Men’s basketball fell to Fairfield in the quarterfinals of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Tournament by a score of 79-60, marking the end of Monmouth’s basketball season. Their record to end the 2020-2021 season was 12-8, and 12-6 in conference play.
“We’ve had a great season; we weren’t picked to win it and we ended up close and tying with Siena,” said Head Coach King Rice. “We hit 10 wins and we held that down for a long time.”
While the season may seem to be a little bit of a disappointment, the Hawks did exceed the expectation that were set for them in the beginning of the season. Coach Rice received the honors of MAAC Coach of the Year because of his team’s efforts. This is the third time Rice has received this honor in his six-year tenure with Monmouth. Deion Hammond was also honored by being named to the All-District First Team for his efforts this season.
Monmouth was able to build a first half lead of six points when Redshirt sophomore guard Donovann Toatley knocked down a triple, then quickly scored twice in transition to build a 20-14 cushion. However, Fairfield would answer by crafting together a 12-0 run, and led by as many as 11 in the first 20 minutes, but by the end of the half the Hawks were facing a seven-point deficit heading into the locker room.
The Hawks showed a bit of late life in the second half as senior forward Melik Martin and guard Deion Hammond knocked consecutive three-pointers and knocked the Fairfield lead all the way down to just four points. However, Fairfield erased any possibility of a comeback when they went on another 12-0 run, giving them a comfortable 16-point cushion, which was enough for them to secure themselves a spot in the semifinals of the MAAC championship.
“This one feels a little built different but let’s start out saying how incredible Fairfield played,” said Rice, “They just out toughed us, they hit us in the face, they were solid.”
Fairfield would advance all the way to the MAAC Championship game, where they ultimately fell to Iona by a score of 60-51.
Legendary college basketball coach Rick Pitino led the Iona program to a MAAC championship in just his first season. After securing a bid by winning their conference, Iona will be facing off against Alabama in the round of 64 in the highly anticipated NCAA Tournament after its cancellation last year.
If there was one word to describe this season of Monmouth basketball, it would be peculiar. It has been just over a year since COVID-19 spread rampantly around the globe. After the cancellation of the MAAC Tournament a season ago, college basketball had to be re-structured to let the athletes perform at their highest potential.
This year had its up and downs for the Hawks. Fans witnessed games get cancelled, records get broken, and players flourish all throughout the season. Even though fans could not attend the games, students and fans of the program certainly were watching at home rooting on the blue and white. While many people hoped that Monmouth would have made it deeper in the MAAC Tournament, it was a great season for the Hawks with the constant adversity and doubt throughout the entire season.
Congratulations to seniors Deion Hammond, Melik Martin, George Papas and Marcus McClary for their collegiate careers representing the blue and white, and thank you for all the hard work you put in for the program and Monmouth University.
PHOTO COURTESY of Monmouth Athletics
