March Madness 2013: Iona star shooter Lamont ‘Momo’ Jones ready for the spotlight

A year after earning an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament and losing in the First Four, Iona is back in the field of 68 this year as an automatic qualifier after winning the MAAC Tournament for the first time since 2006. Star guard Momo Jones — Lamont Jones is his given name, but he goes by Momo — is who makes the Gaels go.

The MAAC player of the year, a 6-foot guard, averaged 23 points per game in the regular season in his second year at Iona after transferring after his sophomore year at Arizona to be closer to an ill grandmother.

He finished the season third in the country in scoring, behind Virginia Tech’s Erick Green (25 points per game) and Creighton’s Doug McDermott (23.1 ppg). Jones is not a great three-point shooter; he was 55-of-170 from behind the arc this season. He’s more of a driver who racks up free-throw attempts and makes them at an 88.7 percent rate. That style of play bodes well for any player and any team in the tournament.

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