Syracuse, N.Y. – The Le Moyne College men's basketball team had its Northeast Conference schedule released by the conference office on Wednesday afternoon.
The 16-game schedule will feature home and away matchups against each league foe.
The Dolphins will play their first conference game on Friday, January 3 at LIU. The teams split the two matchups last year with each team winning at home.
The 'Phins play their first home game the following Friday by hosting FDU, which the Dolphins defeated in their NEC opener last year and in the quarterfinals of the NEC Championship. Two days later, they renew their rivalry with Mercyhurst University, which is in its first year in the Division I transition process. The teams have met 19 times on the hardwood, including 13 as members of the Mideast Conference from 1985-1991, with the Dolphins holding a 17-2 advantage, including 10-1 at home.
The team heads to NEC newcomer Chicago State University on Saturday the 18th before returning home to face Stonehill College two days later on Martin Luther King Day as part of a doubleheader with the women's teams. The Dolphins swept the two meetings with Stonehill last year to improve to 25-18 all-time against the Skyhawks.
The Dolphins remain home to take on Central Connecticut State University on Friday the 24th. The Dolphins swept the two meetings with the Blue Devils, who were the top seed in last year's conference championship.
The team closes out January and opens February with four straight games on the road. They head to FDU on January 30 before visiting Wagner College on Saturday the 1st. Wagner, which the Dolphins split with last year, is the defending tournament champion after winning three straight road games as the sixth seed. On Thursday the 6th, the Dolphins face Saint Francis University, which they swept last year. The stretch of road games ends two days later at Mercyhurst, where the Dolphins have won seven straight meetings.
The Dolphins are home for the next four games. They welcome Wagner to Syracuse on Thursday the 13th, while Chicago State comes to town for the first time two days later. The following Thursday, the Dolphins host Saint Francis, whom they are 13-8 at home against. Le Moyne wraps up its home schedule on Saturday the 22nd against LIU as part of another doubleheader with the women's teams.
The 'Phins close out the regular season with a pair of road games. They head to Central Connecticut State on Thursday the 27th and then cap the year at Stonehill with their final doubleheader of the campaign on Saturday, March 1.
The Northeast Conference Championship will feature an eight-team field with the quarterfinals to be held on March 5, the semifinals on the 8th and the championship game on the 11th. All games will be played at the site of the higher seed.
All eight schools that are NEC postseason eligible (CCSU, Chicago State, FDU, Le Moyne, LIU, Saint Francis U, Stonehill and Wagner) will qualify for this year's NEC Tournament. During its NCAA reclassification, Mercyhurst will become eligible to compete in the NEC postseason in 2026-27.
Should Le Moyne or Stonehill win the NEC Tournament championship, the tournament runner-up will advance to the NCAA Tournament as the NEC's automatic qualifier as per current policy, while if Le Moyne and Stonehill both reach the championship game, the NEC will stage an "AQ Qualifier" game between the two non-advancing semifinal teams. This will serve as a decisive game to determine the team that will secure the NEC's spot in the NCAA Tournament.
