-- Happy Monday! Time to go around the MAAC again from the week that was and what to expect this upcoming week.

Canisius (3-12, 0-5): Last week -- lost to St. Peter's 65-61; lost to Loyola 77-62. This week -- Jan. 13 vs. Marist; Jan. 15 vs. St. Peter's. OUTLOOK: Another winless week for the Griffs has them dead last in the conference. Gabby Belardo being slowed by a back injury hasn't helped although he played 35 minutes in the loss to Loyola. Harold Washington is having a great year scoring the ball with his 18.2 points per game ranking third in the league. If Tom Parrotta's squad is going to string some wins together this week seems like its best chance with Marist and SPC coming to Buffalo.


Fairfield (8-8, 3-2): Last week -- lost to Siena 73-60; lost to Manhattan 53-51; This week -- Jan. 13 vs. Loyola. OUTLOOK: It was a bad week for Sydney Johnson's Stags as they continue to be a disappointment this season. They blew a second half lead against Manhattan and have now lost four of five. What's happened to Derek Needham? The all-league guard is averaging 11.7 points per game, down from his 14.1 ppg last season. You knew Rakim Sanders was going to take shots away from Needham but his assists have dropped from 4.5 per game to three as well.

Iona (13-3, 5-0): Last week -- def. Siena 95-59; def. Niagara 73-61; def. Marist 100-76. This week -- Jan. 12 vs. Manhattan; Jan. 15 vs. Loyola. OUTLOOK: What a week for the Gaels, who continued to light up the scoreboard. Sean Armand had 32 points on a MAAC-record 10 3-pointers as Iona hit 17 total from behind the arc in its win over Siena at Madison Square Garden. Tim Cluess' side closed the week by hitting triple-digits for the second time this year behind 31 points from Mike Glover, whose 19 points per game rank him second in the conference.

Loyola (11-4, 4-1): Last week -- lost to Niagara 66-61; def. Manhattan 61-60; def. Canisius 77-62. This week -- Jan. 13 at Fairfield; Jan. 15 at Iona. OUTLOOK: After a surprise loss at home to Niagara, the Greyhounds bounced back nicely with a pair of victories. This week's road trip to Fairfield and Iona is Loyola's chance to make a statement as a regular season player. Sophomore guard Dylon Cormier is averaging 16.2 points per game, making the progression Jimmy Pastos asked him for after averaging 8.2 points per game as a freshman. Cormier hit the winner with 3.1 seconds left against Manhattan.

Manhattan (10-7, 3-2): Last week -- lost to Rider 88-77; lost to Loyola 61-60; def. Fairfield 53-51. This week -- Jan. 12 at Iona; Jan. 14 vs. Siena. OUTLOOK: You have to be impressed with the way Steve Masiello rallied his guys after a pair of losses, the second of which came in the final seconds, to knock off Fairfield. The Jaspers look like they are going to hang around near the top of the MAAC standings.

Marist (7-9, 2-3): Last week -- def. St. Peter's 71-67; lost to Rider 99-86; lost to Iona 100-76. This week -- Jan. 13 at Canisius; Jan. 15 at Niagara. OUTLOOK: The Red Foxes are improved from last year but giving up 99 and 100 points in back-to-back games won't make Chuck Martin feel good about his team's defense. At least Marist hasn't had a problem scoring the ball itself, ranking second in the MAAC with 72.1 points per game. The Red Foxes make the upstate New York trip this week and Martin wouldn't complain with a split.

Niagara (6-11, 1-4): Last week -- def. Loyola 66-61; lost to Iona 73-61; lost to Siena 72-60. This week -- Jan. 13 vs. St. Peter's; Jan. 15 vs. Marist. OUTLOOK: The Purple Eagles got a nice win at Loyola but couldn't capitalize on it, dropping its next two. Niagara fought to take the lead in the second half against Siena but fell apart down the stretch. Freshman Juan'ya Green still leads the league in scoring with 19.1 points per game. A pair of home games this week against struggling SPC and Marist could give Joe Mihalich's team a chance to get a boost in the standings.

Rider (6-11, 3-2): Last week -- def. Manhattan 88-77; def. Marist 99-86; def. St. Peter's 72-58. This week -- Jan. 12 at Siena. OUTLOOK: It is five wins out of six for the Broncs who have suddenly come to life after a 1-10 start to the year. Brandon Penn continues  his outstanding season and is coming off a 20 and 10 performance against SPC. The schedule gets tougher beginning with a road trip to Siena this week and Tommy Dempsey's side will find out if it can be a factor in the league race or if it will simply be playing for MAAC Tournament seeding.

Siena (7-8, 2-3): Last week -- lost to Iona 95-59; def. Fairfield 73-60; def. Niagara 72-60. This week: -- Jan. 12 vs. Rider; Jan. 14 at Manhattan. OUTLOOK: The Saints are a hard team to figure. They lost to St. Peter's but beat Fairfield. Freshman Evan Hymes is an electric player and O.D. Anosike is a double-double machine that give Siena a chance in every game it plays. The Saints are starting to come on strong with four wins in their last five.

St. Peter's (3-13, 2-3): Last week -- lost to Marist 71-62; def. Canisius 65-61; lost to Rider 72-58. This week -- Jan. 13 at Niagara; Jan. 15 at Canisius. OUTLOOK: John Dunne's team was always going to struggle this year and the upcoming upstate New York trip doesn't look promising for a team that struggles to score the ball (59.3 ppg is last in the league). Lamin Fulton is a solid freshman and is coming off a 19-point performance in the loss to Rider.

GAME BALLS

Sean Armand (Iona) made a MAAC-record 10 3-pointers en route to a career-high 32 points in the Gaels' win over Siena at Madison Square Garden.

O.D. Anosike (Siena) is an automatic double-double every night. He scored a career-high 27 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in the win over Niagara. It was his 11th consecutive double-double, breaking Ryan Rossiter's team record of 10. Anosike leads the MAAC in rebounding with 12.4 per game.

Brandon Penn (Rider) continues to be the Broncs' best player. He scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the win over SPC. Prior to that, he had 24 points in the victory over Marist.

AIR BALLS

At the beginning of the season, nobody would have had Fairfield pegged fro 8-8 and 3-2 in the conference at this point in the season. With all the talent on that roster, Sydney Johnson gets a thumbs down.

A national air ball for everybody involved in the ending of the Western Kentucky/Louisiana-Lafayette game from Jan. 5. The Rajin' Cajuns had six men on the court when they scored the game-winner and nobody realized it. Not the officials or WKU coach Ken McDonald, who ended up losing his job following the snafu ending.