While CCSU is not mathematically eliminated from the NEC Tournament, it would take a minor miracle to get the Blue Devils into the "little dance". In order to advance, Central needs the following to happen: 1) Win both games this weekend. 2) Bryant lose both games this weekend. 3) Have Fairleigh Dickinson or Robert Morris (or both) tie or overtake St. Francis University for first place. So for all intents and purposes, this will be our final CCSU preview of the year. Thanks f

There are just two games remaining in the regular season for every NEC team, and there are still five teams that could win at least a share of the regular season crown. In fact, all ten programs are still mathematically alive for the right to play in the NEC Tournament. Parity right to the end. There’s no need for much more of a preamble this week. Next week is when the real fun begins. Tier 1 1. St. Francis U. (11-5) #WeirdNEC struck again on Saturday, as the Blackbirds of L

I picked a great weekend for a get-away. On Thursday and Saturday, Central Connecticut State lost their third and fourth games in a row to Mount St. Mary's (79-66) and Sacred Heart (80-66) respectively, essentially eliminating them from the NEC Tournament. Yet, believe it or not, that's not the story. The Suspensions On Thursday night, with 6:50 left in the second half and Central Connecticut down 65-53 to Mount St. Mary's, Jamir Coleman was called for a "carry", triggering t

Mount St. Mary's (4-10) at Central Connecticut St. (5-9) Thursday, 2/21, NEC FrontRow Computer Projections Kenpom: CCSU 74-68 (72%) Torvik: CCSU 74-70 (66%) Sacred Heart (8-6) at Central Connecticut St. (5-0) Computer Projections Kenpom: CCSU 80-79 (51%) Torvik: CCSU 81-80 (53%) About Mount St. Mary's If I had an NEC Coach of the Year ballet, I'd probably put Dan Engelstad 3rd. The job he's done this season has been phenomenal; according to Kenpom, the Mount has the 2nd young

Man, time flies when you're having fun. It's hard to believe that we are a mere two weeks (and a day) from the NEC Quarterfinals. It feels like just last week we were starting conference play. And guess what? The standings aren't much more settled than they were on January 1st. Sure, St. Francis U. is well on their way to winning the regular season crown, but every team will be playing for something this Thursday. No team has secured a home quarterfinal game, and technically

After winning three of four games, including a road win at then-1st place Robert Morris last Saturday, Central Connecticut finished off an 0-2 week with a 90-79 loss at St. Francis-Brooklyn on Saturday. For the second consecutive game, Central fell down big (by as many as 19 points in the 2nd half) before a late rally made the final score appear closer. However, this game was never in doubt. With the loss, CCSU is now 5-9 in the league, and on the outside looking in at the NE

After falling down by as many as 14-points in the first half on Thursday night on Staten Island, Central Connecticut clawed all the way to tie the score at 49 with 5:40 left. However, Wagner closed on a 14-8 run, ultimately pulling away for a 63-57 win. The loss drops CCSU to 5-8, effectively ending any outside chance that the Blue Devils had at sneaking into the top 4. Central now must focus simply on qualifying for the NEC Tournament. The good news is that both LIU-Brooklyn

On Monday, Central Connecticut’s Tyler Kohl won the NEC Player of the Week Award for a single-season record sixth time in 2018-19. According to NEC Senior Associate Commissioner Ron Ratner, seven of the eight players to win the Player of the Week Award five times in a season went on to win the NEC Player of the Year Award. So should Tyler Kohl be considered the frontrunner to win? Dating back to 2002, which happens to be this author’s freshman year at Central Connecticut St.,

Central Connecticut St. (5-7) at Wagner (6-6) Thursday 2/14, 7pm, NEC FrontRow Computer Projections Kenpom: WC 68-64 (63%) Torvik: WC 69-63 (72%) Central Connecticut St. (5-7) at St. Francis Brooklyn (6-6) Saturday 2/16, 4pm, NEC FrontRow Computer Projections Kenpom: SFC 72-67 (67%) Torvik: SFC 73-66 (76%) About Wagner The last time we saw the Seahawks, we were trying to figure out why the computers were so bullish on Wagner (they were the highest rated NEC team in Kenpom at

Hi, and welcome to TIE-BREAKER SZN (or #weirdNEC, if you prefer). By the time February rolls around, leagues are supposed to be largely figured out. The good teams beat the bad teams, especially at home. Not in the Northeast Conference, my friends. On Saturday, Central Connecticut (4-7) won at Robert Morris (8-3) and Mount St. Mary’s (2-9) won at Sacred Heart (7-4), while Fairleigh Dickinson and Wagner both won road games against teams with the same records (St. Francis-Brook