To help get us through the much-too-long off season, I thought I'd offer a quick recap of my Road Warrior highlights from the 2011-12 season. In true media guide form, here are the season highs in some traditional statistical categories for the ‘road' games I was fortunate enough to attend... representing both UAlbany and its opponents.

2011-12 Season: 14 Games in 12 Arenas in 7 States
2011-12 Road Record: 6-8
Total 2011-12 Trip Mileage: 5,581 miles

Mileage Equivalent To:
20.08 round trips between UAlbany's SEFCU Arena and Binghamton's Events Center
1.005 round trips between New York City and Los Angeles
22.4% of the circumference of the Earth at the equator
2.34% of the average distance from the Earth to the Moon

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Most of the talent was here it seems that Masiello was just able to deploy it in a more efficient manner. I think the coaching change also brought about a change in attitude for the Jaspers. Players have talked all season about how hard they worked in the offseason. I think the reason they worked so hard is they knew a new coach meant a chance to start again.

The system that Masiello brought with him from Louisville is a unique one. You don't see many college basketball teams pressing and trying to slow the game down. In total I think Masiello deserves a lot of credit for the turnaround. I was shocked that he didn't win MAAC Coach of the Year over Jimmy Patsos.

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Trip Mileage: 234 miles (Saturday) and 234 miles (Sunday)
Total 2011-12 Trip Mileage: 5,581 miles

I was excited for my eighth consecutive America East Conference tournament, played in Hartford this past weekend. While I usually get an all-session pass and stay in the city that's hosting (Binghamton, Boston and Albany), Hartford's so close (1hr 45mins) that it's just much much cheaper to travel back and forth for whatever sessions the Danes are part of.

My girlfriend and I jumped in the car a bit before 10am Saturday in order to arrive in time for the Stony Brook/Binghamton match-up. The skies were gray, but the roads were decent enough... and it was nothing a quick stop by Dunkin Donuts couldn't handle. We got to campus around a quarter to noon, making good time. The direct route on campus to the Arena/parking lot was blocked off, forcing attendees to take the long way around the university. Fortunately, I've been to the Hartford campus enough times now that I knew where I was going. I wonder if some of the parking rules on campus changed, as the lot I've parked in for previous AE tournaments was completely packed... despite getting there before the first game of the day. We ended up parking completely behind the Hartford athletic field complex, giving us a 5-10 minute walk through some puddles and mud on our way to the fan tent to pick-up game tickets.

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On Saturday at 2:15, the Albany Great Danes and New Hampshire Wildcats should kick off the true start of the conference tournament in the 4 vs 5 game. On this weekend, mid-majors have the upper hand on major conferences. While a few teams fight for bubble position or seeding in the final games of the year in the ACC or Big East, the America East teams are fighting for their lives. The last 5 months? Meaningless.

The Wildcats were a X-factor team this season that finished with a 7-9 record in a very uneven season. They proved they have the talent to hang with the league's best with a win versus UVM at home and Boston University on the road -- both those victories are more impressive than any victory Albany, 9-7

Albany has the best offensive firepower in their D-1 history behind super-human scorer Gerardo Suero, but their defense has been absent nearly all season. Despite finishing in 4th place, Albany didn't notch a win against any of the 6 games against the top three teams, mostly because of defensive ineptitude. But as injuries derailed this team and threaten to topple the season, Albany rallied around the incomparable heart of Jacob Iati, who was inserted into the starting line-up. The 5'8 Iati has keyed a revival of effort on defense -- and on the way scored 42 points in the last 2 games (his game log is just ridiculous).

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Trip Mileage: 276 miles
Total 2011-12 Trip Mileage: 5,113 miles

UAlbany's 2011-12 regular season schedule ended on Thursday with a game I could not miss... a SUNY-rival, just 2 hours from Albany and my girlfriend, who is originally from Vestal, had a birthday the next day. So we were able to combine a basketball game and a birthday with her family. This would be my 6^th UAlbany game at Binghamton (5 regular season and 1 conference tournament), 12^th road game this season and 66^th road game overall.

I left work about an hour and a half early so we were able to hit the road a bit before 4pm. I've made the drive from Albany down I-88 to Binghamton a couple dozen times, so I knew it would take just a few minutes north of 2 hours. The drive was easy with clear skies, allowing us to get to my girlfriend's parents place to drop off our bags just before 6pm.

Instead of grabbing something to eat before getting to the Events Center, we decided to take advantage of the pretty decent concessions when we got to the game. Parking is relatively simple on campus with plenty of spots next to the arena. After taking our seats and watching some warm-up, I went for ‘dinner.' There's a good size selection, with hot dogs, nachos, pretzels, pizza and a Binghamton-area tradition... spiedies. I went simple with a hot dog and a bottle of water, which set me back just $5. Not bad at all.

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A few weeks back TheMidRangeGame wrote a piece on how UAlbany was using the "Ewing Theory" to win. Fast forward to the present. The Great Danes finished off the regular season with a 74-63 victory over Binghamton. UA will be the four-seed in the AE Tournament and finish with a solid 18-13 record (9-7 in conference). It seemed pretty likely over the past week that this would be the finish for Will Brown's squad. However, what many did not expect was the rise of a bench-player to impact player.

The Great Danes are now using the "Lin Theory" to win. You know what we mean...a small guy with little recognition comes off the bench and starts because the regular starters are injured. He then goes and shows how he is a big time baller, putting up points left and right. The team now has more than just one or two big scoring weapons. Yes, the Great Danes have a case of Iati-sanity! Jacob Iati, who was averaging 2.7 points per game in the first 20 games of the season he played in, is becoming the key to victory for UA. Iati has started four straight games for the Great Danes, who have been decimated with injuries late in the season. Since being inserted into the starting rotation, Iati has averaged 14.7 points per game.

More on Iati's breakout after the jump

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Trip Mileage: 820 miles
Total 2011-12 Trip Mileage: 4,837 miles

This was a road trip I was definitely looking forward to. Normally the 6 hours to the UMaine campus would be a bit much, but my sister teaches at the university, so my girlfriend and I were able to stay with her and her boyfriend, turning a basketball game into a little family visit. With the game on a Saturday, it became a must go.

I had an early morning work commitment on Friday, but was able to finish up in time to hit the road shortly after 10am... with the required stop at Dunkin Donuts first, of course. Our plan was to drive to southern Maine Friday, stay the night and then get up early Saturday to make the rest of the trip. Splitting the drive up into two 3 hour parts definitely made it much easier. We arrived at the Kittery Outlets in Kittery, ME at about 1:30pm to do a little shopping (I had to entice my girlfriend with an early birthday present shopping spree there to help convince her to join me). After a few hours strolling through the numerous stores in the area, I made sure to hit up Yummies... a HUGE candy store in town. A must stop if you have any sort of a sweet tooth. From there we made our way north about 10 minutes to our hotel for the night, the Union Bluff Hotel in York Beach, right on the coast. It was a gorgeous vintage hotel that was affordable only because it was the ‘offseason' ($99 vs. $189). We finished off the evening with some mandatory Maine lobster dinner at the Lobster Cove in York. I seriously could eat that stuff Every. Single. Day.

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