After one of the most competitive races in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) history, with a four-way tie for the regular-season title between James Madison, UNCW, Northeastern and William & Mary, the CAA Men’s Basketball Championship is set for March 6-9 at Royal Farm Arena in Baltimore, Maryland.
It’s the second year of a three-year agreement for the CAA to bring its showcase event to Charm City.
Port City Daily will provide live courtside updates throughout the tournament.
Led by the Tribe’s all-time leading scorer, Marcus Thorton, W&M captured its first regular-season crown since the 1997-98 season. UNCW posted its first regular-season title since the 2005-06 season, while JMU won its first title since the 1999-2000 season. Northeastern claimed its second regular-season championship in the past three years.
It was the first tie for the CAA regular-season championship since the 2005-06 season and the first time the conference has had more than two teams finish in a first-place tie.
The winner of the CAA Men’s Championship clinches an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
William & Mary is one of five original Division I teams to have never qualified for the Big Dance, while UNCW was projected to finish second-to-last in the CAA after eight consecutive losing seasons.
Head Coach Kevin Keatts took the Seahawks from worst to first in his first season in Wilmington. UNCW has not won the CAA’s regular season since Clemson coach Brad Brownell led the Seahawks to first place in two of his four seasons in the Port City.
First-round action opens Friday as eighth-seeded Elon (14-17, 6-12 in CAA) faces No. 9 Towson (12-19, 5-13 in CAA) at 6 p.m., followed by No. 7 Drexel (11-18, 9-9 in CAA) against No. 10 College of Charleston (8-23, 3-15 in CAA) at 8:30 p.m. Both games will streamed online by CAA.TV.
The CAA quarterfinals tip off at noon on Saturday with the Elon/Towson winner facing top-seeded William & Mary (18-11, 12-6 in CAA).
At 2:30 p.m., No. 4 James Madison (19-12, 12-6 in CAA) takes on No. 5 Hofstra (19-12, 10-8 in CAA).
The evening session features second-seeded UNCW (17-12, 12-6 in CAA) meeting the Drexel/CofC winner at 6 p.m., and No. 3 Northeastern (20-11, 12-6 in CAA) challenging no. 6 Delaware (10-19, 9-9 in CAA) at 8:30 p.m.
The semifinal games of the CAA Men’s Basketball Championship are set for 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. Sunday, with the two winners facing off for the conference title and an automatic bid to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship at 7 p.m. March 9.
The semifinals and championship game will be televised nationally on the NBC Sports Network.
Friday, March 6 – First Round
G1 – No. 8 Elon vs. No. 9 Towson – 6 p.m.
G2 – No. 7 Drexel vs. No. 10 College of Charleston – 8:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 7 – Quarterfinals
G3 – No. 1 William & Mary vs. Elon/Towson winner – Noon
G4 – No. 4 James Madison vs. No. 5 Hofstra – 2:30 p.m.
G5 – No. 2 UNCW vs. Drexel/CofC winner – 6 p.m.
G6 – No. 3 Northeastern vs. No. 6 Delaware – 8:30 p.m.
Sunday, March 8 – Semifinals
G7 – Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4 – 2:30 p.m.
G8 – Winner of Game 5 vs. Winner of Game 6 – 5 p.m.
Monday, March 9 – Championship
G9 – Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 8 – 7 p.m.
