Men's Basketball Opens 2025-26 Season In Field Of 68 Opening Day Marathon

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Merrimack opens the 2025-26 season in the Field of 68 Opening Day Marathon against South Dakota State on Monday at 9 p.m. ET from the Sanford Pentagon.

The game will be broadcast on the Field of 68 Youtube Channel and X account with Alex Heinert (pxp), Matt McCall (analyst) and Rob Dauster (sideline). 

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• Merrimack will be playing a 1,613 mile drive from campus, while South Dakota State will be playing 57 miles from its campus.
• Coming off a second-place finish in its inaugural year in the MAAC, the Warriors have 10 new faces as they open the 2025-26 season. The Merrimack coaching staff rebuilt the roster with a mix of transfers from the Atlantic 10 to D-II, and freshmen, including First-Team All-Philadelphia Catholic League and Max Preps PA State Player selection Kevair Kennedy.
• Merrimack head coach Joe Gallo signed a 10-year extension after leading the Warriors to a second-place finish in the MAAC regular season standings, and a berth in the MAAC semifinals. Gallo is a 2004 graduate of Merrimack, and led the transition from Division II to Division I for the Warriors. Since the transition to Division I, Gallo led the Warriors to a NEC tournament championship (but they weren't eligible for the NCAA Tournament), and three regular season championships.
• #MakeChaos: Joe Gallo and Merrimack have been known for its zone defense.Focusing on moving quickly, forcing turnovers and preventing three-point shots. The Warriors ranked 15th in the nation in scoring defense, holding opponents to 64.2 points per game last season. The Warriors were also 7th in the nation in steals per game (9.5) and 15th in the nation in turnovers forced per game (15.1). Merrimack ranked 42nd in the nation in field goal percentage defense (41.3) and 45th in 3-point field goal percentage defense (30.9).
• Road Warriors: Merrimack opens the season with three-straight games in the Central time zone and four-straight on the road. After a visit to South Dakota, the Warriors play at Auburn on Thursday and then travel to Texas to face Tarleton State next Tuesday. The last of the four road games to start the season is 27 miles from campus, at Boston University on Nov. 15. Merrimack plays its home opener on Nov. 19, but will play 8 of its first 9 games away from Lawler Arena.
• Along with head coach Joe Gallo ('04), three other members of the coaching staff are Merrimack alums: assistant coach Micky Burtnyk ('08), assistant coach Juvaris Hayes ('20) and assistant coach Chris Mohr ('97).