SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The Long Island University men's basketball team opens its 2025-26 season on Monday, Nov. 3, at the University of Notre Dame. Tip-off at Purcell Pavilion is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Monday's matchup between the Sharks and Fighting Irish will be televised digitally on ACC Network Extra. Radio coverage will be available on the LIU Sharks Audio Network, featuring the "Voice of the Sharks" Phil Constantino.
Quick Facts
-BACK IN SOUTH BEND: Monday's game marks the third all-time meeting between Long Island University and the University of Notre Dame, and the first of the Shark era of the program. The two programs have met three times before, with the last occurring in the 2007-08 season.
-CHALLENGING NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE: Including Monday's season-opener at Notre Dame, the Sharks will take on four Power 4 programs in their non-conference schedule; the Fighting Irish, the University of Illinois, Mississippi State University, and the University of Georgia.
-NEC PRESEASON POLL: LIU was unanimously picked to finish first out of nine teams by the conference's head coaches
-2024 IN REVIEW: LIU finished second in the NEC standings last winter, posting a 17-15 overall record and a 12-4 mark in conference games. The Sharks reached the semifinals of the NEC tournament.
-2 SHARKS NAMED PRESEASON ALL-NEC SELECTIONS: Redshirt senior guard Malachi Davis and graduate student guard/forward Jamal Fuller were both named NEC Preseason All-Conference selections. Both received All-NEC honors last winter.
-RETURNING TO THE FLOOR: LIU returns 59.2% of its scoring from the 2024-25 season, headlined by returning their top two leading scorers from a season ago in Malachi Davis (565 points) and Jamal Fuller (413 points). The Sharks also returning their top two rebounders (Shadrak Lasu, 226 rebounds; Jamal Fuller, 199 rebounds) and blocks (Lasu, 42 blocks; Fuller, 25 blocks)
-STRONG DEFENSIVE PLAY: Last season, LIU finished at the top of the NEC in opposing field goal percentage allowed (.410) and steals per game (8.15), along with the third-highest mark in blocked shots per game (3.55)
-2024-25 All-NEC: Last winter, the Sharks had four student-athletes receive All-NEC honors; guard Malachi Davis was named First-Team All-NEC, forward Jamal Fuller received Second-Team All-NEC honors, forward Shadrak Lasu was selected to the NEC All-Rookie team, and now-graduated guard Brent Davis was named to the NEC All-Defensive team.
