Three points decided the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championship for the second straight season.

The Manhattan Jaspers topped the Iona men’s basketball team 71-68 on March 10 to win the MAAC Championship.

Last year, Iona defeated Manhattan 60-57.

In the 2014 title game, a quick start gave Iona, the MAAC regular season champions, a six-point lead three minutes into the contest. The second seeded Jaspers battled back and went into the half with a 33-27 lead.

The Gaels (22-10 overall, 17-3 MAAC) started off the second half with an 11-3 run to take a 38-35 lead. But Manhattan responded with a 9-0 run over the next 1:46 to take a 44-38 lead.

The Jaspers would not relinquish this lead. Although the Gaels pulled within two points on several occasions, Manhattan’s offense scored several critical baskets down the stretch.

Iona had one final attempt to tie the game at the end of regulation, but junior forward David Laury’s 3-pointer hit the rim, ending Iona’s chances of reaching a third straight NCAA tournament.

Iona finished the game with five scorers in double figures. Leading the way for the Gaels was sophomore guard A.J. English with 15 points. Senior guard Sean Armand scored 13 points in his final career MAAC match-up.

The Jaspers were led by senior guard/forward George Beamon, who scored a game high 16 points.

The Gaels had won 12 of their last 13 games and entered the MAAC Tournament as the No. 1 seed. They also had not lost a game in regulation since Jan. 17 against Canisius.

Iona started off the MAAC tournament with a matchup against eighth-seeded Rider.

The matchup was the third time the two sides would face each other in the last 16 days.

From the outset of the contest, the Gaels displayed why they were the top seed in the conference tournament. Iona did not trail once in the contest, and at one point held a 25-point advantage before securing a 94-71 victory.

Leading the way for the Gaels in the win was senior guard Tre Bowman, who scored a career-high 28 points in the win.

Laury registered his sixth double-double of the season with 18 points and 11 rebounds.

Laury acknowledged that an entire team effort was needed in securing the victory.

“Everyone came out and gave a lot of effort. We were cohesive,” Laury said in the postgame press conference.

The Gaels then defeated the No. 4 seed Canisius in the semifinals 75-72.

During the first half, the Gaels and Golden Griffs put on an offensive clinic. Shooting 61 percent from the field, Iona held a 47-41 lead after the first 20 minutes.

Iona held Canisius senior guard and MAAC Player of the Year Billy Baron to seven points in the half.

The Gaels opened up a 12-point lead with 14:15 remaining after Armand buried a 3-pointer.

However, the Golden Griffs fought back. Nine consecutive points from Baron, along with a 10-0 Canisius run, tied the game at 70 with 1:28 remaining in the contest.

On the ensuing Gaels possession, a missed layup fell into Laury’s arms, and he made the put-back, giving the Maroon & Gold a 72-70 lead with 58 seconds remaining.

After Baron missed a potential go-ahead 3-pointer, Armand was fouled. He hit one of two free throws. Canisius ran down the court and made a basket to pull within one with nine seconds remaining.

Iona successfully inbounded the ball to Bowman, who hit both free throws to give the Gaels a 75-72 lead. On Canisius’ final play, Baron’s 3-pointer missed by several inches, giving Iona their third trip into the MAAC final in four years.

After the game, Armand attributed the win to the effort taken up by the Gaels since he was a freshman.

“We have put a lot of work in over the last four years since coach [Tim] Cluess came here [in 2010],” Armand said in the postgame press conference. “We have had a lot of success and have been unselfish to make it into the final.”

Despite the loss, there is still some more basketball to be played for the Gaels. As a result of clinching the MAAC regular season title, Iona earned an automatic bid to compete in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). This will be the first time the Maroon & Gold are competing in the tournament since 1997.

The Gaels will learn whom they will face on March 16.