1997–98 Iona Gaels men's basketball team

1997–98 Iona Gaels men's basketball
MAAC regular season champions
MAAC tournament champions
NCAA tournament, First Round
ConferenceMetro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Record27–6 (15–3 MAAC)
Head coach
Assistant coachJeff Ruland
Home arenaJohn A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center
1997–98 MAAC men's basketball standings
Conf. Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
15 3   .833 27 6   .818
Rider 12 6   .667 18 10   .643
Siena 10 8   .556 17 12   .586
Niagara 10 8   .556 14 13   .519
Loyola (MD) 9 9   .500 12 16   .429
Canisius 9 9   .500 13 14   .481
Manhattan 7 11   .389 12 17   .414
Marist 7 11   .389 11 17   .393
Fairfield 7 11   .389 12 15   .444
Saint Peter's 4 14   .222 8 19   .296
1998 MAAC tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

The 1997–98 Iona Gaels men's basketball team represented Iona College during the 1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Gaels, led second-year by head coach Tim Welsh, played their home games at the John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center and were members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. The Gaels finished second in the MAAC regular season standings, and would go on to win the MAAC Basketball tournament to receive an automatic bid to the 1998 NCAA tournament – the program's first appearance in the "Big Dance" since 1985. As the No. 12 seed in the Southeast region, the Gaels lost to No. 5 seed Syracuse in the opening round.[2]

Roster

1997–98 Iona Gaels men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
G 00 John McDonald 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Mount Vernon, New York
C 20 Kashif Hameed 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jr New York City, New York
G/F 21 Tariq Kirksay 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) So Bronx, New York
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • (W) Walk-on

    Roster

    [3]

    Schedule and results

    Date
    time, TV
    Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
    city, state
    Regular season
    Nov 15, 1997*
    at Morgan State W 95–92 OT 1–0
    Talmadge L. Hill Field House (1,110)
    Baltimore, Maryland
    Nov 21, 1997*
    vs. No. 5 Clemson
    Top of the World Classic
    L 49–79  1–1
    Carlson Center (2,839)
    Fairbanks, Alaska
    Nov 22, 1997*
    vs. Duquesne
    Top of the World Classic
    L 62–64  1–2
    Carlson Center (2,234)
    Fairbanks, Alaska
    Nov 23, 1997*
    at Alaska-Fairbanks
    Top of the World Classic
    W 85–68  2–2
    Carlson Center (2,536)
    Fairbanks, Alaska
    Nov 29, 1997*
    at Rutgers W 70–62  3–2
    Louis Brown Athletic Center (5,215)
    Piscataway, New Jersey
    Dec 3, 1997
    Saint Peter's W 90–72  4–2
    (1–0)
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (2,510)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Dec 5, 1997
    at Manhattan L 62–64 OT 4–3
    (1–1)
    Draddy Gymnasium (1,373)
    New York, New York
    Dec 10, 1997*
    Hofstra W 78–63  5–3
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (1,487)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Dec 14, 1997*
    Fordham W 80–65  6–3
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (2,440)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Dec 20, 1997*
    Liberty W 84–68  7–3
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (1,243)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Dec 28, 1997*
    Wagner W 92–52  8–3
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (1,270)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Jan 3, 1998
    Fairfield W 90–68  9–3
    (2–1)
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (2,710)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Jan 5, 1998*
    at Providence W 68–62  10–3
    Providence Civic Center (8,615)
    Providence, Rhode Island
    Jan 8, 1998
    at Rider W 90–65  11–3
    (3–1)
    Alumni Gymnasium (1,508)
    Lawrenceville, New Jersey
    Jan 10, 1998
    at Saint Peter's W 80–60  12–3
    (4–1)
    Yanitelli Center (1,086)
    Jersey City, New Jersey
    Jan 13, 1998
    Manhattan W 75–72  13–3
    (5–1)
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (2,521)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Jan 17, 1998
    vs. Niagara W 81–67  14–3
    (6–1)
    Marine Midland Arena (1,021)
    Buffalo, New York
    Jan 19, 1998
    at Canisius W 74–65  15–3
    (7–1)
    Marine Midland Arena (4,903)
    Buffalo, New York
    Jan 24, 1998
    at Marist W 87–72  16–3
    (8–1)
    McCann Arena (2,905)
    Poughkeepsie, New York
    Jan 27, 1998*
    at St. Francis (NY) W 100–69  17–3
    Generoso Pope Athletic Complex (436)
    Brooklyn, New York
    Jan 29, 1998
    Rider W 69–63  18–3
    (9–1)
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (3,079)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Feb 1, 1998
    Siena W 83–82  19–3
    (10–1)
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (3,128)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Feb 4, 1998
    at Loyola (MD) L 82–91  19–4
    (10–2)
    Reitz Arena (2,025)
    Baltimore, Maryland
    Feb 6, 1998
    Niagara W 86–74  20–4
    (11–2)
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (2,870)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Feb 9, 1998
    Canisius W 102–66  21–4
    (12–2)
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (2,710)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Feb 11, 1998
    at Siena L 92–104  21–5
    (12–3)
    Pepsi Arena (5,789)
    Albany, New York
    Feb 14, 1998
    at Fairfield W 78–68  22–5
    (13–3)
    Alumni Hall (2,424)
    Fairfield, Connecticut
    Feb 19, 1998
    Marist W 80–65  23–5
    (14–3)
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (2,908)
    New Rochelle, New York
    Feb 22, 1998
    Loyola (MD) W 92–82  24–5
    (15–3)
    John A. Mulcahy Campus Events Center (3,142)
    New Rochelle, New York
    MAAC tournament
    Feb 28, 1998*
    (1) vs. (8) Marist
    Quarterfinals
    W 76–55  25–5
    Pepsi Arena (3,611)
    Albany, New York
    Mar 1, 1998*
    (1) vs. (5) Loyola (MD)
    Semifinals
    W 69–58  26–5
    Pepsi Arena (3,142)
    Albany, New York
    Mar 2, 1998*
    (1) at (3) Siena
    Championship game
    W 90–75  27–5
    Pepsi Arena (10,667)
    Albany, New York
    NCAA tournament
    Mar 13, 1998*
    (12 S) vs. (5 S) No. 21 Syracuse
    First round
    L 61–63[2]  27–6
    Rupp Arena (15,622)
    Lexington, Kentucky
    *Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
    SE=Southeast.
    All times are in Eastern Time.

    [4] [5]

    Awards and honors

    References

    1. ^ sports-reference.com 1997-98 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Season Summary
    2. ^ a b "Syracuse Thwarts Iona On Janulis's 3-Pointer". The New York Times. March 14, 1998. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
    3. ^ "1997–98 Iona Gaels Roster and Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
    4. ^ "1997-98 Men's Basketball Schedule". Iona College Athletics. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
    5. ^ "1997-1998 Iona Gaels Men's Basketball Stats" (PDF). NCAA Career Stats.