Bridgewater, NJ -- It took 72 games to sort out, but with the final whistle today, the 2024 NEC Men's Basketball Tournament field was finalized.
And for the first time since 2007, Central Connecticut has laid claim to the #1 seed.
The Blue Devils overtook Merrimack for the top seed in dramatic fashion on the final day of the regular season with its win over Stonehill, coupled with the Warriors loss at Sacred Heart an hour later.
CCSU and Merrimack shared the NEC regular season crown with a 13-3 record. It marked the third regular season title in five years for the Warriors, and the fourth all-time for the Blue Devils.
The 43rd annual NEC Basketball Tournament will feature an eight-team field. Each game will be played at the home of the higher seeded team.
The NEC Tournament commences on Wednesday, March 6 with quarterfinal action. All games will air on
NEC Front Row. Winners will be reseeded and move on to the semifinals on Saturday, March 9. ESPN+, YES Network, NESN+ and NEC Front Row will broadcast both semis live. The championship game, to be televised by ESPN2, will be contested on Tuesday, March 12 at 7:00 pm.
Tabbed second in the preseason,
CCSU (19-10, 13-3 NEC) finished atop the NEC standings for the first time since 2006-07, a year that saw the Blue Devils post a 16-2 record and go on to win the tournament championship. Under alum Pat Sellers, the Blue Devils have qualified for the postseason three straight times and hope to secure the program's first postseason win since the 2011 season. The Blue Devils won a pair of NEC championships when Sellers served as a CCSU assistant back in 2000 and 2002, and have brought three titles back to New Britain in their history. After the two teams met in the 2023 quarterfinals in Loretto, the Blue Devils are set to host #8
Saint Francis U (8-21, 3-13 NEC) this Wednesday. Head coach Rob Krimmel and the Red Flash will compete in their tenth NEC Tournament in 11 seasons. SFU advanced to NEC finals in 2017 and 2019 and hoisted the NEC trophy back in 1991 for its lone crown. It should be noted that a #8 or lower seed has never beaten a #1 seed in the history of the NEC Tournament (0-39). CCSU swept the season series with SFU.
2023-24 meetings: CCSU 75, SFU 61 (1/13); CCSU 63, SFU 62 (2/1)
Merrimack (19-11, 13-3 NEC) had its 10-game win streak snapped on Saturday, but still enters the postseason as one of the hottest teams in the country following a second straight unbeaten February. The second-seeded Warriors and head coach Joe Gallo won it all in their first-ever NEC postseason excursion last season and are eligible to compete in the NCAA Tournament for the first time this March. The Warriors will host Rod Strickland and his
LIU (7-21, 6-10 NEC) squad in the first round for the second straight season. Seeded seventh, the Sharks are headed to the NEC Tournament for the 15th time in 17 years. LIU became the first program to win three straight NEC Tournament titles from 2011-13 and have claimed six league crowns in school history. Merrimack won both regular season meetings between the two programs.
2023-24 meetings: MC 82, LIU 79 (OT) (2/8); MC 83, LIU 68 (2/17)
Sacred Heart (16-15, 10-6 NEC) used a late season flurry to claim the #3 seed on Thursday and the right to host an NEC quarterfinal game for the fourth time in the last six seasons. In search of the program's first conference championship, the Pios will make their ninth NEC playoff appearance in the last ten years under Anthony Latina, a stretch that included trips to the NEC semifinals in 2020, 2021 and 2023. SHU will tangle with #6
Wagner (13-15, 7-9 NEC) for the second straight year in Fairfield. The Seahawks have now qualified for the NEC tourney in 13 of the last 14 seasons, and second straight with Donald Copeland leading the program. The defensive-minded Seahawks, who have advanced to the semis in eight of the last 12 seasons and moved on to the NEC final in 2016, 2018 and 2022, are in search of the program's second NEC Tournament championship, having won it all back in 2003. SHU swept Wagner in the regular season.
2023-24 meetings: SHU 66, WC 61 (1/21); SHU 63, WC 53 (2/17)
Fourth-seeded
Le Moyne (14-16, 9-7 NEC) ended the regular season with a sweep to secure an NEC quarterfinal home game in its first year as a member of the NEC and as a DI program. Under Nate Champion, the Dolphins continued the trend of first-year NEC programs to finish in the top-four in the standings. As a reclassifying institution that is ineligible for the NCAA Tournament, the NEC Tournament runner-up will represent the NEC in NCAA competition should Le Moyne win the title. The Dolphins will welcome an
FDU (15-16, 9-7 NEC) team headed to the NEC postseason for the eighth time in nine years. Under the leadership of first-year head coach Jack Castleberry, the fifth-seeded Knights will look to replicate some of its March magic this season. Coming off its seemingly unfathomable 16-over-1 upset win over Purdue in last year's NCAA Tournament, FDU hopes to add to its NEC hoops legacy with a seventh conference title, having last claimed the championship in 2019. In looking ahead to Wednesday's matchup, each team won on the other's home floor during the regular season.
2023-24 meetings: LEM 74, FDU 63 (OT) (1/6); FDU 68, LEM 58 (2/24)
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 43rd season, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of nine institutions of higher learning located throughout five states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to a number of the largest markets in the United States including New York (#1), Boston (#9). Hartford/New Haven (#34) and Syracuse (#85). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 24 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 15 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Central Connecticut, FDU, Le Moyne, LIU, Merrimack, Sacred Heart, Saint Francis U, Stonehill and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league's official website (
www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (
www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, all @NECsports