No. 7 Fairfield pulled off a 43-42 upset over No. 2 Rider on Saturday to punch its ticket to the MAAC semifinals. Fairfield will take on No. 6 Manhattan, who also escaped the quarterfinals with an upset in defeating No. 3 Loyola 55-52. Manhattan was 2-0 SU and ATS against Fairfield this season.
No. 1 Niagara dispatched No. 9 Siena 74-62 on Saturday. The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference’s top seed will take on No. 4 Iona after Iona defeated No. 5 Canisius 89-85 on Saturday. Iona is 5-1 SU and 3-3 ATS in its last six game against Niagara.
The winner of these two semifinal matchups will meet in the MAAC Tournament Championship Game on Monday.
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No. 9 Siena pulled off a minor upset over No. 8 Marist to advance to the quarterfinals of the MAAC Conference Tournament, where they will play No. 1 Niagara. Niagara is 3-0 SU and 2-1 ATS in its last three games against Siena.
No. 7 Fairfield also advanced out of the first round Friday with a win over Saint Peter’s. Fairfield will face No. 2 Rider on Saturday; Fairfield is 3-0 SU and 2-1 ATS in its last three games against Rider.
No. 5 Canisius vs. No. 4 Iona and No. 6 Manhattan vs. No. 3 Loyola round out Saturday’s quarterfinal slate in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament betting.
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While most mid-major conferences have a pretty clear favorite, that isn’t the case in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference where at least five teams are live with odds to win the tournament of +650 or lower at 5Dimes.
The betting favorite is currently No. 4 Iona at +230 despite finishing with the conference’s fourth seed after going 17-13 SU overall and 11-7 SU in conference play. Averaging 81.2 points per game, Iona ranks second in the entire country in offensive production.
No. 1 Niagara (+475), No. 5 Canisius (+600), No. 7 Fairfield (+650), and No. 2 Rider (+800) all finished the season with 17 or 18 wins overall. No. 3 Loyola finished with the best overall record in the conference at 21-10. All of these teams will be in action in the quarterfinals on Saturday, with the exception of Fairfield.
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No. 7 Fairfield will be playing in the late game of the first round Friday night against No. 10 Saint Peter’s (+15000). Saint Peter’s finished with a conference-worst 3-15 SU record and went just 9-20 SU and 8-14-1 ATS overall. The winner of this game will face No. 2 Rider in the quarterfinals.
In the earlier game of Friday’s first round, No. 9 Siena (+20000) takes on No. 8 Marist (+4000). Marist was the more competitive team this season, but Siena should have some confidence this week with an 11-2 SU record in its last 13 games against Marist. The winner of this game will play No. 1 Niagara in the quarterfinals.
Saturday’s quarterfinals will also include matchups between No. 5 Canisius and No. 4 Iona in the afternoon and No. 6 Manhattan (+950) and No. 3 Loyola in the evening.
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament Odds - courtesy of 5Dimes:
Iona +230
Loyola +450
Niagara +475
Canisius +600
Fairfield +650
Rider +800
Manhattan +950
Marist +4000
Saint Peter's +15000
Siena +20000
Friday, March 8 – First Round
7:30 PM ET – No. 9 Siena vs. No. 8 Marist (Game 1)
9:30 PM ET – No. 10 Saint Peter’s vs. No. 7 Fairfield (Game 2)
Saturday, March 9 – Quarterfinals
2:30 PM ET – Game 1 Winner vs. No. 1 Niagra (Game 3)
4:30 PM ET – No. 5 Canisius vs. No. 4 Iona (Game 4)
7:30 PM ET – Game 2 Winner vs. No. 2 Rider (Game 5)
9:30 PM ET – No. 6 Manhattan vs. No. 3 Loyola (Game 6)
Sunday, March 10 - Semifinals
2:00 PM ET - Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Winner
4:30 PM ET - Game 5 Winner vs. Game 6 Winner
Monday, March 11 - Championship Game
9:00 PM ET - Semifinal Winners
