BROOKLYN, N.Y. – On Saturday afternoon, the second-seeded Long Island University men's basketball team (17-15, 12-4 NEC) will host No. 3 seed Saint Francis University (14-17, 8-8 NEC) in the semifinals of the Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Championship. Opening tipoff at the Steinberg Wellness Center is scheduled for 12 p.m.

Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children ages 5-18, and free for LIU students with a school ID card.

TV coverage will be available on ESPN+ and locally on the YES Network.
 
Quick Facts
-LIU defeated No. 7 seed Chicago State, 68-57, in the quarterfinals on Wednesday night at home. Malachi Davis led the Sharks with a career-high 35 points, finishing two points shy of the LIU NEC Tournament scoring record set by Joe Griffin in 1995 (37) and five points behind the conference's all-time tournament record (40, Rahsaan Johnson, Monmouth University, 2000).

-With the victory over Chicago State on Wednesday night, LIU picked up its 17th win of the season, the program's most since 2017-2018, when the then-LIU-Brooklyn Blackbirds won 18 games.

-The Sharks enter Wednesday riding a season-best seven-game winning streak, the second-longest active streak in the NEC.

-During the current streak, which features wins over five different opponents, the Sharks are winning by an average margin of 11.1 points per game.

-LIU has reached the semifinals of the NEC Tournament for the first time in head coach Rod Strickland's tenure and the first time since the 2021-2022 season.

-LIU is hosting a semifinal game in the NEC Tournament for the first time since 2018.

-The Sharks placed four players on the NEC's all-conference team: Malachi Davis (first team), Jamal Fuller (second team), Brent Davis (all-defensive team), and Shadrak Lasu (all-rookie team).

-On Wednesday versus Chicago State, Lasu scored 10 points with 12 rebounds, recording the fourth double-double of his freshman season.

-LIU ranks as one of the nation's best all-around defensive teams. The Sharks are currently 26^th in Division I in points per game allowed (65.2), 33^rd in opponent field goal percentage (40.8%), 37^th in opponent 3-point field goal percentage (30.8%), and 64^th in turnovers forced per game (13.47).