Eckel picks the MAAC: Manhattan at Monmouth as the Hawks are looking to rebound after a bad loss to Rider

Manhattan at Monmouth (-5), 2 p.m.

Monmouth, coming off a 12-point loss at Rider, Friday night, looks to rebound at home against a struggling Manhattan squad.

The Hawks (16-12, 10-7), as the entire MAAC, are a different team at home than they are on the road. Monmouth is 9-1 at the beautiful OceanFirst Bank Center and will look to get to 10-1 Sunday.

Manhattan (12-14, 8-9) is 1-5 against the spread in its last six road games and just broke a four-game losing streak with a win over Marist at home, Friday night.

Monmouth owns a 65-58 win over the Jaspers in Riverdale earlier this season and will go for the season sweep.

Junior guards Deion Hammond and Ray Salnave have led the Hawks offense most of the season and should have big games at home Sunday.

The Pick: Monmouth is in third place, but needs a win to stay there, as Rider is only a half-game back. The Hawks, with a strong finish, could also make a run at Siena and St. Peter’s for the top spot. That run begins today.