MAAC Men's Basketball Tips-Off on Friday
MAAC Sports
EDISON, NJ – The men’s basketball 2015-16 season begins this weekend for Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) teams. 10 of the league’s 11 schools take the court over the course of the weekend in non-conference action.
Nine teams start its 2015-16 campaigns on Friday, November 13 beginning with MAAC Connecticut schools Fairfield University and Quinnipiac University in the Annual Connecticut 6 Classic. The Stags will face Yale at 3:00 p.m. and the Bobcats will take on Sacred Heart at 5:30 p.m. on ESPN3 with the classic taking place in New Britain, Connecticut this year. At 7:00 p.m. on ESPNU, Siena College visits Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina to take on No. 5 Duke in the 2K Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project. Niagara University’s season begins in the Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament at Old Dominion in Norfolk, Virginia at 7:00 p.m. Also tipping off at 7:00 p.m. are Canisius College which will visit Hofstra in Hempstead, New York, Marist College will welcome Holy Cross to McCann Arena, and Rider University will host in-state rival Princeton in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. At 8:30 p.m., Saint Peter’s University gets its campaign underway at home against Brown at the Yanitelli Center in Jersey City, New Jersey. The final contest of the day features preseason number two choice, Monmouth University taking on UCLA at 11:00 p.m. in Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, California.
Saint Peter’s kicks off Sunday, November 15, with a 2:00 p.m. meeting with Lafayette in Easton, Pennsylvania. Preseason favorite and defending MAAC regular season champion, Iona College, begins its season in the Hardwood Showcase at Valparaiso in Indiana at 2:30 p.m. At 4:00 p.m. on ESPNU, Fairfield visits Chapel Hill to take on No. 1 North Carolina in the CBE Hall of Fame Classic. Niagara continues its competition in the Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament at 5:00 p.m. when the Purple Eagles visit Saint Joseph’s in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Opening week concludes when Siena takes on Wisconsin in the 2K Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project at 8:00 p.m. on ESPNU in Madison, Wisconsin making the Saints the first team to open the season against the defending national champion and national runner-up since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985.
The lone team not in action during opening weekend is two-time defending MAAC champion, Manhattan College, which opens up on Monday, November 16, in Moraga, California at Saint Mary’s College with a 10:00 p.m. tip time.
The 2015-16 MAAC preseason poll and All-MAAC teams were recently released with Iona being named the preseason favorite after claiming its second consecutive MAAC regular season crown in 2014-15. Iona’s senior guard A.J. English was named the unanimous preseason Player of the Year and was a unanimous selection to the preseason All-MAAC first team.
Four MAAC programs qualified for postseason action in 2015. MAAC tournament champion, Manhattan earned the leagues automatic bid to the NCAA tournament for the second straight year. Iona participated in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) in consecutive seasons. Rider played in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI). For the third straight year, Canisius played in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament (CIT) and advanced to the quarterfinal round of the tournament.
The 2015-16 MAAC season culminates at the 2016 MAAC Basketball Championships, March 3-7, at the Times Union Center in Albany, New York. The 2016 MAAC Championship title game will take place on Monday, March 7 at 7:00 p.m. and will air live on ESPN with the winner earning the leagues automatic bid to the NCAA Championship.
For more information on MAAC men’s basketball, visits maacsports.com and remember to follow the conversation on social media using #MAACHoops and #MAAC35.