Sports Poets Society

The Big Picture Last year, the Pirates got through the first half of their BIG EAST schedule with a 5-4 record, but they slipped in the second half and settled with a 6-12 league mark and a 16-15 record overall . Last season’s heralded freshman recruiting class is back with a year of seasoning under its belt and coach Kevin Willard expects two graduate transfers to provide some immediate experienced help as Seton Hall attempts to move up in the standings. Who’s Back Angel Delgado and Isaiah Whitehead were part of the top-level recruiting class and both enjoyed strong seasons. Delgado, a 6-9 forward, was named BIG EAST Rookie of the Year after averaging 9.8 points and 5.0 rebounds. He won the BIG EAST rebounding crown by averaging 10.7 boards in league games. Whitehead, the BIG EAST Preseason Rookie of the Year , overcame a foot injury in the middle of the season and averaged 12.0 points and 3.9 rebounds . Khadeen Carrington was in the guard rotation last year and ave...

http://www.icgaels.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=866430 Entering his third season as head coach of Iona College , Kevin Willard continues to build on the foundation of his program. With a second solid recruiting class under his belt, Willard’s Gaels will look to continue to compete for the MAAC Championship and an NCAA Tournament Appearance. During his first year as a head coach - and first in New Rochelle - the Gaels finished with 10 more victories than the previous year, one of the top turnarounds in NCAA Div. I in 2007-08. He instilled his foundation of up tempo, aggressive play with an emphasis on having fun playing the game of basketball to his young team.   At 33, Willard is one of the youngest coaches in Division I.   In 2008-09, his squad boasted one of the youngest lineups in the nation with 8 freshmen and 3 sophomores . Scott Machado set a new Iona rookie standard for assists and became the third player in program history to win the MAAC’s Rookie ...

BLUE RIBBON ANALYSIS BACKCOURT B  FRONTCOURT B  BENCH/DEPTH C+  INTANGIBLES C+ LOCATION: South Orange, NJ  CONFERENCE: Big East  LAST SEASON: 16-15 (.516)  CONFERENCE RECORD 6-12 (t-7th)  STARTERS RETURNING/LOST: 2/3  NICKNAME: Pirates  COLORS: Blue & White   HOMECOURT: Prudential Center (10,862)   COACH: Kevin Willard (Pittsburgh ’97)  RECORD AT SCHOOL:  82-81 (5 years)  CAREER RECORD: 127-130 (8 years)  ASSISTANTS: Shaheen Holloway (Seton Hall ’00) Fred Hill (Montclair State ’81) Grant Billmeier (Seton Hall ’07) WINS (LAST 5 YRS.):  13-21-15-17-16  RPI (LAST 5 YRS.): 104-70-133-136-103   2014-15 FINISH: Lost in Big East first round. Even though it was raining in downtown Newark, N.J., the world looked bright and beautiful for Seton Hall in early January. On that particular Saturday afternoon, there seemed to be no limits to how far the P...