Photo courtesy Quinnipiac Athletics
Throughout the season, Q30 Sports’ Quinnipiac basketball beat reporters Dylan Fearon and Josh Silverman will dissect the past week for both the men’s and women’s teams. They will provide insight into the latest trends, updates on player injury’s, and quotes from head coaches Tom Moore and Tricia Fabbri.
Below is the sixth edition.
Men’s Basketball Notebook
By Dylan Fearon
Best Bobcat scenario
Let’s be honest, aside from Monmouth, and I guess Iona, every game in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference is an absolute coin flip. Such is life in mid-major basketball. And not knowing who is going to win on a given night is fun. That being said, the coin hasn’t been very kind to Quinnipiac this season. Tom Moore’s Bobcats are 8-17 this season, including 5-11 in MAAC play and ninth in the conference standings. With two weeks to play in the regular season, Quinnipiac is one game out of the eight seed, and two games out of the seven seed. The best scenario for the Bobcats? Move up to the seven seed (or move down to the 10) and hopefully the coin falls in your favor in the first round. That would set up a quarterfinals matchup with most likely Iona or Siena. Also known as avoiding Monmouth for as long as possible.
Final Four
No, not that final four. I’m talking about Quinnipiac’s last four games. The Bobcats host Saint Peter’s and Manhattan before hitting the road to play Marist and Siena. Again, I could see Quinnipiac taking three of four, but I could also see them dropping all four. Classic mid-major basketball. The Bobcats have been trendy this year, with a winning streak of three and losing streaks of four, five and are currently in the midst of a four game slide. Luckily, all 11 teams make the MAAC Tournament. Anything is possible in tourney time.
Saint Peter’s: 2016 edition?
Last year the Peacocks were the seven seed in the MAAC Tournament, but reached the semifinals. Why? Defense. John Dunne’s program led the MAAC in defense last season, and held Fairfield to just 33 points in the opening round of the tournament and defeated second seeded Rider in the quarterfinals, holding the Broncs’ potent offense to 59 points. The same thing could happen to Quinnipiac this season. The Bobcats are third in the MAAC in scoring defense, second in field goal percentage defense and first in three-point field goal percentage defense, not to mention being the best rebounding team in the country. I’m not saying Quinnipiac will make it to the semifinals like Saint Peter’s did, but it’s definitely in the cards if its offense shows up in Albany more than usual.
Women’s Basketball Notebook
By Josh Silverman
Iona Recap
Last Friday, Feb. 12, Quinnipiac took on Iona at Lender Court in a fight for first place. The Bobcat’s started slow, going 0-for-12 from the three point line and trailed by six points at the half. With eight minutes left in the fourth quarter, Carly Fabbri turned the game around. Her 3-pointer put the Bobcats within three points of the Gaels. Fabbri would then hit another just one minute later to tie the game. Although Quinnipiac struggled from the line, missing its final four free throws, it was able to secure a win because of dominant defense. Aryn McClure had a career game to lead the hosts. Guarded by one of the league’s finest defenders, Joy Adams, McClure shot 10-for-16 to tally 22 points, grabbed nine rebounds (five offensive), and had three blocks. Quinnipiac’s youth needed to experience a come-from-behind win to gain even more confidence as the conference tournament inches closer.
Freshman contribution
The future of this program is extremely bright. From McClure to Paula Strautmane and Brittany Martin as well as other underclassmen, Quinnipiac has the makings of a great lineup. Not only will they potential be stars down the road, but also they played a major part in the team’s win against Iona. McClure and Strautmane combined for half of the team’s points. McClure had 22 while Strautmane finished with 14. Martin, despite a slow offensive night, hit a huge three with four minutes to play in the third quarter to help spark the comeback. As a team, the Bobcats have the most MAAC Rookie of the Week honors (7) with McClure owning four.
Marist Rematch
On Dec. 3 the Bobcats traveled to Poughkeepsie to face the Red Foxes and lost by nine points. However, Quinnipiac is a totally different team two months later. A revitalized offense and a 12-game winning streak has the Bobcats in much better position to split the season series. They have improved their shooting percentage from 32.9 to 37.3. Thursday’s matchup to keep pace for first place will prove to be one of Quinnipiac’s biggest tests of the season thus far. Specifically, Tricia Fabbri’s team will need to slow down the MAAC’s leading scorers Tori Jarosz, who averages 20.7 points and 13.6 rebounds per game, and Sydney Coffey, who averaged 17 points per game.
