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Bridgewater, NJ -- Fifty-seven days after it all began, the NEC men's basketball regular season has given way to the postseason.

While the drama stretched to the final day for some, LIU took the suspense out of the race early, clinching its first regular season title since 2012 last Saturday. The Sharks will enter the tournament as the #1 seed in pursuit of the program's seventh conference tournament crown.

The 45th annual NEC Basketball Tournament features an eight-team field, with each game hosted by the higher-seeded team.

The NEC Tournament commences on Wednesday, March 4 with quarterfinal action. All games will air on NEC Front Row. Winners will be reseeded and move on to the semifinals on Saturday, March 7. Both NEC semifinal games will air live on ESPN+, YES Network and NESN Nation. The championship game, to be televised by ESPN2, will be contested on Tuesday, March 10 at 7:00 pm.

If a reclassifying institution wins the NEC Tournament championship, the tournament runner-up will advance to the NCAA Tournament as the NEC's automatic qualifier as per current policy. In instances where two reclassifying members reach an NEC final, the NEC will stage an "AQ Qualifier" game between the two non-advancing semifinal teams. This will serve as a decisive game to determine the team that will secure the NEC's spot in the NCAA Tournament. 
 

NEC Tournament-bound for the 17th time in 19 years, top-seeded LIU (21-10, 15-3 NEC) finished the regular season with a 15-3 mark, the best for the program since back-to-back 16-win seasons from 2010-12. A program with championship pedigree, LIU remains the only school to win three consecutive NEC Tournament titles (2011-13) and owns six league crowns, tied for the most among current NEC programs. The Sharks will square off with Chicago State for the second straight year following a 68-57 win over the Cougars in the 2025 quarterfinal round.

CCSU (18-11, 12-6 NEC) has now finished in the top-two in the NEC standings in each of the last three years. The Blue Devils 39-11 (.780) regular season mark over the last three years is the seventh-best three-year stretch in NEC annals. With a chance to post the program's third consecutive 20-win season, CCSU has set its sights on its first NEC Tournament crown since 2007 and fourth overall. Head coach Pat Sellers, who was on the CCSU staff for title runs in 2000 and 2002, will look to bring his alma mater back to the top. 

Mercyhurst (15-16, 10-8 NEC) is set to make its NEC Tournament debut in its first year of postseason eligibility. The Lakers secured the #3 seed with a comeback win over Stonehill to wrap the regular season. Under veteran head coach Gary Manchel, Mercyhurst will look to become just the third team to win the NEC Tournament in its initial appearance.

After turning heads in its NEC Tournament debut back in 2023-24, fourth-seeded Le Moyne (15-16, 10-8 NEC) is hosting an NEC quarterfinal game for the second time in three seasons. Under head coach Nate Champion, the Dolphins pulled off a statement win over FDU in the 2024 quarterfinals, a defining moment in their first DI season. 

Stonehill (11-20, 8-10 NEC) made its NEC postseason debut last season and returns once again as the #5 seed. In search of the program's first tournament victory, the Skyhawks will travel to Le Moyne, a team it swept in the regular season, highlighted by a 65-54 win in Syracuse on January 31.

Three years after its electrifying March run that included a historic 16-over-1 upset of top-seeded Purdue, sixth-seeded FDU (11-20, 8-10 NEC) is hoping for another shot at the national spotlight. The Knights will be making their tenth NEC Tournament appearance in the last 11 years, this time taking on Mercyhurst in the quarters. FDU will head out to Erie with confidence, having swept the Lakers this season, including a seven-point road win in its league opener on January 2. The Knights are six-time NEC Tournament championships, tied with LIU for the most among current NEC members.

Perhaps the hottest team entering the NEC Tournament, seventh-seeded Wagner (13-16, 8-10 NEC) will play in the postseason for the 15th time in the past 16 years in its quest for a third NEC title. Seeded sixth, the Seahawks made history in 2024 as the first team in NEC history to win three road games en route to the championship. Entering March having won three straight and five of their last six, the Green & White will look to make a run, starting with second-seeded CCSU in the quarterfinals. Wagner has advanced to the NEC semis in nine of the last 14 seasons.

Making its second straight NEC Tournament appearance, Chicago State (7-24, 5-13 NEC) qualified for the postseason party on the final day of the regular season. The Cougars hope to make a splash with an upset of regular season champion LIU, a team they faced in last year's playoffs. However, history isn't on their side. No. 8 or lower seeds are 0-41 all-time against No. 1 seeds in NEC Tournament play.

2025-26 Head-To-Head Meetings

#1 LIU vs. #8 Chicago State
Jan. 4: LIU 74, Chicago State 55
Feb. 26: LIU 73, Chicago State 56

#2 CCSU vs. #7 Wagner
Jan. 29: CCSU 62, Wagner 55
Feb. 7: CCSU 84, Wagner 67

#3 Mercyhurst vs. #6 FDU
Jan. 2: FDU 74, Mercyhurst 67
Feb. 7: FDU 55, Mercyhurst 52

#4 Le Moyne vs. #5 Stonehill
Jan. 31: Stonehill 65, Le Moyne 54
Feb. 21: Stonehill 77, Le Moyne 68

About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 45th season, the NEC is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of ten institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to a number of the largest markets in the United States including New York (#1), Chicago (#3), Boston (#9). Hartford/New Haven (#32) and Syracuse (#88). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 25 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 16 different NCAA Championships. NEC full member institutions include Central Connecticut, Chicago State, FDU, Le Moyne, LIU, Mercyhurst, New Haven, Saint Francis U, Stonehill and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league's official website (www.necsports.com) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on X, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, all @NECSports.