The No. 5 seeded St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team (25-9, 13-3 ECC) looks to capture its second East Region crown in program history on Tuesday evening, when the Spartans take on No. 6 seeded Assumption University in third round action at the NCAA Division II East Region Tournament at Lumsden Gymnasium on the campus of Daemen University in Amherst, N.Y.
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How STAC Got Here:
Regular Season - St. Thomas Aquinas went 8-5 in the first half (November & December 2024), with a pair of three-game win streaks (November 9-19 & December 15-January 2). Second half action (January, February & March 2025) saw STAC post a 14-3 record, with the season's longest win streak (7 games) from February 9 through the end of regular season play. The Spartans have lost back-to-back games on two occasions this season (Nov. 2 vs. North Georgia & Nov. 3 vs. Nova Southeastern) and (Dec. 8 vs. Roberts Wesleyan & Dec. 13 at Daemen).
East Coast Conference Tournament - The Spartans earned a bye to the semifinals, where they pushed past Queens College, 91-82, to advance to the tournament final. Luis Risquez (24pts), Shaun Arnold (15pts & 11rebs), Derrick James (15pts) and Deshawne Crim (12pts) all scored in double figures in the contest. STAC's appearance in the championship game was the team's sixth in a row, but Daemen snapped the streak of five straight maroon and gold titles with an 88-80 win to capture their first ECC crown in program history. In the matchup between the Spartans and Wildcats, Derrick James posted an 18-point effort, while Kyle Jones had 15 points and Michael Parrotta 10 points.
NCAA Tournament Second Round Recap:
STAC - It took four tries, but for the St. Thomas Aquinas College Men's Basketball team the last one is all that matters. On Sunday evening, in front of a packed Lumsden Gymnasium the Spartans got their redemption, stunning the throngs of Wildcats fans in attendance by eliminating the top seed and undefeated hosts, Daemen University, 79-74 to advance to the NCAA Division II East Region Tournament Final. Hartnel Haye led the way for STAC with a team-high 12 points. Teammates Derrick James (10 points) and Kyle Jones (10 points) also posted double figures in scoring. Benjamin Bill led all Wildcats scorers, tallying 22 points. Defensively, Haye also pulled down a team-high nine boards for the maroon and gold.
Assumption - Earlier in the evening, Assumption was able to send its opponent, Dominican University, home with an 81-75 victory. Tayeshawn Cunningham-Pemberton led the Greyhounds in scoring with 19 points, while Lenny Tangishaka (18 points), Jamal Barnes (13 points) and Zee McCown (11 points) also posted double figures in scoring. Jaden Honis led all Chargers scorers, tallying 19 points. Defensively, Daouda Dembele grabbed a game-high 11 boards for Assumption.
Tonight's Match-Up:
After sending No. 1 Daemen packing in the second round of the NCAA Division II East Region Tourney, 79-74, the No. 5 seeded Spartans take on No. 6 seeded Assumption University in third round action, with a trip to Evansville, Indiana and the Elite Eight on the line. This will be the first time St. Thomas Aquinas College plays Assumption University during the 2024-2025 season. The Spartans and Greyhounds last tangled on December 14, 2022 at Aquinas Hall Gymnasium in Sparkill, New York. STAC took a 72-58 home court victory over Assumption.
Dating back to their first meeting during the 1981-82 season, the sides have split six previous matchups.
Spartans in the Post-Season - This is the team's tenth straight NCAA Tournament appearance, with the seven trips (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022) coming under former coach Tobin Anderson and the last three appearances (2023, 2024, 2025) coming under current Head Coach Matt Capell's watch. St. Thomas Aquinas College is 11-7 in 18 previous NCAA East Region postseason matchups.
All-Conference Selections – St. Thomas Aquinas placed four players in this year's ECC post-season awards:
Shaun Arnold – ECC Defensive Player of the Year/Second Team All-Conference: topped the ECC and ranked 10th nationally in total steals (68), swiping the ball away 2.3 times per game in 29 regular season contests, and ranked fifth in total rebounds (192), eighth in rebounds per game (6.6), and 10th in total blocks (22). The ECC Defensive Player of the Year totaled 14 games with three or more steals and dropped five double-doubles after averaging 11.5 points per game on 48.0 percent shooting from the field. Arnold helped anchor STAC to a nation-leading 17.00 offensive rebounds per game and 19.43 turnovers forced per game, which topped the ECC and ranked eighth nationally.
Arnold was also named the ECC Defensive Player of the Week on November 11, 2024.
Hartnel Haye – ECC First Team All-Conference: played in all 30 regular season games while averaging 25.4 minutes per game. The Camden, New Jersey native ranks first on the team in points per game (11.9) and total points (358), first on the Spartans (3rd ECC) in rebounds per game (8.1) and (2nd ECC) total rebounds (244), fourth on the maroon and gold in assists per game (1.1) and total assists (33) and second in blocks per game (0.7) and total blocks (20).
Haye was also named the ECC Player of the Week on November 11, 2024.
Derrick James – ECC Second Team All-Conference: suited up in 27 regular season games while averaging 27.5 minutes per game. The Columbus, Ohio resident ranks fourth on the team in points per game (10.7) and fifth in total points (288), first on the Spartans (3rd ECC) in assists per game (4.7) and total assists (126) and second on the maroon and gold (5th ECC) in steals per game (2.0) and (4th ECC) total steals (54).
Luis Risquez – ECC Second Team All-Conference: took the court in 29 regular season games while averaging 21.7 minutes per game. The Barcelona, Venezuela native ranks second on the team in points per game (11.6) and total points (337), fourth on the Spartans (4th ECC) in field goal percentage (51.6%), third on the maroon and gold in rebounds per game (6.1) and total rebounds (178) and second in blocks per game (0.7) and third in total blocks (19).
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 2024-25, as STAC's record each month shows a level of excellence within the East Region. November 5-3, December 3-2, January 6-2, February 7-1, March (to date) 4-1.
Everyone Plays a Role – Head Coach Matt Capell has had a stable core of starters this season, with Shaun Arnold and Luis Risquez starting 33 of 33 games, Hartnel Haye starting 32 of 34 contests and Derrick James starting 30 of 31 matchups.
Starting Five Combinations
Risquez, Ramos, James, Arnold, Haye (22)
Risquez, Judge, James, Arnold, Haye (5)
Risquez, Judge, Ruckard, Arnold, Haye (2)
Risquez, Judge, James, Arnold, Parrotta (1)
Risquez, Judge, Ruckard, Arnold, Parrotta (1)
Risquez, Ramos, James, Crim, Haye (1)
Green, Ramos, James, Arnold, Haye (1)
Risquez, Judge, Kelly, Arnold, Haye (1)
1,000-Point Kudos – Spartan Luis Risquez joined the prestigious 1,000-Point Club during the 2024-2025 Season. Risquez reached the mark in his fifth year on March 8, 2025 in a 91-82 victory over Queens College at the ECC Men's Basketball Tournament Semifinals.
Hello Old Friend – A familiar face will be a part of Tuesday's East Region Final, as former Spartan Jamal Barnes will be in action for Assumption. Barnes transferred to the Worcester, Massachusetts school for his grad year after spending the last four seasons wearing maroon and gold. The Temple Hills, Maryland native amassed 1,109 points, 297 rebounds, 106 assists, 116 steals and 30 blocked shots in 107 total games for STAC. He also helped to lead St. Thomas Aquinas College to four consecutive ECC Regular Season titles, four straight ECC Tournament crowns and four successive trips to the NCAA Division II Tournament from 2021 to 2024.
The Luck of the Spartans – STAC has a bit of history on their side, as the last time the Spartans won the East Region Championship and advanced to the Elite Eight they were also the No. 5 seed in the tournament. In 2017, St. Thomas Aquinas dispatched its opponents; Saint Anselm, Merrimack and Saint Rose in a snowy Syracuse, New York to secure the region crown for the first time in program history and advance to the round of eight in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
2025 NCAA DIVISION II MEN'S BASKETBALL EAST REGIONAL TOURNAMENT
All Games Played at Lumsden Gymnasium (Daemen University) – Amherst, N.Y.
Quarterfinals – Saturday, March 15
12:00 p.m. - No. 6 Assumption 92 vs. No. 3 Southern New Hampshire 66
2:30 p.m. - No. 7 Dominican 85 vs. No. 2 Adelphi 66
5:00 p.m. - No. 8 Bridgeport 68 vs. No. 1 Daemen 80
7:30 p.m. - No. 5 St. Thomas Aquinas 79 vs. No. 4 Pace 72
Semifinals – Sunday, March 16
5:00 p.m. - No. 7 Dominican 75 vs. No. 6 Assumption 81
7:30 p.m. - No. 5 St. Thomas Aquinas 79 vs. No. 1 Daemen 74
Final – Tuesday, March 18
7:00 p.m. - No. 6 Assumption vs. No. 5 St. Thomas Aquinas
2025 NCAA DIVISION II MEN'S BASKETBALL EAST REGION
No. 1 seed – Daemen (27-0, 16-0 ECC) - ECC Regular Season & Tournament Champions
No. 2 seed – Adelphi (26-7, 17-3 NE10) - NE10 Regular Season Champions & Tournament Semifinalist
No. 3 seed – Southern New Hampshire (21-8, 14-6 NE10) - NE10 Tournament Champions
No. 4 seed – Pace (24-7, 14-6 NE10) - NE10 Tournament Runner-Up
No. 5 seed – St. Thomas Aquinas (23-9, 13-3 ECC) - ECC Tournament Runner-Up
No. 6 seed – Assumption (19-9, 14-6 NE10) - NE10 Tournament Quarterfinalist
No. 7 seed – Dominican (20-8, 14-2 CACC North) - CACC Regular Season Champions & Tournament Semifinalist
No. 8 seed – Bridgeport (19-12, 10-6 CACC North) - CACC Tournament Champions
TICKETS
All ticket sales for the 2025 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball East Regional are conducted via Daemen's online ticket office, accessible by visiting daemenwildcats.com/tickets. No cash is accepted on site. All games feature ticket pre-sales for families of student-athletes, coaches and team personnel.
In addition, the gymnasium will be cleared between each contest. All ticket sales are for single games only.
Final Game
Pre-sale tickets will go on sale Sunday, March 16 at 10:00 p.m. Any tickets not purchased via pre-sale will be released to the general public. General public tickets will go on sale Monday, March 17 at 8:00 a.m.
BROADCAST & LIVE STATS
All East Regional games will be broadcast on the ECC Network - the official digital streaming network of the East Coast Conference and Daemen University. The ECC Network features live and on demand broadcasts from each institution that can be viewed at eccsportsnetwork.com, or via OTT (over-the-top) apps on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Android TV devices.
Live stats are available for all East Regional games via Sidearm Stats - the official live stats provider for Daemen University. The live stats for all games is https://daemenwildcats.com/sidearmstats/mbball/summary.