UTICA, NY - The Utica University men's basketball team is set to host the fourth seed SUNY Poly Wildcats in the Empire 8 Conference Tournament Championship on Saturday, March 1.  Tip off from Miga Court inside the Clark Athletic Center is set for 3pm. 
 
Ticketing Information: For those attending, admission will be $6 for adults, $4 for students and seniors with ID, and children under 12 are free. Admission is to be paid in cash only. 
 
Follow Along: For those unable to attend, live video can be found here and live stats can be found here.
 
Last Time Out: The Pioneers hosted Nazareth University in the Empire 8 Tournament Semifinal this week in hopes of advancing to the conference championship game for the second year in a row. Utica went into this matchup on an eight game winning streak, with their last win being in the first round of the post-season tournament against Houghton University. The Pioneers kept their streak going as a Liam Teague (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland) fueled offense defeated Nazareth by a score of 85-79. Teague finished the night with a career high 22 points. He shot 64 percent from the field and registered nine rebounds with two assists. Devon Flynn (Red Hook, NY/Red Hook) also had a night to remember, scoring his new career-high of 16 points. Damien Call (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) was efficient on both ends of the court as he scored seven points, logged seven assists and ten rebounds. Jordan Cain (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee) was a key factor in Utica's offense as he scored 14 points, with 12 of them coming from beyond the arc, he shot 80 percent from three. As a team, the Pioneers shot 50 percent from the field compared to the Golden Flyers 40 percent. Utica shot 30 percent from deep and registered 39 total rebounds. 
 
Bracketology: Here's an updated look at the tournament bracket heading into the semifinal round, as well as scores from the all previous matchups, along with the remaining tournament schedule. 

 

Saturday, February 22 – First Round (All games at Higher Seed)
No. 1 SUNY Brockport defeated No. 8 SUNY Geneseo, 87-66
No. 2 Utica defeated No. 7 Houghton, 80-68 
No. 3 Nazareth defeated No. 6 Russell Sage, 73-65 
No. 4 SUNY Poly defeated No. 5 Alfred, 66-65 
 
Wednesday, February 26 – Semifinals (All games at Higher Seed)
No. 4 SUNY Poly defeated at No. 1 SUNY Brockport , 92-89
No. 2 Utica defeated No. 3 Nazareth, 85-79
 
Saturday, March 1 - Championship Final (at Highest Remaining Seed) 
No. 2 Utica vs. No. 4 SUNY Poly #2 - 3 p.m.
 
Scouting Poly: The Empire 8 Conference newcomer and cross-town rival SUNY Poly Wildcats are making its first title game appearance as a member of the Empire 8. The SUNY Poly men's basketball team is heading to the Empire 8 Championship after a thrilling 92-89 victory over No. 1 seed SUNY Brockport. The Wildcats overcame an early deficit with a dominant second-half performance, led by standout efforts from Anthony Rose, Cheickne Toure, and Kamryn Comstock, who each recorded double-doubles. In the first round of the tournament, the Wildcats edged out the Alfred University Saxons by one to advance to the semifinal round. Rose has been a standout for the Wildcats this season, averaging over 16 points per game. Daimarr Miller is not too far behind Rose, averaging over 15.5 points per game. Comstock has been putting the work in the paint averaging 7.3 rebounds per game. Rose has also been a stout defender, rejecting 27 shots this season. 
 
A Look at the Series: The cross-town rivalry dates back over 20 seasons, with the first meeting between the two teams taking place back in 2001. Since then, the Pioneers have posted a 22-12 record against the Wildcats, and are 10-6 when the game is played on Miga Court. With the Wildcats joining the Empire 8 this season, both teams entered the season with a clean slate. Both teams split the regular season series, 1-1. The first time the two met as new conference foes this season, Poly took the matchup by a score of 96-76 at Miga Court. Leading the way for the Pioneers in that contest was Dayion Thompson (Beacon, NY/Kimball Union Academy) with 26 points, including five three-pointers, and a perfect 7-for-7 from the free-throw line. In the second matchup, the Pioneers defeated the Wildcats 80-72 on the road with Damien Call (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) and Liam Teague (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland) pilfering the paint against Poly, owning the lane all game long as they put up a combined 40 points in the victory.
 
Looking Ahead: With a win, the Pioneers would clinch an automatic berth into the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. The 2025 DIII men's basketball championship starts with a selection show on Monday, March 3 at noon ET live streamed on NCAA.com.