MEDFORD, Mass. (February 27, 2024) — The Tufts University men's basketball team earned one of 22 “at-large” bids for the coveted Pool C on Monday afternoon, earning a spot in 2024. Qualified for the Division III NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. This is the eighth trip to the NCAA Tournament in program history and the third since the 2020 season.
Game details
Opponent: vs. Stockton University (17-10)
date: March 1, 2024 (Friday)
time: 4:15 p.m.
position: New York, NY – New York University (NYU) Paulson Center
ticket: Adults $15. $10 Student/Veteran/Child/Senior
live broadcast: Live Statistics – Live Video – Championship Website – Digital Program
this weekend's contest
The Ospreys were selected as the “at-large” selection in Pool C, where Tufts will face Stockton University (17-10) of the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC). Stockton qualified for its 19th NCAA Tournament on Monday with two key wins over Keene State and Rowan University.
The other first-round game at New York University will feature the host Violets, who finished the season 20-5 on the year with a 10-4 record in the University Athletic Association (UAA). NYU ranks No. 8 in D3hoops.com's latest Top 25 poll and has back-to-back road wins over the University of Chicago and Brandeis University.
The Eagles are 23-5 this season, coming off an 80-70 victory over SUNY Cobleskill in the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) championship last Saturday, and Husson University will be the last of the four teams. The Eagles have won their last six games and haven't lost on the road since Jan. 16.
The Jambos and Stockton University had never met on the hoop floor until Friday afternoon, but Tufts is 2-1 all-time against New York University, the last time they met on Nov. 21, 1999, when the Violets posted a 66. They won against 63. Tufts and NYU also faced off in 1995 and 1984, with the Jumbos winning both times. Tufts has never faced Hasson in men's hoops before.
take a look at jumbo
The Jumbos are looking to survive a tough battle against No. 2 Trinity College in the NESCAC semifinals, 80-68. Tufts got as close as one point with four minutes left, but the Bantams pulled away late. Tufts is seeking its third 20-win season in the past four seasons, and the Jumbos have won at least one in all but one of the eight games they played in the NCAA Tournament.
The Jumbos enter the weekend ranked in the top 25 in a variety of categories, including field goal percentage, fouls per game, scoring defense and defensive rebounds per game.Tufts is led by sophomores. Scott Gimeshi, is the only player in the NESCAC to average a double-double, averaging 13.1 points and 11.1 rebounds per game. Ghimesh ranks fourth in NCAA Division III with 18 double-doubles and has 11.1 boards per game, which is the 14th-most in the country.
2nd grade james morakis He was second on the team in scoring with 11.3 points per game, added 51 assists and made 24 3-pointers. Kai Champion He is scoring 11.2 points per game while making a team-high 41 three-pointers.
Senior Jay Dieterle As a sophomore center, he leads the team with 86 assists and adds 9.1 points per game. joshua bernstein He averaged 8.6 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. Bernstein also ranks 31st in the nation in blocks.Senior casey mclaren And the first year John Medley They also offer a strong defense and a solid offensive game.
Osprey (17-10)
Stockton is coming off a 75-62 loss to the College of New Jersey in the NJAC title game last Saturday. DJ Campbell scored his 23 points in that game, extending his own career mark to his 2,170 points, a school record. EJ Matthews Stratley also scored 13 points in the game.
The Ospreys like to up the tempo and attack off-the-drive, as evidenced by their 22.7 free throw attempts per game, which ranks 28th in the nation. Stockton ranks 43rd nationally in rebounding margin of 5.8, first in the NJAC and 83rd nationally in scoring offense with 79.2 points per game.
Campbell's 413 total field goals this season are 27th most in Division III, making him the Ospreys' primary option on offense. He ranks 43rd in the nation with 20.0 points per game, and his 80 made 3-pointers this season are 14th-most in Division III.
Matthews-Spratley is also averaging 17.4 points per game and shooting 48.1 percent from 3-point range, while Tyvon Gaither leads the team with 115 free throws and 6.8 rebounds. Head coach Scott Bittner has led the Ospreys to the NCAA Tournament in each of the past three seasons, including a 26-5 record in 2021-22.
Thoughts on New York University and Hasson
The Violets enter the weekend as the favorites, with New York University having a 63% chance of advancing to the NCAA third round, according to d3datacast.com. The Violets are led by jack-of-all-trades guard Spencer Friedman. Friedman was recently named UAA Player of the Year after posting high numbers per game, including 18.0 points, 5.8 assists, 68 3-pointers, and a 2.18 assist/turnover ratio.
The Violets are very good at shooting three-pointers, ranking fifth in the nation in that category, shooting 40 percent from long range. They also score over 10 per game from behind the arc. Zai Freeney also added 14.7 points per game for the Violets, and Michael Savarino scored 13.2 points per game on 47 percent shooting from 3-point range.
Hasson entered the weekend ranked highly in many categories, including leading the nation in defensive rebounds with 32.4 per game. The Eagles also rank fifth in the country in total rebounds and third in Division 3 with defensive field goal percentage of 36.8 percent. The Eagles also pour in 81.4 points per game, which ranks 53rd in the nation.
Hasson has three players scoring in double figures, led by Lyles Neff, who is averaging 17.2 points per game. Jeremy Moronta added 14.3 points per game and Andre McCauley also scored 10.6 points per game. Derek Collen and Jared Balcer are active inside for the Eagles, while Moronta leads the team in rebounds with 9.1.
Advance
The winners of Friday night's games will meet Saturday night at 6:45 p.m. for a chance to advance to the NCAA third round.
–jumbo–
