Photo courtesy Quinnipiac Athletics
By: Dylan Fearon
In position to sweep a tough Buffalo road trip, the Quinnipiac men’s basketball team didn’t have enough in the second half against Canisius. Up 59-54 with just over ten minutes remaining, the Golden Griffins went on a 14-2 run and never looked back, defeating the Bobcats by six to move Quinnipiac’s Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference record to 2-2. That makes it two years in a row Quinnipiac splits a tough road trip to west New York against Niagara and Canisius. Q30 Sports men’s basketball beat reporter Dylan Fearon with his three thoughts on the trip.
Oh, what could have been
Quinnipiac had a real shot to turn some heads Wednesday night. After fighting back from an 11-point deficit with four minutes remaining against Niagara on Monday, the Bobcats came into the Koessler Athletic Center with a chance to improve to 3-1 in MAAC play. 3-1 would have put them atop the conference standings heading into a home battle with Manhattan, which has yet to pick up its first MAAC victory. It seemed very possible after the Niagara comeback that Quinnipiac could be 4-1 in conference play. But, it wasn’t meant to be against Canisius, which extended its winning streak to seven games with the win. The Golden Griffins turned the ball over just five times, compared to the Bobcats 17 giveaways. Quinnipiac had a big time advantage inside and on the glass, but it wasn’t enough as Canisius racked up 14 steals in the victory. In a conference that has so much parity and where every win is crucial, Tom Moore and the Bobcats know the difference between 3-1 and 2-2 records.
Danny Harris needs to wake up offensively
He’s hit snooze too many times. It’s time to get up. Harris has struggled recently and has been poor in conference play. In his last three games, Harris has a combined nine points on three-for-20 shooting. That’s three points per game on 15 percent from the field if you don’t have a calculator handy. Conference play isn’t much better. The senior from Tampa, Florida is averaging 5.3 points on 22 percent shooting in Quinnipiac’s four MAAC games. On a team with a brand-new backcourt (except for Harris), he has to improve A.S.A.P. to take some of the weight off freshmen Mikey Dixon and Peter Kiss’ shoulders. Coming into the season, Harris was supposed to be the rock, the guard Tom Moore could rely on to make shots on the offensive end. But it has not shaped up to be that way so far. Time to wake up with Manhattan coming to town and then a trip to Jersey City to face a defensive-oriented Saint Peter’s team.
Canisius is the second best team in the MAAC
Despite losing three straight, including two consecutive MAAC games, Monmouth is still the favorite to win the conference. But Canisius is 3-1 in the MAAC right now, with its only loss to the Hawks by six on the road. Not too shabby against a Monmouth team that won at Memphis this season. The Golden Griffins are rolling right now and have just one loss since Thanksgiving. With Iona having injury and team issues, and Siena not playing like themselves, that second spot in the MAAC is up for grabs. Canisius has shown they belong up there with Monmouth in head coach Reggie Witherspoon’s first year at the helm. It has the experience in Kassius Robertons, Phil Valent, Jermaine Crumpton and Kiefer Douse, but the young talent in Spencer Foley and Malik Johnson. These boys are the real deal. Watch out.
