Ice Asortse,  a 6-foot-7, 238-pound forward from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, has pledged to play for head coach Tim Cluess and associate head coach Jared Grasso.

“I have verbally committed to Iona a minute ago,” Asortse told SNY.tv.

“They have a very good basketball program and are located in a good location near New York City where there are a lot of opportunities,” he added. “They’ve been recruiting me since my freshman year.”

SNY.tv was the first to report last month that Asortse listed Iona as his top choice.

He’s averaging 10.8 points and 9.0 rebounds and can play both power forward and center.

“I love cleaning the boards and really want to work more on my offense so that I will always cause mismatch problems on the floor every time,” he said.

After averaging 10.1 points and 9.3 rebounds, Asortse was named the Offensive Player of the year last season on a Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College team that went 21-6 and won its first MACJC title since 1992.

Iona has had great success with junior college players, most notably Mike Glover, the Preseason MAAC Player of the Year.

The Gaels also have JUCO point guard DaShawn Gomez coming in next fall, and 6-8 forward David Laury is in the pipeline for January 2013.

As for Asortse, he watches Glover on TV and hopes to follow in his footsteps.

“He loves Glover’s game and wants to step in for him,” said Joe Boncore, who trains Asortse.

Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter

And like ZAGS on Facebook

The MAAC has historically been a one-bid league, and first-year Manhattan coach Steve Masiello doesn’t see that changing this March.

“Don’t get me wrong, the regular season matters and the seeding matters and you want to win the conference,” Masiello, whose team hosts Iona Saturday night, told SNY.tv Friday by phone. “But it all comes down to what you do on March 2-5.”

The MAAC Tournament actually runs March 1-5 in Springfield, Mass., but the top six seeds get a bye.

Entering Saturday’s tilt, Iona and Manhattan are tied atop the league at 10-2, although the Jaspers actually hold the tiebreak edge by virtue of their 75-72 victory Jan. 12 at Iona that prompted a hug from former Seton Hall and Manhattan coach Bobby Gonzalez.

Loyola is not far behind at 9-2.

Manhattan (17-7) has won eight straight games, catapulting Masiello, the former Rick Pitino assistant, into Coach of the Year consideration. Iona (18-5) has won three in a row.

“I just think for a team like us who was picked eighth to even be in the conversation with Iona in February is a great, great situation to be in,” Masiello said. “It’s really a win-win.

“Obviously, Iona being picked first is the cream of the crop of the conference…But for us to be in this conversation at this point in the year, we’re just having fun with it.”

Iona is coming off a 105-86 victory over Canisius Thursday in which Arizona transfer Lamont “Momo” Jones poured in 43 points, a Hynes Center record.

“They have to be in the conversation for one of the best backcourts in the country, with Momo and Scott [Machado],” Masiello said. “I think Scott is the best point guard in the country and Momo is starting to hit his stride. He had 25 against Loyola and now he has 43…so I think he’s kind of getting in rhythm.”

Machado, who had 14 points and 14 assists in the Canisius game, leads Division 1 in assists at 10.0 per game and recently got glasses, which should improve his vision.

He is one of 11 finalists for the Bob Cousy Award for the nation’s best point guard.

Iona’s Mike Glover, the Preseason MAAC Player of the Year, leads the league in scoring at 18.5 points per game, but Manhattan junior guard George Beamon is second at 17.4 points a game.

“I put him up there as one of the best scorers in the New York area, really can score the ball with anyone,” Masiello said of Beamon.

Asked if people were sleeping on his players, Masiello said, “I think they are but in fairness I don’t think you get recognized until you win. And Iona’s already done that. They’ve already won and now we’re starting to do that.

“So you take Mike Alvarado, who’s only a sophomore and is having a terrific year, and I think when Scott kind of leaves this conference, I could see Mike as a guy taking the torch next year trying to be that guy. I think he then turns into the premier point guard in this conference. He’s 6-3, he’s strong, he’s got a pass-first mentality.”

A year ago, Fairfield won the MAAC regular season title, but St. Peter’s ended up capturing the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Now, as many as four teams could capture this year’s bid — Iona, Manhattan, Fairfield and Loyola.

“It comes down to a three-game deal in March,” Masiello said. “I think any [one of] four teams in a tournament setting could be a very tough out.”

Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter

And like ZAGS on Facebook

Ice Asortse, a 6-foot-7, 238-pound forward from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, said Iona is among his favorites at this point in his recruitment.

“I haven’t taken a visit yet but I like Iona,” the Iceman, a 22-year-old Nigerian native, told SNY.tv by text.

Niagara, Stephen F. Austin and LIU are also involved for Asortse, who will have two years of Division 1 eligibility beginning next season.

Iona assistant Mark Calzonetti will go watch Asortse play on Thursday.

He’s averaging 10.8 points and 9.0 rebounds and can play both power forward and center.

“I love cleaning the boards and really want to work more on my offense so that I will always cause mismatch problems on the floor every time,” he said.

After averaging 10.1 points and 9.3 rebounds, Asortse was named the Offensive Player of the year last season on a Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College team that went 21-6 and won its first MACJC title since 1992.

Iona has had great success with junior college players, most notably Mike Glover, the Preseason MAAC Player of the Year.

Asortse said he watches Glover on TV.

“He loves Glover’s game and wants to step in for him,” said Joe Boncore, who trains Asortse.

Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter

And like ZAGS on Facebook

Scott Machado

You see, Machado already leads the nation with 10.33 assists per game, yet he’s been having trouble seeing.

“I went to the doctor because I was having these mild headaches and people were telling me it was because of my vision,” the former St. Benedict’s star told SNY.tv Friday before putting up a near-triple-double of 11 points, 15 assists and nine rebounds in an 91-71 home win over Rider.

“I went to go check it out and the lady was like, ‘You need glasses.’ And she was like, ‘That could be the cause of your headaches.”

So, to clarify, the man who leads all Division I college players in assists and has been called the best pure point guard in the nation by Manhattan coach Steve Masiello hasn’t been seeing the court as well as he could be.

Machado has already gotten glasses, but says once he gets the contact lenses within a week or so, it could make a dramatic improvement on the court.

Asked how much better he might be able to see with them, Machado said, “I mean a lot better because with the glasses already, I feel a lot better.

“With the glasses, you can see a lot more. It’s more detailed.”

Just what MAAC coaches need, Scott Machado seeing the court in more detail.

Good luck to them.

Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter

And like ZAGS on Facebook

By JOSH NEWMAN

Special to ZAGSBLOG

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. – If all the key figures declare for this June’s NBA Draft, there is going to be a whole lot of exceptional talent at the top waiting for David Stern to call their name.

The Draft lottery could be a smorgasbord of talent at the top with the likes of Kentucky freshman forward Anthony Davis, UConn freshman center Andre Drummond, North Carolina sophomore swingman Harrison Barnes and Ohio State sophomore forward Jared Sullinger at the top.

What you won’t find is a pure point guard. The first point guard listed among the “Top 100 Prospects” on DraftExpress.com is Carolina sophomore Kendall Marshall at No. 20.

Iona senior Scott Machado? 

He’s listed at No. 71 despite being named among the finalists for the Bob Cousy Award.

The Queens, N.Y. native entered a key MAAC contest against Manhattan on Thursday evening averaging 13.4 points and a gaudy, Division I-best 10.1 assists per game for the Gales.

On Thursday, with representatives from the San Antonio Spurs, Golden State Warriors, New Orleans Hornets and Oklahoma City watching Iona’s crop of potential future pros (Machado, Mike Glover, Lamont ‘MoMo’ Jones), Machado gave those four reps something positive to go back to their superiors with.

“My first goal is to win a MAAC championship and to win tonight’s game,” Machado said of the NBA scouts.”If they’re here to watch, they’re here to watch me play. So I’m here to play how I play.”

Before the Gaels coughed up an 18-point lead and fell to Manhattan, 75-72, on Emmy Andujar’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer off the glass at the Hynes Athletic Center, Machado controlled the game with an iron fist, finishing with a season-high 16 assists to go along with eight points. The ridiculous stat of the game that might get lost is that Machado’s 16 assists were against just a single turnover while facing one of the MAAC’s stingiest defenses.

The 16 assists marked Machado’s 10th game of at least 10 assists and fourth game of at least 15.

You know you blew up on some opponent when that team’s head coach, a guy who has been around the block once or twice before, is saying you’re better than guys like Marshall, Myck Kabongo and Marquis Teague despite far less notoriety in this tiny corner of college basketball just north of New York City.

“There is not a better point guard in the country than Scott Machado,” first-year Jaspers head coach Steve Masiello said. “I will say that, I’ll put him up against any pure point guard. He had 16 assists and one turnover. I don’t know anyone that can do that and I think our pressure is decent. He is terrific.”

Surely some NBA franchise is going to give him a shot, whether it comes from Stern’s mouth or the NBA Summer League right after.

“The NBA seemed, not a little far-fetched (at this time last year), but I knew I was going to have to work to get there,” Machado said. “I know I’m going to play professional basketball somewhere. I have that passion for the game and I want this to be my life and I think I’ve begun to take things more seriously.”

Follow Josh Newman on Twitter.

Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter

And like ZAGS on Facebook

Machado, whose parents were both born in Brazil, trained with the Brazilian team for the World University Games and then competed with the team in Shenzhen, China from Aug. 13-17.

He now leads Division 1 with 12.2 assists per game while averaging 18.6 points through five games for the 4-1 Gaels.

“I think it helped him grow up a lot,” Iona coach Tim Cluess said after his team pasted LIU, 100-84, Monday night. “He probably got to see some people who played professionally or work at the game professionally and realize where his work ethic is compared to theirs.

“And I think he came back with a a renewed work ethic and he hasn’t stopped.”

During his time in Brazil and China, Machado played alongside Syracuse’s Fab Melo, Idaho’s Luiz Toledo, Lucas Nogueira, who plays pro ball in Spain, and Andre Goes, who plays in Brazil.

Machado told the Gaels website this summer that the biggest differences were playing with the 24-second shot clock “and being allowed to take the ball off the hoop when it’s rolling on the rim.”

“The shot clock makes it a much faster tempo and the athletes are much bigger,” he added. “It’s a challenging atmosphere that I truly enjoy playing.”

During a recent three-game trip to Puerto Rico, Machado put up 41 assists and just six turnovers.

North Carolina’s Kendall Marshall is second nationally with 10.8 assists, and LIU coach Jim Ferry compared Machado favorably to Marshall.

“Kendall’s a lot bigger, but yeah, I think Scott’s phenomenal,” said Ferry, whose team lost to the Tar Heels in the NCAA Tournament last year. “I don’t see why not. I mean, this kid statistically he’s going to have unbelievable stat but they’re not padded. And yeah, he’s got great players around him but he’s using those great players. And a lot of kids are stubborn and won’t.”

Ferry said Machado, a Bronx native who finished up at St. Benedict’s Prep under Dan Hurley, is the engine that makes the Gaels go, adding, “They could have a really special year.”

If so, Machado can look back on his experience this summer as the driving force behind Iona’s big year.

“I think him going to Brazil this summer was the best thing that ever happened to him,” said teammate Mike Glover, “and I’m just pretty much proud of Scott.”

Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter

And like ZAGS on Facebook

“That is one of the most dynamic offensive teams I’ve seen in maybe 10 years,” Ferry said after Iona destroyed LIU, 100-84, for their second straight 100-plus point game. “All their pieces just really fit.

“That’s a five seed. I mean, I don’t want to put any pressure on them, but come on.”

Iona is averaging 95.4 points per game and already owns a 26-point win over Maryland and a 5-point double-overtime win over St. Joe’s to go with a 91-90 loss to Purdue in Puerto Rico.

After winning the Northeast Conference championship last year, LIU made the Big Dance and promptly ran into North Carolina in the first round.

Ferry went so far as to compare Iona’s up-tempo offense to that of the Tar Heels.

“We played North Carolina last year in the NCAA Tournament and they really pushed the basketball,” said Ferry, whose team was picked to win the NEC this year but is now 2-4. “These guys push the basketball but they have so many weapons all over the place.”

Iona (4-1) took 84 shots from the field, making 42 of them, and dished out 28 assists.

“I don’t want to say they remind me of my team from last year because they’re better than my team last year,” Ferry said.

Mike Glover led the attack with 28 points and 14 rebounds and Scott Machado had another double-double with 14 points, 10 assists and 5 turnovers.

“[Glover] is an athlete,” said Machado, who put up 41 assists and six turnovers in three games during the Puerto Rico Tip-Off. “Today he wasn’t really catching some of my passes. I don’t know if it was me or it was him, but it happens. But he had a good game, though.”

Ferry said Machado is in the same category as North Carolina point guard Kendall Marshall in terms of the best floor generals in the country.

“Kendall’s a lot bigger, but yeah, I think Scott’s phenomenal,” Ferry said. “I don’t see why not. I mean, this kid statistically he’s going to have unbelievable stat but they’re not padded. And yeah, he’s got great players around him but he’s using those great players. And a lot of kids are stubborn and won’t.”

Added Iona coach Tim Cluess: “Right now, he’s playing as well as any point guard in America.

“He’s tremendous right now. Making shots and getting people easy shots and defending. He’s got an all-around game and his leadership qualities are at a whole ‘nother level.”

Lamont “Momo” Jones is still finding his groove after transferring from Arizona and obtaining a waiver to play immediately, but added 8 points and a career-high 6 assists.

Junior college forward Taaj Ridley is a big, agile body who chipped in with 14 points despite a dislocated finger. And Jermel Jenkins scored 13 points, hitting 3-of-7 from beyond the arc, off the bench. Nine Iona players scored, eight of whom tallied at least 5 points.

“They have three high-major players, let’s not forget,” Ferry said. “Glover to the Big East [Seton Hall] and Momo to Arizona and Machado belongs there, too. I mean, to be in the MAAC with that team, that’s awesome for them.”

Iona is especially motivated to make the NCAAs after losing in the MAAC conference championship to St. Peter’s last year, and then losing in the CollegeInsider.com final to Santa Clara.

“Yeah, we lost two championships last year,” Machado said. “The regular MAAC championship and the CIT championship. And we know how it feels and we don’t like it.”

Glover’s 2-year-old son, Mike Jr., watched his father help rack up 100 points for the second straight game.

“He just said, ‘Good game, he loves me,”” said Glover, who hopes to play professionally next year to support his family.

Glover was flattered by the talk of being a No. 5 seed, but said his team is just focused on the next game on the schedule.

“It’s an honor to be talked about being in the tournament, but as of right now we’re just taking it one game at a time,” he said.

FREE THROWS

Iona will play eight straight road games during the month of December, and doesn’t return home until Jan. 6 against Siena. “I think December’s going to be a pretty much important month for us,” Glover said. “I think it’s going to test us out and see where we’re at mentally and physically. It’s pretty much getting us ready for conference play.”…Four members of the Monroe College team, the No. 1 junior college program in the nation, attended the game with assistant coach Brock Erickson. Among them was 6-9 forward Orlando Sanchez, who is considering several schools, including Iona…Jamal Olasewere led LIU with 20 points, C.J. Garner added 18 and Julian Boyd 13.

Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter

And like ZAGS on Facebook

Iona’s Scott Machado shattered that mark by dishing 41 dimes in three contests– against just six turnovers — to lead the Gaels to a 2-1 record in the event.

“It’s amazing,” Machado told SNY.tv by phone after going for 15 points, 15 assists and zero turnovers in Iona’s 89-63 rout of Maryland.

“All the credit goes to my teammates. Without them knocking down shots or making layups or catching alley-oops, it all goes to them. It’s just wonderful.

“And you have so many pieces like that. Even the guys on the bench, when they come in the game, they all step up. It’s a blessing really.”

Lamont “Momo” Jones led all scorers with 22 points and Mike Glover had 19.

Iona’s 26-point win over a BCS opponent broke the school’s previous mark of 24 set over Georgia Tech in 1983.

Machado went for 14 points, 11 assists and 2 turns in Thursday’s 91-90 loss to Purdue.

He then put up 17 points, 15 assists and four turns in Friday’s 94-88 victory over Western Michigan.

The former St. Benedict’s Prep standout from Queens said his team treated the consolation game against Maryland like the final after the disappointing loss to Purdue.

“We had too many mishaps on the defensive end [against Purdue],” he said. “We really wanted to play in the championship game and that’s why we played the way we did today.

“We played as if it was a championship game.”

Iona, the preseason favorite to win the MAAC, will need Machado’s leadership and distributing skills going forward.

After hosting St. Joe’s Nov. 23 and LIU Nov. 28, the Gaels don’t play a single home game in the month of December.

They must travel to Canisius, Niagara, Denver, Marshall, Richmond, Vermont, William & Mary and Hofstra, before finally returning to play Siena Jan. 3 at Madison Square Garden.

Still, they leave Puerto Rico feeling confident after going 2-1 and nearly toppling Purdue for a chance to play in the title game.

“It’s great, it’s a great accomplishment,” Machado said. “It just feels good, really.”

Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter

And like ZAGS on Facebook

Picked to win the MAAC, Tim Cluess’ squad will start the 6-foot-1 Scott Machado and 6-foot Arizona transfer Lamont “Momo” Jones in the backcourt.

“I think our backcourt is what really puts us up in the elite area of our league,” Cluess said on a conference call promoting the Puerto Rico Tip-Off, where the Gaels will open Nov. 17 against Purdue (1 p.m. ESPNU).

A Queens, N.Y., native who played at St. Benedict’s Prep, Machado was a member of the All-MAAC First Team last season. He was second in the nation in assists at 7.6 per game, while adding 13.2 points per game.

Cluess expects Jones, a Harlem native who obtained a waiver to play immediately, to bring toughness to a team that lost to St. Peter’s in the MAAC championship game. He averaged 9.7 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists while starting all 38 games for an Arizona team that made the Elite 8 last year.

“He adds leadership to our team we were missing last year,” Cluess said. “He made a deep run into the NCAA tournament last year.  I think that will be invaluable to our team to have a player who is a natural born leader.  He is a guard that can play the one, the two, even some three for us because he is a physically strong kid.  Gives us more versatility in the backcourt.  I just like his competitive nature on the offensive and defensive end.”

On top of Machado and Jones, the Gaels also feature a slew of talented guards in Rashad James, Kyle Smythe, Sean Armand and Jermel Jenkins. Smyth, out of Don Bosco Prep, was named to the Preseason All-MAAC Third Team.

And oh by the way, Iona features senior forward Mike Glover, the Preseason MAAC Player of the Year. The father of a two-and-half-year-old Mike Jr., is especially motivated to have a steppingstone type of season to launch his pro career next year.

Purdue coach Matt Painter, who now has Robbie Hummel cleared to play after he tore his right ACL in February 2010, said he expects Iona to be a tough out in Puerto Rico.

“[I'm] very impressed with their overall league and obviously with Iona,” Painter said. “They got the transfer from Arizona to go on top of what they already had returning.  It’s going to be a difficult task for us.  A lot of times when I see those teams like Iona, it reminds me like our teams at Southern Illinois.

“[They're] waiting for the opportunity to get on that neutral court whether that’s early in the season in an exempt tournament or the NCAA tournament to make your mark.  We know they’re a good team, they’re hungry and we’re going to have our hands full.”

RELATED CONTENT

**Momo Jones cleared to play at Iona

**Fatherhood providing added motivation for Iona’s Glover

**Iona hoping Jones provides ‘New York swagger‘

**Momo Jones to Iona

Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter

And like ZAGS on Facebook

David Laury will never play on the same Iona team as Mike Glover, but he’s looking forward to practicing against him.

“To get a chance to play against a Mike Glover for a year will just elevate my game, especially defensively where I need the most work,” Laury said by text.

As reported last week, the 6-foot-8, 245-pound Laury committed to Iona but won’t be eligible until Jan. 2013. He chose the Gaels over Baylor, UMass, Southern Miss and Utah State.

For the upcoming season he will practice with a team that includes Glover, Lamont “Momo” Jones and Scott Machado and was picked to win the MAAC.

“I chose Iona because for the first time I found genuine coaches in my opinion who are going to help me reach my potential and get the most out of me,” said Laury, who was recruited by Iona associate head coach Jared Grasso. “Every coach on the staff is a good genuine guy. I just couldn’t be happier.”

One Division 1 coach said Laury “could be a pro,” meaning he could also step in and fill the void once Glover graduates.

As reported in this story, Glover is hoping to have a big senior season with the Gaels before earning a pro paycheck. He’s on the Wooden Watch among the top 50 players in America.

“I’m versatile,” Laury said. “I can effect the game from just about every angle — on the boards, being able to do a lot of things on the perimeter and having good basketball IQ.

“They already have so much talent there.”

RELATED CONTENT

**David Laury lands at Iona

**Momo Jones cleared to play at Iona

**Fatherhood providing added motivation for Iona’s Glover

**Iona hoping Jones provides ‘New York swagger‘

**Momo Jones to Iona

Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter

And like ZAGS on Facebook