Iona Gaels men's basketball

The Iona Gaels men's basketball team represents Iona University in New Rochelle, New York in NCAA Division I competition. The school's team competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) and plays home games in Hynes Athletic Center. On March 21, 2023, the Gaels hired Tobin Anderson as their head coach.

Iona Gaels
2023–24 Iona Gaels men's basketball team
University	Iona University
Head coach	Tobin Anderson (1st season)
Conference	MAAC^[1]
Location	New Rochelle, New York
Arena	Hynes Athletic Center^[2] (Capacity: 2,611)
Nickname	Gaels^[3]
Colors	Maroon and gold^[4]
Uniforms
Home Away
NCAA tournament round of 32
1980*
NCAA tournament appearances
1979, 1980*, 1984, 1985, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2006, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2023 * – vacated by NCAA
Conference tournament champions
1982, 1984, 1985, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2006, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2023
Conference regular season champions
1983, 1984, 1985, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2019, 2022, 2023

History

Iona University has been competing in Division I basketball since the school's inception in 1940. Their first taste of success came with the ECAC men's basketball tournaments (essentially regional tournaments played by Division I schools that were essentially independent, with Iona being in the Metro) in 1979 and 1980, winning the two years for an autobid to the NCAA Tournament.

Iona is also one of the founding members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, which began play in men's basketball with the 1981–82 season, having been passed over by the Big East Conference for Seton Hall in 1980. ^[5] The Gaels have compiled the most victories of any MAAC team since the founding of the conference and have won a league record fourteen MAAC tourney titles (1982, 1984, 1985, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2006, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, and 2023). They have appeared in the NCAA tournament in 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2006, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2023, with the first two of those appearances coming as a member of the Metropolitan Conference and in 2012 as an at-large selection out of the MAAC. The Gaels have also been to 7 NITs, in 1982, 1983, 1996, 1997, 2014, 2015 and 2022. In 2011, the Gaels made it to the final game of the CIT post-season tournament, losing at home to Santa Clara. Since the 1978-79 season, the Gaels have won 20 games or more in 23 seasons.

Notable coaches with Iona W/L record

• Jim McDermott 325–252
• Jim Valvano 95–46
• Pat Kennedy 124–60
• Tim Welsh 70–22
• Jeff Ruland 139–135
• Kevin Willard 45–49
• Tim Cluess 199–108
• Rick Pitino 64–22

Postseason

NCAA Tournament Results

The Gaels have appeared in 16 NCAA Tournaments. Their combined record is 1–16. Iona's only NCAA Tournament victory to date, which took place in 1980, was vacated by the NCAA due to their star Center, Jeff Ruland, having signed a contract with an agent for professional representation a few months prior. Thus, NCAA record books attribute to them an 0–16 record in NCAA tournament games. The Gaels first five losses in NCAA tournament play were by a combined 11 points, including a heartbreaking buzzer-beater by Syracuse University in 1998.

Year	Seed	Round	Opponent	Result
1979	8	First Round	Penn +	L 69–73
1980*	6	First Round Second Round	Holy Cross Georgetown	W 84–78 L 71–74
1984	10	First Round	Virginia +	L 57–58
1985	13	First Round	Loyola Chicago	L 58–59
1998	12	First Round	Syracuse	L 61–63
2000	14	First Round	Maryland	L 59–74
2001	14	First Round	Mississippi	L 70–72
2006	13	First Round	LSU +	L 64–80
2012	14	First Four	BYU	L 72–78
2013	15	First Round	Ohio State	L 70–95
2016	13	First Round	Iowa State	L 81–94
2017	14	First Round	Oregon +	L 77–93
2018	15	First Round	Duke	L 67–89
2019	16	First Round	North Carolina	L 73–88
2021	15	First Round	Alabama	L 55–68
2023	13	First Round	UConn !	L 63–87

* Indicates vacated by NCAA.
+ Indicates Final Four participant.
! Indicates National Champion.

NIT Results

The Gaels have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) seven times. Their combined record is 1–7.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
1982	First Round	Rutgers	L 51–55
1983	First Round Second Round	St. Bonaventure Nebraska	W 90–76 L 73–85
1996	First Round	St. Joseph's	L 78–82
1997	First Round	Connecticut	L 66–71
2014	First Round	Louisiana Tech	L 88–89
2015	First Round	Rhode Island	L 75–88
2022	First Round	Florida	L 74-79

CIT Results

The Gaels have appeared in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT) one time. Their record is 3–1.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
2011	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Championship Game	Valparaiso Buffalo East Tennessee State Santa Clara	W 85–77 W 78–63 W 83–80 L 69–76

Victories Over Ranked Opponents

• Nov. 30, 1979: Iona 78, #14 Texas A&M 52 (Bucker Field House)
• Feb. 21, 1980: Iona 77, #2 Louisville 60 (Madison Square Garden)
• Dec. 27, 2002: Iona 65, #22 North Carolina 56 (Madison Square Garden)
• Nov. 26, 2005: Iona 89, #23 Iowa State 72 (Ames, Iowa)
• Nov. 25, 2021: Iona 72, #10 Alabama 68 (HP Fieldhouse, Orlando, FL)

Gaels in the NBA

• Richie Guerin (Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, 2013)
• Jeff Ruland (1984 All-Star Selection)
• Steve Burtt, Sr.
• Sean Green
• Scott Machado
• Bob Santini

References

1. "About the MAAC". MAAC Sports. June 20, 2017. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
2. "Hynes Athletics Center". Iona College Gaels. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
3. "What is a Gael?". Iona College Gaels. February 23, 2007. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
4. "Logo Library - ICGaels.com". June 26, 2017. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
5. https://www.nytimes.com/1995/02/26/nyregion/what-happened-to-ionas-oncewinning-team.html

Rick Pitino returns to college basketball as Iona coach

External links

• Official website