Iona Scouting Report | Page 2 | The Boneyard

Iona Scouting Report

Basketball is simple and like Pitino said, "Basketball, because of the three point shot, it's a game of runs. Anything can happen with the 3 point shot. If you go cold from the 3, and the other team gets hot, and you control tempo, you turn them over, so many underdogs can win."
 
I assume Jeanlouis defends Hawkins. He’s athletic enough but hes also only 6’4 as opposed to Prospers 6’8.

Much closer to how PC defends UConn than Marquette I bet. Actually similar makeup though PC is a better team, IMO.
 
I went back and re-watched Iona at New Mexico. Iona didn't press much because New Mexico's guards broke it easily and pushed ahead for scores.
In the half court on offense they ran a similar offense to ours with a lot of dribble handoffs around the perimeter.
On defense, if was almost exclusively 2-3 zone.
Close game but U New Mexico won. UNM had also beaten St. Mary's at Maryville the week before...interesting coincidence to have both teams in our pod
 
Hey Adrien! said:
F it, thanks to you I just emailed Kimani! :)

I'm not expecting it to be even opened or read, but no harm no foul!
Expand ...

Someone is going to be this year’s St. Peter’s. Is Iona capable of being that team?
 
Something in Iona’s favor is turnovers. They take care of the ball, as evidenced by the fact that they are 21st in the country in fewest TOs per game out of 360+ teams.

And on the other hand, they force their opponents to turn the ball over, ranking 52nd in this department.
 
.-.
Some advanced stats for their starters:
ionaRAPM.png


They have a very clear offensive top 3. Their PG Jenkins rates out as their best player in large part to his superior defense (and still good offense). Clayton and Junior Joseph rate out as superior offensively, but not as important defensively. Jenkins would rate out to be our 7th best player by RAPM, but he's the 5th best player from all low major teams.

Some nuggets from watching an hour of extended highlights and analytical play style inference about each player:

Scoring PG - Daniss Jenkins - Takes more mid-range jumpers and floaters than anyone on our team and actually hits them at a decent rate. He probably does that because he's a very poor finisher at the rim. Expect him to pull up, especially when Clingan is in the game. Because of this, he shoots a lot less FTs than a lead guard normally does. His assist rate is pretty strong, but not outstanding, on par with Newton. Protects the ball pretty well. Takes more off the dribble 3's by rate than anyone on our team (we're a heavy catch and shoot team).

Combo Guard - Walter Clayton - Has the best box score stats on the team and conference POTY. Sniper from beyond the arc, would be 2nd on our team in 3pt makes. Leads his conference in PRPG! (essentially efficiency adjusted by volume), around Trey Alexander-level. Good secondary playmaker and really takes care of the ball. Has the highest steal rate on the team. Very smooth handle with a bit of burst. Okay but not great finishing in the paint (and was pretty bad at the rim against top comp). One of the best FT shooters in the country.

Wing Forward - Berrick JeanLouis - About as large a role on offense as Karaban, but totally different player. Can't shoot. Physically reminds me of Sir'Jabari Rice of NMSU and now Texas. Good but not all world bounce, wiry but strong. Despite being a slasher-type, he doesn't really draw fouls, because he scores a lot of his points in transition. Based on reputation among their fans, I thought his Def-RAPM would be higher, but he does have a decent block rate.

Stretch Power Forward - Osborn Shema - Limited role in the offense. Spreads the court and takes 1/3 of his shots from 3 as a 7 footer, and also takes some midrange jumpers. Decent offensive rebounder when he's not at the arc. Only 220 lbs and vulnerable to get pushed around on the boards on the defensive end or to get out of position going for a block. Good, not great rim protector. Against good teams this year he was a bit of a turnover machine, but fine in the larger sample.

Center - Nelly Junior Joseph - He's shorter than Shema at 6'9ish, but operates much more like a traditional below the rim center. Has some faceup game and also a pivot post game, but almost everything ends up at the rim. A bit like a hybrid of Sanogo and RI Hurley guy Cyril Langevine. Part of their big 3, but is the one who played significantly worse against top 100 teams. For the season, he was a very strong rebounder and drew more fouls than anyone on the Huskies did this year, but did both significantly worse against better comp, especially in regards to drawing fouls and defensive rebounds (actually still got offensive rebounds at an elite clip). He protects the rim about as well as Shema, which gives them good coverage independent of defensive matchups.

Bench:
Their bench is pretty replacement level and doesn't get a ton of minutes. Michael Jefferson is a wing and can't shoot or finish. He's in for energy plays and some rebounding. Sadiku Ibine Ayo is similarly an athletic wing type, but with a bit more skill, although also can't really shoot. Anton Brookshire is a jitterbug guard that's a bit more involved in the offense as mostly a volume 3pt shooter.

Most intriguing matchup - They feature the same stretch 7' footer paired with bruising energy offensive rebounding PF/C of Xavier (Nunge/Hunter) that gave us a ton of trouble this year. But Shema is a lot worse in the post than Nunge, so I'd be interested in inverting our guys and having Karaban guard Shema and Sanogo take Junior Joseph. Might also be interesting to use double bigs in this matchup.

There's also no real natural player for Jackson to guard, since their guards are quick types, JeanLouis isn't impactful, and their 4 is more of a center. I assume he'll either take JeanLouis and play a bit of free safety or try to stick with one of the guards and let Hawkins rest a bit on D.
 
Last edited:
Iona has a fantastic starting five and the 2 best bench players that were good enough to play are both out with injuries. the starting 5 will give UCONN a helluva game .
 
auror said:
Some advanced stats for their starters:
ionaRAPM.png


They have a very clear offensive top 3. Their PG Jenkins rates out as their best player in large part to his superior defense (and still good offense). Clayton and Junior Joseph rate out as superior offensively, but not as important defensively. Jenkins would rate out to be our 7th best player by RAPM, but he's the 5th best player from all low major teams.

Some nuggets from watching an hour of extended highlights and analytical play style inference about each player:

Scoring PG - Daniss Jenkins - Takes more mid-range jumpers and floaters than anyone on our team and actually hits them at a decent rate. He probably does that because he's a very poor finisher at the rim. Expect him to pull up, especially when Clingan is in the game. Because of this, he shoots a lot less FTs than a lead guard normally does. His assist rate is pretty strong, but not outstanding, on par with Newton. Protects the ball pretty well. Takes more off the dribble 3's by rate than anyone on our team (we're a heavy catch and shoot team).

Combo Guard - Walter Clayton - Has the best box score stats on the team and conference POTY. Sniper from beyond the arc, would be 2nd on our team in 3pt makes. Leads his conference in PRPG! (essentially efficiency adjusted by volume), around Trey Alexander-level. Good secondary playmaker and really takes care of the ball. Has the highest steal rate on the team. Very smooth handle with a bit of burst. Okay but not great finishing in the paint (and was pretty bad at the rim against top comp). One of the best FT shooters in the country.

Wing Forward - Berrick JeanLouis - About as large a role on offense as Karaban, but totally different player. Can't shoot. Physically reminds me of Sir'Jabari Rice of NMSU and now Texas. Good but not all world bounce, wiry but strong. Despite being a slasher-type, he doesn't really draw fouls, because he scores a lot of his points in transition. Based on reputation among their fans, I thought his Def-RAPM would be higher, but he does have a decent block rate.

Stretch Power Forward - Osborn Shema - Limited role in the offense. Spreads the court and takes 1/3 of his shots from 3 as a 7 footer, and also takes some midrange jumpers. Decent offensive rebounder when he's not at the arc. Only 220 lbs and vulnerable to get pushed around on the boards on the defensive end or to get out of position going for a block. Good, not great rim protector. Against good teams this year he was a bit of a turnover machine, but fine in the larger sample.

Center - Nelly Junior Joseph - He's shorter than Shema at 6'9ish, but operates much more like a traditional below the rim center. Has some faceup game and also a pivot post game, but almost everything ends up at the rim. A bit like a hybrid of Sanogo and RI Hurley guy Cyril Langevine. Part of their big 3, but is the one who played significantly worse against top 100 teams. For the season, he was a very strong rebounder and drew more fouls than anyone on the Huskies did this year, but did both significantly worse against better comp, especially in regards to drawing fouls and defensive rebounds (actually still got offensive rebounds at an elite clip). He protects the rim about as well as Shema, which gives them good coverage independent of defensive matchups.

Bench:
Their bench is pretty replacement level and doesn't get a ton of minutes. Michael Jefferson is a wing and can't shoot or finish. He's in for energy plays and some rebounding. Sadiku Ibine Ayo is similarly an athletic wing type, but with a bit more skill, although also can't really shoot. Anton Brookshire is a jitterbug guard that's a bit more involved in the offense as mostly a volume 3pt shooter.

Most intriguing matchup - They feature the same stretch 7' footer paired with bruising energy offensive rebounding PF/C of Xavier (Nunge/Hunter) that gave us a ton of trouble this year. But Shema is a lot worse in the post than Nunge, so I'd be interested in inverting our guys and having Karaban guard Shema and Sanogo take Junior Joseph. Might also be interesting to use double bigs in this matchup.

There's also no real natural player for Jackson to guard, since their guards are quick types, JeanLouis isn't impactful, and their 4 is more of a center. I assume he'll either take JeanLouis and play a bit of free safety or try to stick with one of the guards and let Hawkins rest a bit on D.
Expand ...
Why not put Jackson on Clayton?

Sanogo should guard NJJ.

Karaban, despite a height mismatch, shouldn't have a problem with Shema (dare them to run their offense through him).

Newton can take Jenkins and Hawkins can guard JeanLouis (not much of a scorer anyway, right?).

Alleyne can also come in to defend any of the guards.
 
Tenspro2002 said:
Why not put Jackson on Clayton?

Sanogo should guard NJJ.

Karaban, despite a height mismatch, shouldn't have a problem with Shema (dare them to run their offense through him).

Newton can take Jenkins and Hawkins can guard JeanLouis (not much of a scorer anyway, right?).

Alleyne can also come in to defend any of the guards.
Expand ...
Clayton is only 6'2" (if that), so Andre may struggle with his agility. But re-watching the highlights, Clayton is more smooth than quick, so I'm probably overstating Clayton's quickness. I'm guessing that's probably what Hurley will do.
 
.-.
auror said:
Some nuggets from watching an hour of extended highlights Wing Forward - Berrick JeanLouis - About as large a role on offense as Karaban, but totally different player. Can't shoot. Physically reminds me of Sir'Jabari Rice of NMSU and now Texas. Good but not all world bounce, wiry but strong. Despite being a slasher-type, he doesn't really draw fouls, because he scores a lot of his points in transition. Based on reputation among their fans, I thought his Def-RAPM would be higher, but he does have a decent b
Expand ...

Fun fact: Berrick Jean Louis started at NMSU and was teammates with Rice.
 
Attack the rim! Dominate the boards and put-backs. UConn can run with anyone - its one of their biggest strengths. I hope we play fast.
 
.-.
gsmooth said:
good call. Alleyne should get major minutes in this game. The doubling of the posts will leave 3 point shooters open as long as the perimeter players make it easy for Sanogo to pass out of the double teams. Also, if UConn can get the ball out of any traps on pick and rolls or anywhere else beyond the 3 point line they should look to attack 4-3, make them pay for doing it.
Expand ...
One would hope Alleyne should get minutes soon and often. Pitino used to shred us at Louisville with full court pressure. Wouldn't expect anything less from him since we have had mixed results against that and are committing foolish turnovers lately. We need to break their press, score quickly and then turn the tables on them. Dominating the boards is key. Ball control and heady play will be important so we need good minutes from Alleyne and Karaban; minimal mistakes from Jackson. A good game here would bolster our confidence going forward. Pitino is no day at the beach with any team. Not my favorite coach but definitely on the all worthy opponent coach list. I expect a barn burner.
 
Hey Adrien! said:
I've watched Iona live this year more than UConn (3x vs 1x), so it was nice writing today's preview more from my eyes than the statsheet. Enjoy!

Iona: 27-7
KenPom Rating: 74
NET ranking: 58th
No Quad 1 or 2 wins
Currently on a 14 game winning streak (3rd longest in the nation)​

Best win:
  • 12/6/22 84-62 over Saint Louis

Worst Loss:
  • 1/8/23 81-58 to Quinnipiac

OFFENSE: 79th in KenPom efficiency:​
  • 28th in tempo (16 seconds/possession)
  • 28th in turnover rate (15.3%)
  • 70th in offensive rebounding rate
  • 78th best 3P% (36.0%)
    • But just 32.1% of their shots are from three (313rd lowest rate)
  • 106th in A/FGM (53.3%)
  • 156th in 2p% (50.8%)
  • 131st in FT% (73.1%)
  • 261th in FTA/FGA (29.0%)

DEFENSE: 67th in KenPom efficiency​
  • 4th in the nation in longest average possession length (18.8 seconds)
  • 4th in block rate (14.7%)
  • 8th in opp. 3p% (29.2%)
    • Also 89th in lowest 34.6 3PA/FGA (34.6%)
  • 44th in turnover rate (21.0%)
  • 51st in opp. 2p% (47.0%)
  • 96th in opp. FT% (70.2%)
  • 172nd in A/FGM (50.6%)
  • 183rd FTA/FGA (31.3%)
  • 272nd in defensive rebounding rate

In the last two seasons of Pitino’s three years at Iona, he has embraced more of a point guard by-committee offense rather than having “the guy” at point guard (which was Asante Gist in his first season at the helm).

Last season, AAC grad transfers Tyson Jolly and Elijah Joiner fit that mold while this year returning sophomore Walter Clayton Jr. and Pacific transfer Daniss Jenkins (combined 32.5 ppg, 8.1 apg) have been the stalwarts in the backcourt.

Their defense is all about their full-court press with 7’0 220 senior Osborn Shema guarding the inbounder with his seemingly limitless length and quick enough footwork to stay with guards in one-on-one situations. I’ve gotten to see him play live four times now, all just feet away from the baseline, and it’s a real joy to watch him do his thing on defense.

As seen below, their full court press starts with Shema (#55) and then at least two guards inside the foul line maximizing traps and using the corners as “extra defenders”.

2bphoVduky6T_rDNp1YvJ1jr0aWC3vO6EglLwV2vVSaS_YftnL0DlsgDufXptEcktx8XEhPJF1iII_wPA-_HFmy3SaWjh-RHf-8jLC20W1bLz6axEgsgIKS3wGbWnwcyIXgZUQuZVu-B9s-mpuftP5c


Personally, I think the best method of attacking their press is having a taller, smart and mistake-limiting forward like Karaban (team’s third lowest TO rate) help beat the press with Hawkins (team’s lowest TO rate) and another guard (Newton, Alleyne, Calcaterra) and then have Jackson (team’s second highest TO rate) as the athletic and lengthy recipient to receive the passes to get as out of the backcourt and lead the transition to our halfcourt offense. Diarra leads the team in TO rate (a whopping 29.6), so I wouldn’t expect minutes for him unless there’s foul trouble



vfcLVN0643LUmhggOYvwrWEJx8ApDRNSeM1X7CeYlEb2eMPLiTbczuQYde9uf63idQMyJXL0FqTZQFhPeicB6sWW0ihj_sH5KW7jxIEpBfa79ax3_3I5wEhF4KSo8cFKzYfz7JuiIAovFwDHG4lvSL8


Iona’s success starts with their All-MAAC trio of Clayton Jr., Junior Joseph (first team) and Daniss Jenkins (second team, but should be first team IMO). Assuming Pitino leaves this season, all three are high-major caliber players in my book.

As mentioned earlier Clayton Jr. and Jenkins share the PG duties with Clayton the more capable guard of creating his own offense. At Pacific, Jenkins was a poor 3P shooter (24% in two seasons), but improved his shot after a year of JUCO, with the 3P shot now a strength in his arsenal. Both are legit three-level scorers and are relatively efficient considering both have 25%+ possession usage. Of course, some of that is derived from playing in the MAAC, though.

Their backcourt mate is fifth-year firework wing JeanLouis. He reminds me a lot of Andre Jackson: the team’s glue guy who plays with unending energy, can defend four positions, usually has one or two highlight dunks per game, but is not a strong shooter. Unlike Jackson, JeanLouis is not counted on as a facilitator, so naturally, his TO rates are lower and actually the lowest on Iona’s roster.

That being said, I’d put our worst defensive guard on JeanLouis and then I love the idea of Jackson shadowing Dannis Jenkins with Newton on Clayton: if these two are stymied then Iona will be neutralized in the halfcourt as Iona loves playing in transition of turnovers caused by their press.

Toying with a three-point shot as a sophomore, Nelly Junior Joseph has smartly removed that shot from his game, but is very capable shooting and facilitating offense from the elbow. Out of all the players from Iona, I see NJJ as the guy Pitino will bring with him to his next job: he’s a true two-way forward/big who plays with a great motor in spite of his 240 frame. Honestly, a lack of a three-point shot is his only weakness: he has good footwork, physicality, decent passer, high BBIQ. He’s special.

As mentioned earlier, Osborn Shema is the team’s key on defense. Insane length, high-major athleticism and he’s bulked up from 190 to 220 allowing him to handle the physicality of the MAAC. He’s a true rim-running stretch forward with pretty form. Like many out of Africa, Shema was a soccer player and didn’t start playing basketball until he was 16, so his coachability and work ethic has really taken him far.

I don’t believe Iona has played a single game this season with all of their players healthy, so with starting PF Quinn Slazinski out for the year and key rotation Cruz Davis possibly also out, Pitino has had less success in the full court press with a smaller than expected rotation of nine players with a handful of minutes of Silas Sunday at the 5 to give a quick blow to Iona’s bigs.

Anton Brookshire (a transfer from Missouri) and Michael Jefferson (a three-year recruit from the 2021 class who played one year of JUCO) are their best bench pieces. Brookshire will be a future MAAC star, but for now, he’s a low-mistake combo-guard who does most of his work on the perimeter. Jefferson reminds me a bit of Karaban: a smart, offensive-savvy forward who will probably be a very good starter in the future, but for now, he keeps his game simple and helps facilitate the offense with his high BBIQ, court vision and passing. Both are two of Iona’s weaker defensive players.

Earning a scholarship after three-seasons as a walk-on, senior Parker Weiss is the team’s Chris Arcidiacono: a hard-working, team-first guard who doesn’t need the ball in his hands but usually does the smart thing: a secondary pass to set up a big play, only shoots when it’s the best available shot.
The one player in the rotation who I’m not that familiar with is freshman forward Sadiku Ibine Ayo (he played just 8 minutes in just one of the games I’ve watched live). Starting the year on the injured list, Ayo stepped up when PT was available after injuries to Slazinski and Jefferson. Profiled as a strong and physical two-way wing, his defense development is well ahead of his offense.

KenPom’s prediction: UConn wins 77-68.

If you'd like more original reading material, below is pieces from my blog:

Iona 22-23 Season Preview
Predicting the 22-23 MAAC Champs
Faced With Injuries, Pitino is Reimagining Iona's Identity

LET'S GO UCONN!!!
Expand ...
Brilliant work, @Hey Adrien! I'm in awe. I think we will handle Iona and likely fairly easily, but if a lesser team is going to give us trouble it might be a team with three quality D1 players, a 7 foot center, on a winning streak and that likes to press. Get 'em prepared, Dan Hurley.
 
.-.
Ripper32 said:
I'm watching some Iona film and Pitino employs a lot of small lineups during MAAC play. I don't think he can afford to play small against UCONN. He has limited fouls and minutes at his disposal.
Expand ...
Hopefully we dictate play and don’t worry about matching Iona
 
If we get the defensive rebounds they will not be pressing. So it is in our best interest to control the boards. I watched their game against St Louis and their game from last year in the NIT and they are not close to a Big East team.
 
Hey Adrien! said:
F it, thanks to you I just emailed Kimani! :)

I'm not expecting it to be even opened or read, but no harm no foul!
Expand ...
It's too late now, but if you've got gmail, Streak.com is a free plugin that tells you when your emails are opened: https://www.streak.com/email-tracking-from-gmail

So you could get confirmation that he read it next time (and you'll also get indications of whether he opened it multiple times or even forwarded it along).
 
.-.
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
168,207
Messages
4,556,874
Members
10,442
Latest member
Virginiafan


Top Bottom