Iona at a glance

IONA GAELS

Record: 27-7

When: Friday, 4:30 p.m. (TBS)

Where: MVP Arena, Albany

How they got here: Iona easily finished at the top of the MAAC finishing with a 17-3 conference record to separate itself from second-place Rider (16-14, 13-7). The Gaels were awarded an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament after winning the MAAC Tournament championship with a 76-55 win over Marist.

About the season: The Gaels had a rough start to their season, dropping two of their first four, yet Iona quickly bounced back with a five-game win streak. That included a win over Princeton who is set to play Arizona in the first round. After two more nonconference losses, the Gaels began to dominate the MAAC and only lost three conference games, including one to Quinnipiac. Iona ended the season with a 14-win streak, taking complete control of the conference.

Player to watch: Walter Clayton Jr. is Iona’s spark as the primary ball handler and shooter. He can shoot at all three levels and he’s efficient from all over the court. Clayton Jr. has maintained an incredible 42.9 percent clip from the perimeter, is very comfortable in the midrange and goes downhill for some bullish layups to average 16.9 points per game. He probably won’t get many opportunities in the paint when going against the likes of Adama Sanogo and Donovan Clingan, but if those bigs get caught in the perimeter, Clayton Jr. will surely capitalize. He always makes the right play and is a defensive pest, snagging 1.9 steals per game, so he’ll surely cause some problems for the Huskies.

X factor: In the opposing coaches box will be Hall of Famer, Rick Pitino. He’s won at every level, including national titles with Kentucky and Louisville. Pitino also coached Bostonn University and Providence, along with the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks. He coached in Greece for the Euroleague, where he’s a two-time champion. He accepted the job at Iona to bring his career full circle back to his New York roots and has stated that this will be his final coaching stop before retirement. But the two-time MAAC Coach of the Year has been identified as a candidate for two Big East jobs: Georgetown and St.

John’s. Dan Hurley knows quite a bit about Pitino, and considering how rambunctious these two coaches get on the sideline, it will certainly be a show both on and off the court.

Up Next: If UConn beats Iona, the Huskies will face the winner of the match-up between No. 5 Saint Mary’s and No. 12 VCU. Saint Mary’s has a top 10 defense, according to Kenpom, and UConn has a top 10 offense, so that could be an intriguing matchup.