CANISIUS COACH TOM PARROTTA

This week's Games of the Weeks post is centered around Canisius, which begins a grueling three-game road trip tonight at Iona.

The Golden Griffs have clearly improved, but aren't close to out of the woods when it comes to MAAC tournament seeding.

The most reachable goal Canisius has for the regular season is avoiding the play-in round, and the Griffs are part of what's shaping up to be a three-team race for two spots. Canisius enters tonight's game alone in fifth place, a half game ahead of sixth-place Rider and a game and a half ahead of seventh-place Niagara.

Two of those teams are likely to finish in the top six, while a third could be stuck playing Marist in a play-in game.

With that in mind, it's no surprise where we'll start the Games of the Week:

5. Canisius at Iona, tonight, 7 p.m. MAAC TV

A win over the red-hot Gaels would be unlikely for Canisius, but if the Griffs pull the upset, they'd be off to a great start on the aforementioned road trip. As for Iona, this is the kind of game we've grown to expect Iona to win, but far from the kind of shoo-in they had Thursday against Marist.

4. Canisius at Saint Peter's, Sunday, noon, MAAC TV

If you're not into the idea of watching six hours of Super Bowl pregame coverage, here's a good option for early-day viewing: Two much-improved teams playing a game that could have seeding implications for both.

3. Canisius at Niagara, Friday, 7 p.m.

For a number of reasons, this is the most intriguing game of the Golden Griffs' trip.

Fans of both teams would have been hyped for this one under any circumstances. Throw in the Griffs' overtime win Friday, the fact that the teams are close together in the standings, and the possibility that Canisius could complete a season sweep, and you have the most intriguing game of the year that doesn't involve top-tier teams.

2. Saint Peter's at Fairfield, Friday, 7:30 p.m.

After giving up 88 points on their home court Saturday, the Stags need to beat the Peacocks in the worst way. Fairfield has lost two of three and three of five, with games at Siena and at Rider approaching on the schedule. A loss Friday would make a three-game losing streak a near certainty and a four-game skid highly possible.

And Saint Peter's will be looking to show just how much it's improved since losing to the Stags in Jersey City earlier this year.

1. Iona at Siena, Friday, 7 p.m.

The Saints have been so dominant that I'm always reluctant to put their games at the top of these lists because of the low probability that the game will be competitive.

But I couldn't resist putting this one at No. 1 based on all it has to offer: A matchup of the top two teams in the standings and the blog's power rankings; a likely sell-out crowd at the Times Union Center; and one of the few games that I think it's at least possible Siena will lose.