Purchase Tickets

Live Video

Live Stats

The Game
Kentucky and Stonehill have never met in the history of its programs. This is also the first time the Skyhawks have played an SEC opponent, after playing two Atlantic-10 teams (Saint Joe's, GW), one Patriot League team (Army), and a Big East team (UConn) to begin the season. This is the second ranked team Stonehill will have played this season after taking on No. 6 UConn on Saturday.The Skyhawks enter the game with a 1-3 record, its lone win coming against Army West Point last Thursday at Merkert Gymnasium. The Skyhawks have lost consecutive games, falling to No. 6 UConn and Saint Joseph's in the first two matchups of a five-game road trip. This meeting will be the second contest of the Wildcat Challenge hosted by Kentucky for Stonehill, with the Saint Joe's game this past Tuesday being the first and an eventual meeting with Texas A&M-Commerce on Monday, Nov. 20 concluding the three-game Challenge for Stonehill.

Media Information
Friday night's game will be broadcasted digitally on SECN+ with Darren Headrick (play-by-play) and Cameron Mills (analyst) calling the action for Kentucky.

Last Time Out
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (November 14, 2023) – Saint Joseph's University took down Stonehill men's basketball in both teams' first matchup as part of the Wildcat Challenge hosted by the University of Kentucky. The Hawks hosted the Skyhawks at Hagan Arena Tuesday night, winning the first meeting between the two teams, 100-56. Junior Shane O'Dell (Schenectady, N.Y.) led the Skyhawks in both scoring and rebounding with 16 points and four rebounds. He also tied freshman Louie Semona (Cincinnati, Ohio) for a team-high two assists. The Skyhawks are now 0-2 against Atlantic-10 teams this year, dropping their opening night matchup at George Washington to begin the season.

Preseason Prognostications
Stonehill was picked to finish ninth in its first Northeast Conference season by the league's head coaches before they finished in a tie for second place as they went 10-6. This season, they were voted to finish in sixth place, three spots higher after their strong debut to the NEC in 2022-23.  

Tough Slate
Stonehill has picked up where it left off last season when it comes to assembling a  tough non-conference slate, featuring three pre-season ranked opponents and two of the NCAA Final Four teams from this past March. They'll take on teams from the Big East  (1 - #5 UConn), ACC (1 - #12 Miami), SEC (1 - #17 Kentucky), Big Ten (1 - Rutgers), A-10 (2- Saint Joseph's (Pa.), George Washington), Patriot League (1 - Army), America East (3 - UMass Lowell, Binghamton, New Hampshire), and the MAAC (2 - Quinnipiac, Rider) leading up to their second season of NEC play. 11 of the Skyhawks 15 non-conference games will be played on the road.

Ranked Rigor
Stonehill enters the season with three nationally ranked opponents from the AP/Coaches Preseason Poll, No. 6 UConn, No. 13 Miami, and No. 16 Kentucky. Entering the 2023-24 season, the Skyhawks had never faced a nationally ranked Division I opponent in its programs history.

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, 2022. The Skyhawks started their four-year transition on July 1, 2022, 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 this year, in 2023-24.

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, in 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 in 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 was a charter member 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.

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 concludes the Wildcat Challenge when it plays Texas A&M-Commerce on the road on Monday, Nov. 20 at 7 p.m. for the fourth game of the Skyhawks five-game road trip.