INDIANAPOLIS, IN (Mar. 20, 2022) – Saint Peter’s University has made Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Men’s Basketball history, becoming the first program to advance to the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Sweet Sixteen on Saturday night in front of a sold-out crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
The 2022 Hercules Tires MAAC Champions -- a No. 15 seed in the March Madness field -- stunned No. 2 Kentucky 85-79 in overtime on Thursday night, before etching its name in the history books on Saturday night with a 70-60 wire-to-wire win over No. 7 Murray State. The win over Kentucky was the first NCAA win in program history and Saint Peter’s is now riding a nine game-winning steak, the longest in the country.
Saint Peter’s is only the third MAAC program to advance to a Sweet Sixteen, following in the footsteps of two women’s programs in Marist (2007) and Quinnipiac (2017). Ironically, Saint Peter's becomes the first MAAC men's program to reach the Sweet Sixteen exactly 15 years to the day that the Marist women became the first MAAC women's program to reach the Sweet Sixteen of the women's tournament (March 19, 2007).
Saint Peter’s is the third No. 15 seed to ever advance to the round of sixteen, joining Oral Roberts (2021) and Florida Gulf Coast (2013), both of which failed to make the Elite Eight.
Saint Peter’s will look to keep its historic run going on Friday, March 25 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA. They will face the winner of No. 3 Purdue and No. 6 Texas.
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About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 11 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 41st year of competition during the 2021-22 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius College, Fairfield University, Iona College, Manhattan College, Marist College, Monmouth University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.
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