7-1 start in MAAC play. He’s averaging 12.7 points and 7.2 rebounds since December 29 when conference play resumed, nearly tripling his PPG average from Division I games before that. Rider pushed SPU on the offensive glass, but couldn’t finish possessions defensively, and turned the ball over 17 times.
Merrimack 83, Quinnipiac 71: How many times am I going to say the same things about Merrimack? When the Warriors go up big in the first half – which feels like it happens every night – they simply won’t let you have enough possessions in the second half to come back. Kevair Kennedy continued to shine with 23 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists.
