NEC Tournament quarterfinal play commences on March 4, followed by the semifinal round on Saturday, March 7. All quarterfinal games will air on
NEC Front Row, and the semis will air on both ESPN3 and
NEC Front Row. The championship game, to be televised by ESPN2, will be contested on Tuesday, March 10 at 7:00 pm.
The NEC’s return to a playoff format in 2005 came after an eight-year absence that saw the league’s annual postseason tournament contested at one campus site (1999), at a municipal arena (2000-01) and at a single campus site for the quarterfinals and semifinals, followed by the highest remaining seed hosting the championship game (1998, 2002-04). The conference had previously employed a high-seed hosting format from 1991-97, though teams were not reseeded after the quarterfinals as the tournament is currently constructed.
Proud owner of a league-record eight NEC Championships, top-seeded
Robert Morris (17-14, 13-5 NEC) has qualified for 17 consecutive NEC Tournaments, the longest current streak in the conference. RMU will also be making its 36th tourney appearance in 39 years, the most in conference history. The Colonials, who also hold the conference record with 42 NEC Tournament wins, are set to host their first-ever postseason game in the brand new UPMC Events Center when they take on eighth-seeded
St. Francis Brooklyn (13-17, 7-11 NEC) in the quarters for the second consecutive year. The Terriers have reached the postseason in nine-of-ten years under Glenn Braica and will be looking to secure the program's first NEC Tournament title and initial NCAA Tournament appearance. The Terriers last made an NEC Tournament run in 2015, advancing to the conference title game. It should be noted that a #8 seed has never beaten a #1 seed in the history of the NEC Tournament (36-0). RMU and SFBK split in the regular season with the home team holding serve each time.
2019-20 meetings: RMU 78, SFBK 52 (1/9); SFBK 78, RMU 57 (1/23)
Despite its loss to RMU on Saturday,
Saint Francis U (20-9, 13-5 NEC) was red hot in February, having won eight-of-nine to close out the regular season. The Red Flash, who have reached 20 wins for the first time since claiming their lone NEC Tournament title in 1991, will be hosting a quarterfinal home game for the fourth straight year while making a seventh straight NEC Tournament appearance. The second-seeded Red Flash will meet seventh-seeded
Bryant (15-16, 7-11 NEC) in the quarters for the second straight season. The Bulldogs are hunting for their first tourney win since 2015 and the program's first NEC championship. The two teams split their regular season meetings this season with each winning at home.
2019-20 meetings: BRY 67, SFU 63 (1/2); SFU 84, BRY 64 (2/1)
Winning five of its last six to close out the regular season,
Sacred Heart (19-12, 12-6 NEC) secured the #3 seed for the second consecutive year. This makes it five NEC playoff appearances in six years for the Pioneers, who are looking for their first playoff win since 2009 and the program's first NEC Tournament championship. SHU will square off with sixth-seeded
Mount St. Mary's (11-20, 7-11 NEC). The Mount missed out on the postseason last year, but had qualified for the NEC Tournament in each of the six previous seasons during which it won two of the program's five NEC titles in 2014 and 2017. Sacred Heart won the lone regular season meeting between the two programs.
2019-20 meetings: SHU 58, MSM 53 (1/30)
LIU (14-17, 9-9 NEC) is headed to the NEC Tournament for the 12th time in 13 years, having clinched the #4 seed and quarterfinal home game on Thursday. LIU became the first program to win three straight NEC Tournament titles from 2011-13 and has claimed six league crowns in school history. The Sharks will square off with defending NEC champion and #5 seed
Fairleigh Dickinson (11-18, 9-9 NEC). The Knights ended the season strong, winning five of their last seven heading into March. This marks the fifth Knights' straight trip to the postseason, which includes the program's fifth and sixth NEC titles in 2016 and 2019, respectively. LIU swept FDU in the regular season to beat out the Knights in the tiebreaker for the #4 seed.
2019-20 meetings: LIU 84, FDU 70 (1/11); LIU 86, FDU 81 (2/21)
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 39th year, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 11 institutions of higher learning located throughout seven states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to a number of the largest markets in the United States - New York (#1), Boston (#9), Pittsburgh (#24), Baltimore (#26), Hartford/New Haven (#33) and Providence (#53). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 23 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 16 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Bryant, Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU, Merrimack, Mount St. Mary’s, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U 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 Snapchat, all @NECsports.