Matchup |
#7 Bloomfield (23-7) vs. #6 Merrimack (20-11)
2018 NCAA Tournament – East Region Semifinals |
| Date/Time |
Sunday, March 11, 2018 (5 p.m.) |
| Venue |
Syracuse, N.Y. // Ted Grant Court |
| Multimedia |
Live Stats // Video // Twitter // Instagram |
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Coming off an upset of third-seeded Bridgeport in the Division II NCAA Men's Basketball Championship, the sixth-seeded Merrimack College men's basketball program returns to Ted Grant Court on the campus of Le Moyne College to play in the semifinals of the East Regional at 5 p.m. against seventh-seeded Bloomfield College. The winner will earn a spot in the regional final, which will be played on Tuesday evening at 7 p.m. at Le Moyne.
NCAA East Regional Schedule:
March 10 – Quarterfinal games
12 p.m. Game No. 1. – #6 Merrimack def. #3 Bridgeport, 85-70
2:30 p.m. Game No. 2 – #7 Bloomfield def. #2 St. Thomas Aquinas, 91-78
5 p.m. Game No. 3 – #1 Le Moyne def. #8 Jefferson, 75-57
7:30 p.m. Game No. 4 – #5 Saint Rose def. #4 Saint Anselm, 83-71
March 11 – Regional Semifinals
5 p.m. Game No. 5. – #6 Merrimack vs. #7 Bloomfield
7:30 p.m. Game No. 6. - #1 Le Moyne vs. #5 Saint Rose
March 13 – Regional Championship Game
7 p.m. Game No. 7. (Winner Game No. 5 vs. Winner Game No. 6)
Last Time Out:
- Sophomore Idris Joyner collected his first career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds, classmate Juvaris Hayes contributed 17 points, nine assists and eight steals, and the Warriors upset the Purple Knights, 85-70, on Saturday in the regional quarterfinals
- With the win, Merrimack collected its second consecutive upset in regional play after last season's victory over top-seeded Le Moyne. The Warriors advanced to the semifinals for the second consecutive year with the win
- The Warriors used an 11-2 run to close the first half, breaking a 32-32 deadlock. The Warriors never trailed over the remainder of the game, using a 14-3 run that featured three field goals from junior Ryan Boulter
- Click Here for a full recap of yesterday's quarterfinal win
'Mack Facts:
- Since the regional expanded to an eight-team format, the Warriors have never appeared in a regional final. The Navy and Gold have never won multiple NCAA Tournament games in a single season
- When the regional featured a four-team format, the Navy and Gold reached the final in the program's first two NCAA berths (1976-77 & 1977-78)
- This weekend will mark the 10th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history, dating back to the Warriors' first trip to the national tourney in the 1976-77 season. It is the fifth back-to-back appearance in school history as well. Merrimack owns an 8-9 all-time record in NCAA Tournament play.
- With Saturday's win, Merrimack collected its first 20-win season since 2009-10 and just the ninth in program history
- Coming off an eight-steal performance, Hayes not only increased his own Northeast-10 Conference single-season record, but vaulted up 10 spots in the all-time single-season rankings in Division II. With 123 thefts through 31 games, the Paterson, N.J. native needs just seven more to become just the second DII player ever with 130 steals in a single year
- Both Hayes and Boulter anticipate getting to 1,000 career points during tomorrow's game. . The former needs just 10 points to reach the milestone, while the latter is even closer, sitting within five of 1,000. The duo will become the 44th and 45th players in program history with 1,000 career points
- Earlier this season, Hayes earned his first NE10 All-Conference First Team selection and landed the Bevo Francis Award (top small college basketball player) Top 50 Watchlist. He has ranked either first or second nationwide in total assists (249), assists per game (8.0), total steals (123) and steals per game (4.0) this season
The Bears:
- As the No. 7 seed, Bloomfield shot 58 percent from the field, 57 percent from the three-point line and raced past No. 2 STAC, 91-78, to reach the semifinals
- Four Bears scored in double figures, led by 23 points on 8-of-14 shooting from Keith Washington. Senior Ignacio Diez posted 17 points, nine rebounds and seven assists off the bench
- Bloomfield won 22 games in the regular season, but were upset by the University of the Sciences in the conference tournament, 72-63, to land among the at-large selections. The Bears were the top seed entering the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Tournament
- The Bears average 84.4 points per game, shooting 44.5 percent from the field while averaging nearly eight three-pointers made per game
- Head coach Gerald Holmes was named CACC Coach of the Year, Davidson landed on the all-league third team, Washington on the second and Safee Abdus-Sabur earned third-team accolades
The Series:
- Sunday will mark the first postseason game of any kind between the Warriors and Bears
- The Warriors own a 5-1 advantage in the all-time series, but Bloomfield came away with a victory in the most recent meeting, which occurred in the second game of the season last year
- The Bears edged Merrimack, 97-83, shooting over 50 percent from the field and 50 percent from three-point range. Boulter scored what then was a career high 35 points, shining for the Navy and Gold in the game
Up Next
Merrimack has a chance to reach the first regional final since the NCAA Tournament expanded to an eight-team regional format and first for the program in 40 years (1977-78). The Warriors would play the winner of top-seeded Le Moyne and No. 4 Saint Rose on Tuesday night at 7 p.m.
