The Warriors will play for their first MAAC championship — and a trip to the NCAA men’s basketball tournament — tonight when they tip off against Siena at 9 p.m. on ESPN2.
Merrimack went 2-0 against Siena during the regular season, beating the Saints 63–59 on the road in January before claiming a 79–72 overtime victory in North Andover on Feb. 20.
The Warriors advanced to the MAAC championship with wins over Sacred Heart and Marist, while Siena punched its ticket with victories over Mount St. Mary’s and Fairfield.
When: Tues, 9 p.m. ET
Where: Boardwalk Hall (Atlantic City, N.J.)
TV/Stream: Watch (ESPN2)
— The matchup is everything you’d want in a championship game. According to KenPom’s efficiency rankings, Merrimack owns the No. 2 defense in the MAAC, while Siena brings the league’s top offense. Both teams also rank near the top in the opposing categories. Siena is the second-toughest team in the league to force into turnovers (Merrimack is the toughest), and the Warriors lead the conference in generating them.
— Siena will be without Antonio Chandler, whom the NCAA ruled ineligible last week. However, MAAC commissioner Travis Tellitocci said there was no hesitation about allowing Siena to continue participating in the tournament. He also indicated he does not anticipate the NCAA disqualifying Siena from the NCAA Tournament if the Saints were to win the game and secure the league’s automatic bid.
“We do not, from a conference office standpoint, certify eligibility,” Tellitocci told The Times Union. “We do not deem kids eligible or ineligible. … We don’t do that from the beginning of the season, for the simple fact that it’s an institutional responsibility, and we’d be tracking 5,000 kids throughout all sports.
“We had a discussion, but there was no hesitation that they would be eligible for the tournament,” Tellitocci said. “I think it was addressed through the NCAA. Obviously, he sat the last two games of the season, so Siena comes into the tournament without that issue. From a conference-tournament standpoint, we didn’t have any concerns.”