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The Game
Stonehill College heads to Rhode Island to battle Ed Cooley's '94 Providence Friars for a non-conference matchup at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in a game that will be televised live on FS2 this evening. The Skyhawks are riding high after notching its first NCAA Division I win with an 82-77 triumph at Army West Point on Saturday, while the reigning Big East regular season champion Friars have won their first two after an 89-65 victory over Boston University here on Saturday night.

Media Information
Tonight's game will be broadcast live nationwide on FS2 with Josh Sims (PBP) and Terrence Oglesby (analyst) calling the action. Radio broadcast on WPRO 99.7 FM and 630 AM with John Rooke (PBP) and Joe Hassett (analyst) on the call, which can also be accessed online at 630wpro.com and TuneIn app.

Against the Friars
Tonight marks the fifth meeting all-time between these two programs - but the first official encounter since 1979. The Skyhawks and Friars have met in a series of exhibition games in recent years, but Providence has won all four of the previous in-season matchups between the two dating back to 1975. All five meetings, including today, have taken place in Providence.

Pride of Stonehill
Stonehill College takes great pride in the coaching career of Providence head coach Ed Cooley, Class of 1994. Cooley was a three-year captain at Stonehill, finishing with 795 points, 594 rebounds and over 100 assists in 107 career games played. He helped Stonehill to four NE10 Tournament appearances, reaching the semifinals his senior year, when he ranked seventh among NE10 rebounding leaders with 7.0 per game.
• Received Stonehill's Outstanding Alumnus Award in 2012
• Inducted to Stonehill Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019
• Announced The Edward and Nurys Cooley Scholarship Fund at Stonehill at the 2019 HOF induction ceremony to be awarded annually to give financially needy students, who might otherwise be unable to afford higher education, an opportunity to do so through scholarship assistance.

Alumni Battle
This afternoon marks the first matchup of Stonehill basketball alumni with Stonehill head coach Chris Kraus, '06 the first Stonehill alumn to take charge of the men's basketball program facing Providence head coach Ed Cooley, '94.

Player of the Week
Stonehill fifth-year forward Andrew Sims (Mount Laurel, N.J.) has been named the Northeast Conference's Player of the Week for the opening week of the season the league announced on Monday. Sims averaged 19.0 points on 64.7-percent shooting, converting 90.9% (10-of-11) of his free-throws, with 4.3 rebounds and 1.7 steals over the Skyhawks first three NCAA Division I games. Sims shared the team lead with 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting, with a rebound, assist and steal in Stonehill's season-opener at UConn last Monday. He followed that up with a season-high 24 points on 8-of-13 shooting, converting 8-of-9 free-throws, with four rebounds, three assists and a block against Quinnipiac on Thursday. Sims followed that up with 21 points on 9-of-11 shooting, eight rebounds, an assist and steal in Saturday's 82-77 win at Army for the Skyhawks first Division I win.

Prime Performers
Stonehill fifth-years Andrew Sims (Mount Laurel, N.J.) and Isaiah Burnett (Annapolis, Md.) were both named as Prime Performers for the opening week of the season by the Northeast Conference on Monday. Sims was also named the NEC Player of the Week, while Burnett contributed 14.3 points on 57.7% shooting for the three games to open the season, adding 4.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.7 steals in 26.5 minutes per game. He scored a season-high 19 points on 6-of-10 shooting, with three rebounds, three assists and three steals in Saturday's win at Army.

History Made at Historic Place
Stonehill couldn't have picked a more historic location for the first win in its NCAA Division I era, with Saturday's 82-77 triumph over Army in West Point. The Skyhawks accomplished the historic win in just its third game since starting its transition to Division I status on July 1. The Skyhawks jumped out to a ten point lead in the first half, holding a 44-34 halftime advantage, before hanging on down the stretch. Fifth-years Andrew Sims (Mount Laurel, N.J.) and Isaiah Burnett (Annapolis, Md.) combined for 40 points for the Skyhawks, with Sims posting his second-straight 20-point game with a game-high matching 21, while Burnett scored a season-best 19 points.

Bright Lights
The Northeast Conference announced last week that Stonehill's February 2 matchup with Saint Francis (Pa.) University will be broadcast live on ESPN3 through the NEC's 26-game television package. The matchup at Merkert Gym is among 21 games that will be featured on ESPN networks. Now in his 23rd season, Dave Popkin serves as the primary play-by-play announcer on men's broadcasts, with Paul Dottino (24th year) filling in. Tim Capstraw (24th year) and Joe DeSantis (16th year) are slated to split color analyst duties. Pack Network and Northeast Sports Network (NSN) will handle production duties for the league's ESPN3/ESPN+ package.

Degrees of Stonehill Separation
Providence sophomore Bryce Hopkins is the nephew of Stonehill men's basketball alum and Athletic Hall of Famer Bob Duarte, '87. Duarte ranks 22nd on Stonehill's career scoring list with 1,279 points. He led Stonehill to the 1987 Northeast-8 Championship as a senior and was inducted to the Stonehill Athletics Hall of Fame in 2003. Duarte's son, Rob is a 2021 Stonehill graduate and four-year member of the Skyhawks baseball program for head coach Pat Boen, '89 a former teammate of Bob Duarte.

In Transition
Stonehill announced it had accepted an invitation to join the Northeast Conference and commence a four-year transition to full NCAA Division I membership on April 5. The Skyhawks started their four-year transition on July 1 and will earn full NCAA Division I membership in 2026-27. At the June NEC meetings, the Conference presidents announced a shift in the waiting period for automatic qualifier sports from competing for NEC postseason championships from four to two years, making Stonehill eligible to compete in the NEC postseason starting in 2024-25.

Proud History
Stonehill won the Northeast-10 Presidents' Cup six times, finishing in the top three in the final standings 15 of the last 17 years. Stonehill was one of just ten institutions nationwide to receive the NCAA Division II Presidents' Award for Academic Achievement, recognizing athletic departments with an Academic Success rating of 90-percent or better, each of the first ten years of the program's existence. The College ranks No. 98 in the category of National Liberal Arts Schools by U.S. News & World Report and No. 94 for the Best Value category.

Hoop History
Stonehill men's basketball earned 15 NCAA Division II Tournament bids over its history, the last was halted by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Stonehill were charter members of the Northeast-10 Conference, winning the first two tournament championships in 1981 and '82, finishing its time in the Conference with four postseason titles and six regular season championships.

Preseason Prognostications
Stonehill was picked to finish ninth in its first Northeast Conference season by the league's head coaches. Merrimack received six of the eight first place votes to hold the pole position atop the preseason poll, followed by Sacred Heart with two first place votes. Saint Francis (Pa.) follows in third, while Wagner is picked fourth and received the final first place vote.  

Tough Slate
Stonehill has assembled a tough non-conference slate in its inaugural Division I season, featuring opponents from the Big East  (2 - UConn, Providence), ACC (1 - BC), Missouri Valley (3 - UIC, Bradley, Valpo), Patriot League (2 - Army, Holy Cross), America East (2 - UMass Lowell, Binghamton), MAAC (2 - Quinnipiac, Rider), A-10 (1 - Fordham) leading up to its inaugural NEC slate around the New Year. 12 of the Skyhawks 15 non-conference games will also be played on the road.  

Inside the Roster
Stonehill head coach Chris Kraus '06 returns ten letterwinners, including three starters from his 2021-22 team that finished 15-12, including 10-9 in the NE10, reaching the Conference quarterfinals.
Stonehill's inaugural Division I roster includes:
• Four fifth-year players
• Three new transfers, including two postgrad transfers
• Two Division I transfers, including fifth-year returnee Isaiah Burnett (Navy) and newcomer Thatcher Stone (William & Mary)
• No seniors, three juniors, three sophomores and two freshmen.

Getting Social
Fans and media members of Stonehill athletics have multiple social media outlets to get updates on all 23 varsity programs. The department's Facebook page is www.facebook.com/stonehillskyhawks, and you can also follow @GoStonehill on Twitter and @stonehillskyhawks via Instagram! You can also search for Stonehill men's basketball on Facebook, follow the team's Twitter account via @StonehillBball as well as head coach Chris Kraus @CoachChrisKraus, and its new Instagram feed @stonehillbball. 

Up Next
Stonehill returns to action this weekend, when it heads to the Bronx to take part in Fordham University's Tom Konchalski Classic on Saturday, Monday and next Tuesday. The Skyhawks open the Classic against Holy Cross on Saturday at 7:30 p.m., before taking on Illinois-Chicago next Monday (4 p.m.) and then host Fordham on Tuesday (7 p.m.) at Rose Hill Gym.