The St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team opens its quest for a second NCAA D2 East Region title in program history, taking the #6 seed into Saturday's opener against #3 Southern New Hampshire University at 12:00 p.m. at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium on the campus of Saint Anselm College in Manchester, N.H.
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How They Got Here - The Spartans completed an outstanding regular season with a 24-4 record, including a 15-1 East Coast Conference mark, good enough to capture their third straight ECC Regular Season title (6th in last 9 seasons) and earn a bye to the semifinals, where they pushed past District of Columbia, 96-78, to advance to the championship game. DeVante Jamison (18pts & 10asts) recorded a double-double in the contest, while Jamal Barnes posted 21 points, Kyle Pulliam 14 points and James Patterson 12 points. STAC's appearance in the championship game was the team's fourth in a row, and they went on to dispatch Daemen University, 72-66 to win the program's seventh ECC crown in the last eight years. In the matchup between the Spartans and Wildcats, James Patterson posted a 19-point effort, while DeVante Jamison put up 15 points, Antonio Vendola 12 points, Jamal Barnes 10 points and Luis Risquez 10 points.
The Match-Up, Unfamiliar Foes Clash - This will be the first time STAC plays Southern New Hampshire during the 2022-2023 season. The teams have not met since January 9, 2017, when then Tobin Anderson's squad bested the Penmen 104-90 at Aquinas Hall. Of the current Spartans, only Head Coach Matt Capell, then an Associate Head Coach, was a part of the team for that night's festivities.
Spartans in the Post-Season – The Spartans won the ECC crown in 2023 under Coach Capell and this is the team's eighth straight NCAA Tournament appearance, with the last seven trips (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022) coming under former coach Tobin Anderson. St. Thomas Aquinas College is 9-5 in 14 previous NCAA East Region postseason matchups.
All-Conference Selections – St. Thomas Aquinas placed two players and a coach in this year's ECC post-season awards:
James Patterson – ECC Rookie of the Year/First Team All-Conference – Patterson ranked second on the Spartans in points per game with 14.4 and first in rebounds per game with 7.1. The freshman from Richmond, Virginia was fourth in the conference in scoring with 388 total points and sixth in rebounds (193). Patterson was chosen the ECC Player of the Week one time and the ECC Rookie of the Week on six occasions.
DeVante Jamison – ECC First Team All-Conference – Jamison led the maroon and gold in points per game with 14.7 and assists per game with 5.9. In the ECC, the junior from Dorchester, Massachusetts ranks second in assists (165), first in steals (61) and fifth in total points (412). Jamison was named the ECC Defensive Player of the Week once this season.
Matt Capell – ECC Coach of the Year – In his first season at the helm of the Spartans, Capell earned his first career ECC Coach of the Year award after leading the maroon and gold to a 26-4 record, including a 15-1 conference mark. St. Thomas Aquinas captured its third straight ECC Regular Season title (6th in last 9 seasons), its fourth straight ECC Tournament crown (7th in last 8 years) and earned their eighth consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament. STAC was nationally ranked for most of the campaign and is the #6 seed in the East Region. The Spartans hit the 20-win plateau for the eighth time in the last nine seasons (20-21: only 14 wins due to a 16-game COVID schedule).
All-Region Nods – DeVante Jamison earned a Division II Conference Commissioner's Association Second Team All-East selection, as announced by D2CCA on Friday.
A Winning Recipe - St. Thomas Aquinas' style of play, solid coaching and roster make-up give the Spartans a winning formula year-to-year, from the season opener to the NCAA Tournament. That is no different in 2022-23, as STAC's record each month shows a level of excellence within the East Region. November 6-1, December 6-1, January 7-1, February 5-1, March 2-0 (All Postseason).
Everyone Plays a Role – Head Coach Matt Capell has had a stable core of starters this season, with Antonio Vendola and Jamal Barnes starting all 30 games, Jordan Green dressing/starting all but one, and James Patterson and DeVante Jamison starting 28.
Patterson, Jamison, Vendola, Green, Barnes (25)
Patterson, Pulliam, Vendola, Green, Barnes (2)
Tolias, Jamison, Vendola, Green, Barnes (2)
Patterson, Jamison, Vendola, Risquez, Barnes (1)
Hitting The Century Mark – While the Spartans can hoop with the best of the best in the East Region, the maroon and gold have hit the century mark in points on five occasions in 2022-23.
2023 NCAA EAST REGIONAL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Friday, March 10 - Quarterfinals
Game 1: #6 St. Thomas Aquinas vs. #3 Southern New Hampshire - 12 p.m. (LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS)
Game 2: #7 Dominican vs. #2 Bentley - 2:30 p.m. (LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS)
Game 3: #8 Caldwell vs. #1 Saint Anselm - 5 p.m. (LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS)
Game 4: #5 Pace vs. #4 New Haven - 7:30 p.m. (LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS)
Saturday, March 11 - Semifinals
Game 5: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2 - 5 p.m. (LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS)
Game 6: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4 - 7:30 p.m. (LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS)
Tuesday, March 15 - Championship
Game 7: Winner of Game 5 vs. Winner of Game 6 - 7 p.m. (LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS)
2023 NCAA DIVISION II WOMEN'S BASKETBALL EAST REGION
No. 1 seed – Saint Anselm College (22-7, 15-5 NE10)... NE10 Tournament Champions (automatic bid)
No. 2 seed – Bentley University (21-6, 15-5 NE10)… (at-large bid)
No. 3 seed – Southern New Hampshire University (20-8, 16-4 NE10)... NE10 Regular Season Champions (at-large bid)
No. 4 seed – University of New Haven (20-10, 13-7 NE10)… NE10 Tournament Runners-up (at-large bid)
No. 5 seed – Pace University (20-10, 11-9 NE10)… (at-large bid)
No. 6 seed – St. Thomas Aquinas College (26-4, 15-1 ECC)… ECC Regular Season & Tournament Champions (automatic bid)
No. 7 seed – Dominican University (21-8, 12-6 CACC)… (at-large bid)
No. 8 seed – Caldwell University (21-9, 14-4 CACC)… CACC North Division Regular Season & Tournament Champions (automatic bid)
TICKETS
$10 Adults, $5 Students/Children/Seniors.
Tickets can be purchased at the door.
Per NCAA policy, no complimentary admissions will be issued.