After a couple days of taking (and hitting, fortunately) solo shots on my betting card, yesterday’s feature handicap expanded to a pair of Road Dogs. I take the split as Georgia State bombed out South Alabama with 15 buckets from downtown, while Loyola Marymount missed the mark by a half-point. Friday’s slate is very short, but I’ve managed to isolate one play on the Road Dog Report for 1/17/2020.
(853) Fairfield @ Iona -5
We’ve got a Friday night MAAC showdown at the Hynes Athletic Center as the 7-9 Fairfield Stags face the 3-8 Iona Gaels. This is a tale of two teams heading in opposite directions. The Stags began the 2019-20 season with a 2-7 record before turning things around on December 21st. Fairfield’s win at Oakland started their 5-2 run that they look to keep alive this evening.
The Gaels are on a 1-6 skid after starting the season 2-2. It’s been downhill for Iona since Thanksgiving, including a stunning last-second loss to St. Peter’s as a 9-point favorite two weeks ago. In fact, they are still looking for their first home win after three unsuccessful bids in New Rochelle.
Iona is stacked with upperclassmen leadership. 6’6″ guard E.J. Crawford and 6’9″ forward Tajuan Agee have been pillars of coach Tim Cluess’ squad. Crawford has been damn good all season and especially strong in their four conference games. He put up 22+ points in three of those matchups, making him target #1 for the Stags.
Coach Cluess effectively runs a five-man rotation, although starting guard Ben Perez has played a diminished role lately. Minnesota transfer, Isaiah Washington has taken the lion’s share of his playing time. Washington joins guards Asante Gist and Isaiah Ross in a “revolving door” of production. It’s hard to tell which one of these three will step up tonight, but you can certainly count on Crawford and Agee being on the forefront of the Gaels’ offense.
The Slow and Steady Stags
Fairfield has been sluggish on offense this season, and especially so in MAAC play. Their defense, however, is quite good and has kept them competitive. A pair of big men has a lot to do with that; 6’10” freshman Chris Maidoh and 6’8″ Vincent Eze have done well on the boards and patrolling down low. Eze has a decent inside game but Maidoh has yet to flourish in this regard.
The Stags rely heavily on their guards to put up points. 6’3″ Landon Taliaferro is a streaky three-point shooter who has the ability to put the team on his shoulders. His 24 points against Manhattan and 34 points at Texas A&M are good examples of this explosiveness. It’s a good thing, considering that 6’5″ guard Jesus Cruz has faded out in conference play. Fortunately, for the Stags, Taj Benning seems to be picking up Cruz’ slack at times with his versatility.
Fairfield’s Benning and Taliaferro have yet to merge forces for a combined blowout game. Perhaps tonight could be the night? After all, bad things have happened to Iona in each of their last two home games. In addition to the crushing loss against St. Peter’s, the Gaels took a gut punch against Niagara on Sunday with another one-point loss.
On the Money
Iona has not been good for their backers this season. Their 2-9 ATS is a tick worse than their outright mark, and they also have yet to cover the spread at home. They were favored in all three home games and find themselves laying five points this evening.
The Stags have an excellent 12-4 ATS record that is even stronger away from home at 8-2 ATS. Fairfield loves the Road Dog role, going 6-1 ATS with three outright victories in their last three away games. Those wins came against Canisius (+4), Oakland (+5), and Texas A&M (+5.5); teams that I rate better than Iona by three, five, and ten points, respectively. In short, Fairfield has delivered in similar circumstances but against much better competition. Give me the Road Dog, Fairfield +5, tonight!
