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The Game
Wednesday night's meeting between Stonehill and UMass Lowell will mark the second time the two in-state foes have faced off at the Division I level. The Skyhawks traveled to Costello Gymnasium last season in Lowell, falling to the River Hawks 73-59 in the first meeting since both teams were still in the Northeast-10 conference in 2013. Graduate student Max Zegarowski and sophomore Ethan Meuser both put up double-figures in last year's game at UML, while returners Thatcher Stone, Chas Stinson, and Nathan McGill all saw playing time against the Riverhawks. Stonehill enters the game on a five-game losing streak that was entirely on the road as the Skyhawks look to improve to 2-0 at Merkert Gym. UMass Lowell is currently 4-1 with road wins at Georgia Tech, Saint Peter's, and Dartmouth to begin its 2023-24 campaign. The Riverhawks are coming off of a season in which they made the America East Championship game for the first time in program history.

Media Information
Wednesday night's game will be broadcasted digitally on NEC Front Row with Charlie Bergeron (play-by-play) and Brian Buckley (analyst) calling the action for the Skyhawks.

Last Time Out
Stonehill men's basketball dropped a non-conference matchup against Quinnipiac, 80-69, at M&T Bank Arena Sunday afternoon as the Skyhawks concluded a five-game road trip. Graduate student Max Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) and senior Jackson Benigni (East Hampton, Conn.) tallied 18 points and knocked down four three-pointers apiece to lead the Skyhawks. Quinnipiac was led by Matt Balanc who shot 6-7 from downtown for a game-high 24 points in 29 minutes. The Skyhawks concluded a five-game road trip in four different states, Connecticut (at UConn, at Quinnipiac), Pennsylvania (at St. Joe's), Kentucky (at UK), and Texas (at Texas A&M-Commerce). Four Skyhawks scored 10+ points for the second time this season, falling to 0-2 in such games.

Transfer Trio
Stonehill saw three new faces join the team for the 2023-24 season through the transfer portal. Sophomore Tony Felder (Virginia Military Institute), junior Shane O'Dell (Saint Rose), and Pano Pavlidis (Hartford). Despite all three being newcomers, the trio has made an instant impact for the Skyhawks as Pavlidis has started all seven games while Felder has started all but one and O'Dell has started in five of the seven. Felder currently leads the team in assists while ranking third in scoring and steals per game. Pavlidis is second on the team in field goal and three-point percentages along with being second on the team in rebounds per game. O'Dell is the teams fourth-best scorer and is fourth in three-point percentage.

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 hosts another America East opponent at Merkert Gymnasium on Saturday, Dec. 2 when Binghamton travels to Easton for a 2 p.m. tip-off.