By: Dylan Fearon
It’s nearly impossible to mention the Quinnipiac men’s basketball team without referencing everything new about its program. Think about it. It has a new head coach, a plethora of new players and even new uniforms. It’s all everyone has talked about.
But behind the fresh faces, which has garnered the majority of the credit during this Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament run, are the old souls on the team. The role players that have been in Hamden for more than just a few months.
Take Alain Chigha for example. It’s his fifth year at Quinnipiac and he was the only Bobcat that had seen a MAAC Tournament win before Thursday. Known for his defense, Chigha came off the bench Friday in Quinnipiac’s 72-69 win against Canisius in the quarterfinals and delivered yeoman’s work. Active hands, boxing out, running through screens; the whole nine yards.
“Honestly Al on defense…I’m not even surprised,” forward Abdulai Bundu said. “That’s who he is as a person. He prides himself on defense. In practice too, he prides himself on defense. One-on-one drills. That’s just the way Al is.”
Then there’s Bundu. An undersized junior forward who makes up for his height with hustle and toughness. Just like Chigha, he’s seen the dark days of this program. A 19-42 combined record the last two seasons and two first-round MAAC Tournament exits. But Bundu’s play Friday spearheaded a defensive toughness that bounced the co-regular season champions out of Albany.
“He plays way bigger than he is with his motor, his length, his activity,” head coach Baker Dunleavy said. “But what we really value from all of our guys is obviously playing hard and toughness, but with mobility. He can really move, and I think with this day and age, you’re trying to take away threes. You’re trying to switch a lot. He can guard a lot of different positions. Maybe a 6-11 guy might be more effective protecting the rim or at some other things, but he gets it done in a different way and a really effective way.”
Bundu’s best attribute might be offensive rebounding. There were three straight possessions against Canisius in which he corralled a rebound on the offensive glass. That determination is one of the reasons Quinnipiac will be playing Sunday night.
“My will to win,” Bundu. “My will to compete. For me I feel I work too hard for anybody trying to stop me from doing what I do best, which is getting to the boards. People get tired, I tell myself ‘You don’t get tired. Let them get tired and just keep doing what you’re doing.’”
The biggest shot of the night against Canisius came from an unlikely source. Aaron Robinson is averaging just 15 minutes per game this year, but got an opportunity to play hero late. Just 2:30 to go, the junior guard buried a corner three to extend Quinnipiac’s lead to six, nearly sealing the win for the Bobcats.
“I was just waiting for one to come my way. I just trusted myself and knew if it came my way I would shoot,” Robinson said. “When Rich (Kelly) skipped it to me, I just shot it and couldn’t be happier. When it left my hand I knew it was good.”
Last night Aaron Robinson (@_watchurhead) hit a huge three to put Q up for good. He talks about how his late mother’s memory was motivating & how she influenced how selfless of a teammate he is. pic.twitter.com/35SD5mKD2G
— Sierra Goodwill (@SierraGoodwill) March 3, 2018
Abdulai Bundu on Aaron Robinson’s corner three with 2:30 to go against Canisius: “When I saw that go in, I was like ‘that’s the DMV man.’” #DMVhoops @ALLstar_abdul @_watchurhead @MarcusHelton
— Dylan Fearon (@DylanFearon_) March 3, 2018
Everyone will talk about Quinnipiac’s new point guard, new All-MAAC second team guard and of course its new head coach, but the role players that have been here for three-plus years were huge in getting the Bobcats to the MAAC semifinals. Fairfield or Niagara awaits Sunday night.
