Canisius and Fairfield Play Wednesday Night in CIT
MAAC Sports
From reports from Canisius and Fairfield Athletic Communications
The MAAC has two more teams participating in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT) Wednesday evening, as Canisius College hosts Elon University for a 7 p.m. contest at the Koessler Athletic Center while Fairfield University takes on Kent State University for a 7 p.m. game at Kent State’s MAC Center.
Canisius (18-13, 11-7 MAAC) will play its first postseason game in 17 years with their CIT first-round contest vs. Elon (21-11, 13-5 Southern). It also marks the first time in program history that the Griffs have hosted a postseason game in the Koessler Athletic Center. For Canisius’ 300th all-time game in program history at the Koessler Athletic Center, the squad will be led by junior guard Billy Baron, an All-MAAC First Team selection who is ranked third in the MAAC with his 16.9 points per game, and senior guard Harold Washington, a member of the All-MAAC Third Team who is averaging 19.6 points per game in the team’s last five contests. Junior forward Lucas Troutman leads the Phoenix in scoring average at 15.3 points per game, which ranks fifth in the Southern Conference.
Fairfield (19-15, 9-9 MAAC) will play in the CIT for the third time in the last four years, reaching the tournament semifinals in 2012 and the second round of the tournament in 2010. The Stags own a 4-2 record in their first two appearances in this event. The team will advance to postseason play for the fourth straight season, extending the longest streak in school history. The Stags will also try to win 20 games in a season for the fourth season in a row. The Stags are led by senior Derek Needham, who was named to the All-MAAC Second Team earlier this month and brings a 14.4 scoring average into the game. Junior Maurice Barrow, the 2012-13 MAAC Sixth Man of the Year, is next in line with 9.0 points every 40 minutes. Kent State (20-13, 9-7 MAC East) is led by senior Chris Evans with his team-high 16.6 scoring average, slightly higher than Randal Holt's 14.6 points per game.
Tuesday evening, the MAAC earned two wins the CIT as Rider University earned a 63-54 win at the University of Hartford and Loyola University Maryland came from behind to defeat Boston University, 70-63. The second round matchups for the Broncs and the Greyhounds will be determined following the 10 remaining first-round CIT games. Loyola is set to host their next CIT game on Sunday, March 24 at 3 p.m. at Reitz Arena.