The Guru Report: Johnson MAAC Record Sends Rider to Crowd-Less Semifinals

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – Top-seed Rider spent Wednesday afternoon here in Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall at the Metro Atlantic Conference Championships (MAAC) riding the brilliance of Stella Johnson, the nation’s leading scorer, but at the same time walking a tightrope thrown up by eighth-seeded Niagara that the Broncs managed to avoid being tripped up.

The Purple Eagles had advanced by way of Tuesday’s opening round victory in the women’s tournament over No. 9 Saint Peter’s 64-53.

But hours after enjoying the gritty 79-74 victory in the opening game of the women’s quarterfinals, Rider learned that the remainder of the MAAC championship, like everywhere else where teams that are still trying to grab NCAA men’s and women’s automatic bids will be very different than when they left the arena Wednesday night and strode back to their hotel.

Throughout Wednesday reaction in the sports world sector to the spreading coronavirus (COVID-19) continued with conferences limiting fans at their events, the NCAA announcing no fans will be allowed at the mens and women’s tournaments except immediate families and a host of other adjustments, the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) cancelling their convention in New Orleans held at the NCAA Women’s Final Four, and the NBA suspending its pro basketball season.

Then, about mid-evening, the email dropped here from the MAAC, basically echoing advisories elsewhere, “attendance at all MAAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball, and Esports games will be limited to student-athletes, coaches, event staff, essential team and Conference staff,  TV network partners, credentialed media, and immediate family members of the participating teams.“

Roughly the same time, the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) issued a similar advisory about its women’s tournament underway at Elon University in North Carolina, near Greensboro, where top-seed Drexel, which shared the regular season crown with James Madison, is set to take the floor Thursday at noon to open quarterfinal play against ninth-seed UNCW, which opened the tournament Wednesday with a 69-55 win over No. 8 Charleston.

In the other game played in the CAA event, seventh-seeded Elon, the host school who unknowingly played the last time before most of its fan base, eliminated 10^th-seeded Hofstra, 71-51.

In other CAA results on Wednesday, following the Drexel game, No. 4 Towson will meet No. 5 Northeastern, at 2:30 p.m., while the evening session will feature No. 2 James Madison against Elon at 5 p.m., followed by No. 6 Delaware, the other Guru local D-1 in that event, meeting No. 3 William & Mary at 7:30 p.m.

The semifinals are set for Friday followed by the championship Saturday at 2 p.m.

Elsewhere involving Guru local teams, the Ivy under much controversy cancelled its four-teams each men’s and women’s tournament, sending regular season champion Princeton to the NCAA women’s tournament (the Tigers finished first by four games and were a huge favorite), while Penn, if it is held, will go to the WNIT.

Villanova, should it get picked for the WNIT, will be under similar restraints if it hosts an early round game. 

Any of which WNIT games the Wildcats appear will each begin as the last potential coaching game of veteran Harry Perretta, who spent his entire 42-year career at the institution in the Philadelphia western suburbs on the Main Line.

Back here, in making the decision, MAAC longtime Commissioner Rich Ensor, a former member of the NCAA women’s basketball committee, said that once the NCAA made its move, most of the conferences couldn’t wait any longer.

He said New Jersey officials never notified the MAAC about the need to restrict access, “but we felt it was prudent.”

Ensor said the schools can decide whether to still send the spirit squads that consist of bands, cheerleaders, and dance teams.

As far as the actual competition working through the bracket, only half the women’s quarterfinals were completed Wednesday in the format that has the men and women of the MAAC navigating their NCAA pursuits  side by side in a different venue than previous years when the championships were held for a long time in the Times Union  Center in Albany, N.Y.

In the second women’s game, Wednesday, No. 2 Marist, the preseason favorite which shared the regular season crown with Rider, romped over No. 10 Monmouth 68-44.

The Hawks had advanced via Tuesday’s first-round win 69-60 over No. 7 Iona.

Rebekah Hand had 18 points for the Red Foxes (26-4), while Alana Gilmer scored 15 points, Grace Vander Weide scored 14, and Willow Duffell scored 10.

Monmouth (9-22) was held to just two players scoring in double figures; Rosa Graham scored 11, while Akilah Jennings scored 10.

Last Saturday at home, Monmouth thought it had beat Rider by a point in a stunning upset when it scored with scant amount of time on the clock remaining in regulation.

But that was enough for Rider to advance the ball to the front court where Amari Johnson grabbed an inbound pass in midair and scored unmolested in a layup to make the Broncs the No. 1 seed besides a co-champ.

Both Rider (26-4) and Marist have Thursday off while the women’s final is completed with No. 3 Fairfield with a bye meeting No. 6 Siena at noon after the Saints eliminated No. 11 Canisius 58-48 in a first-round game on Tuesday.

Existing ruler, No. 5 Quinnipiac, coached longtime by Delran native Tricia Fabbri, will meet No. 4 Manhattan, coached by former Villanova assistant Heather Vulin, at 2:30 p.m.

On Friday in the semifinals, Rider will meet the Quinnipiac-Manhattan winner at 11 a.m., followed by Marist meeting the Fairfield-Siena winner at 1:30 p.m.

The women’s championship will be at 11 a.m. on Saturday. 

Earlier in the day, the men’s and women’s awards presentation occurred with Rider’s longtime coach Lynn Milligan earning coach of the year honors, Stella Johnson making good her preseason player of the year award by claiming player of the year, while Amari Johnson was named defensive player of the year.

In the Rider game, Stella Johnson was hot through the first three quarters, eventually finishing with 37 points, a tournament record and her fourth best overall performance, three this season, behind 41 and 39 in successive games in Florida in the MAAC/ASUN challenge and then Wednesday.

She also grabbed 14 rebound against Niagara (10-21),  coached by former Saint Joseph’s assistant Jada Pierce, a West Chester graduate who also served at Delaware and coached Cheyney.

The Purple Eagles stayed on Rider most of the game, except for a brief 10 point deficit, primarily on the work of senior Maggie McIntyre, a Gloucester Catholic grad, who was named the Sixth Player at the MAAC awards.

McIntyre scored 23 points propelled by a tournament-tying record of seven made three-pointers, while senior Jai Moore and Emerald Ekpiteta each scored 14 points and Ekpiteta completed a double double with 13 rebounds.

“I know Maggie. She’s from South Jersey and I’ve watched her a long time,” Milligan said.

Rider has won nine straight and the 26 victories ties the program record of 1981-82 when the Broncs were still a Division II program.

“I just came out there to win with my team,” Stella Johnson said afterwards. “I just do what it takes to win.”

When she slowed down in the fourth quarter, Favre took over, eventually scoring eight points in the period.

Niagara threatened several times to rally and win at the finish.

But McIntyre missed a couple of three-ball attempts while Favre scored on a key play when Amanda Mobley found her to score on a short jump shot with 9.6 seconds remaining.

“I’m not sure if she saw me, but she found me,” Favre said. “It’s just something with do during practice. I know when Stella or Amanda are driving, I need to find the right opening. It worked for us.”

It was a tough loss for Pierce, who tossed away the team’s record in saying at the postgame press conference, “This is who we really are.”

Pierce said that every shot Johnson took was made difficult by her team.

“Coming into the MAAC tournament is always hard,” Stella Johnson said. “Everyone knows who you are. It’s not like a new team you’re playing. They know who I am, who I pass and what I do.” 

Milligan, who recently became the all-time winningest coach in the program, spoke of her star player not giving up shots to score when nearing her sweet spot.

“There are times I tell her to be a little bit selfish,” Milligan said. “I didn’t tell her that today. She just knew what her team needed for us to be successful.”

Johnson has scored 30 or more points seven times this season, and nine in her career, 38 points being one of the other two.

“I’ve been watching that for four years. Isn’t it great,” Milligan said of the double double from Stella Johnson.  “That’s what makes Stella special. We’ve been  saying that all along. She’s been the leading scorer in the nation. She’s been leading the MAAC in scoring and that’s obviously a huge accomplishment.

“But Stella is a complete basketball player. She plays both ends of the floor on every possession. She is as willing to shoot the ball as she is to give it up to a teammate. She is as willing to get an offensive rebound as she is a defensive rebound. Whatever she needs to do to help her team win, she’s going to do. Today it was scoring.”

And that’s the report.