SAINTS HEAD TO ANNA MARIA FOR GNAC QUARTERFINALS

BOSTON, Mass. —The fifth-seeded Emmanuel College men's basketball team has qualified for the second Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) tournament quarterfinal in the last two years and will travel to Paxton, Mass. to battle fourth-seeded Anna Maria College at 7 p.m. on Tuesday.

NEED TO KNOW

GNAC Quarterfinals
#4 Anna Maria College vs. #5 Emmanuel College
Fuller Activities Center - Paxton, Mass. - 7 PM 

WE'LL DO IT LIVE!

Both live stats and live video will be available, courtesy of Anna Maria College.

PLAYOFF PICTURE

Quarterfinals - Tuesday, February 23
Game 1: #8 Saint Joseph's Maine at #1 Johnson & Wales - 7:30 PM
Game 2: #5 Emmanuel at #4 Anna Maria - 7:00 PM
Game 3: #6 Mount Ida at #3 Albertus Magnus - 7:00 PM
Game 4: #7 Suffolk at #2 Lasell - 7:00 PM

Semifinals - Thursday, February 25 (Higher seeds host)
Game 5: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner

Championship - Saturday, February 27 (Higher seed hosts)
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner

HOW'D WE GET HERE

The fourth seed and rights to host this quarterfinal matchup came down to the final day of the regular season, as an Emmanuel win or an Anna Maria loss would have given the Saints the edge. However, EC dropped a three-point decision to Albertus Magnus and the AMCATS defeated Saint Joseph's (ME) to earn the fourth spot.

ANYTHING YOU CAN DO, I CAN DO BETTER

The two teams split two very close contests in the season series in 2015-16 with both sides winning their respective home game. Anna Maria took a 92-87 victory on January 7th before the Saints pulled out a 81-80 win a month later on February 13th. 

RECENT HISTORY IS THE BEST HISTORY

While Anna Maria owns an 8-3 edge in the all-time series, the Saints own two of the last three meetings, including last year's GNAC Quarterfinal game in Paxton, that ended in a 76-73 EC win. The Saints won the first matchup ever on January 16, 2012, but lost seven straight before last year's playoff game.

SCOUTING THE SAINTS

Despite Saturday's tough loss at third-seeded Albertus Magnus, Emmanuel has found it's groove in the latter portion of the season. The Saints had rattled off six straight GNAC wins prior to Saturday, including a huge 75-63 road win at No. 2 Lasell on Feb. 16^th. Offensively, Emmanuel averages 71.1 points per game and shoots 39.6 percent from the floor, while the defense allows the opponent 76.0 points per game on 44.8 percent shooting.

Probable Starters (based on prior contests):

• Kyle Davis (Groveland, Mass.) – Sr. C - Davis leads the team in scoring with 13.4 points per game on 46.8 percent shooting, and in rebounding with 8.8 boards per game.
• John Clay (Westport, Mass.) – Sr. F - Clay also scores in double-figures, averaging 10.7 points per game, while adding 7.1 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game.
• Matt Raine (Miami, Fla.) – So. F - Raine plays 19.2 minutes per game and scores 4.8 points per game.
• Kyle Smith (Los Angeles, Calif.) – Jr. G - Smith ranks fourth on the Saints in scoring with 9.2 points per game on 31.7 percent shooting. He leads the team in assists with 2.9 per game and has posted a 1.2 assists-to-turnovers ratio.
• Colin Cordero (Bolton, Conn.) – So. G - Cordero dishes out 2.1 assists per game. He also adds 8.4 points and 2.6 rebounds per game.

SCOUTING THE AMCATS

The AMCATS enter Tuesday's quarterfinal on a two game winning streak following victories over Rivier and Saint Joseph's. As a team, Anna Maria averages 78.4 points per game and shoots at a 44.3 percent efficiency. The AMCATS hit an average of eight three-pointers per contest. Defensively, the AMCATS allow an average of 81.5 points per game, while opponents shoot at 45.4 percent.

Probable Starters (Based on prior contests):

• Patrick Bradanese (Billerica, Mass.) – a senior guard and team co-captain, Bradanese averages a team-leading 19.8 points per game, shoots 41.3 percent from the floor, and dishes out a GNAC-best 5.6 assists per game. Defensively, Bradanese averages 6.2 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game.
• Tyler Delorey (Worcester, Mass.) – a senior guard a team co-captain, Delorey is second on the team in scoring with 14.1 points per game on 45.4 percent shooting. He adds 2.2 assists per game along with 5.1 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game.
• David Jean-Louis (Miramar, Fla.) – a junior point guard, Jean-Louis averages the fewest minutes of the starting five at 22.0 per game. He averages 7.0 points per game.
• Kyle McKissick (Charlton, Mass.) – a senior forward, McKissick has been crucial in the paint for Anna Maria. He averages a team-leading 7.7 rebounds in addition to 8.5 points per game.
• Pedro Trindade (Billerica, Mass.) – a senior forward, Trindade averages 6.2 points per game on a team-leading 50.9 percent shooting effort. He adds 5.0 rebounds per game.

WINNER WINNER, CHICKEN DINNER

The winner of Tuesday's quarterfinal game will take on the winner of the No.1 Johnson & Wales vs. No. 8 Saint Joseph's game. JWU (23-2) is currently ranked 14^th in the nation. The highest remaining seed will host the semifinal matchup.