Basketball Preview: Weekend begins with critical game at Quinnipiac
Merrimack men’s basketball will face Quinnipiac and Siena this weekend. Thursday’s game at Quinnipiac is a critical early-season matchup, with the Bobcats sitting just one game behind the Warriors, who are tied with Marist for the top spot in the league standings (5-0).
Merrimack vs. Quinnipiac
When: Thursday, 7 p.m.
Venue: M&T Bank Arena (3,254)
Where: Hamden, Conn.
Watch: ESPN+
Merrimack vs. Siena
When: Saturday, 3 p.m.
Venue: Hammel Court (1,200)
Where: North Andover, Mass.
Watch: ESPN+
Inside the Numbers
Game Notes
— Merrimack is 9-5 all-time against Quinnipiac. All those meetings were at the D-II level when both teams were party of the Northeast-10 conference. This will be the first time the programs meet as Division I opponents. The Warriors have won four games in a row in the series, with the last meeting on Jan. 24, 1998. Merrimack is 3-4 all-time in games played at Quinnipiac; the Warriors have never played at M&T Bank Arena.
— The Warriors’ Sunday game against Siena will be the first meeting between the programs.
— Budd Clark is coming off his third MAAC Player of the Week this season. Merrimack’s games this weekend will feature three of the top players in the league. KenPom has Clark ranked as the No. 1 player in the MAAC, and a favorite to win Player of the Year. Quinnipiac’s Amarri Monroe (preseason POTY) is ranked No. 2 in the league by KenPom, with Siena’s Justice Shoats ranked No. 4.
Matchup Breakdown
— Thursday’s game at Quinnipiac is a matchup of two of the top teams in the MAAC. Merrimack and Marist are the only undefeated teams left in the conference (5-0) and the Bobcats enter the game 5-1.
KenPom’s computer power rankings have the Warriors as the No. 1 team in the MAAC. They are projected to go 15-5 in league play. Quinnipiac is projected to finish tied for second in the MAAC with a 14-6 record.
As for Thursday’s game, KenPom gives Quinnipiac a 1-point edge (66-65).
— The Warriors and Bobcats are very similar. Both teams are rated as two of the top defensive teams in the MAAC, and both teams have struggled offensively, although Merrimack is one of the MAAC’s top offenses in league-only games.
The only offensive category Quinnipiac ranks highly in is the one defensive category Merrimack ranks low in: offensive rebounds. The Warriors are last in the MAAC in defending offensive rebounds, and the Bobcats are fourth in the MAAC (No. 90 in the nation) in getting offensive rebounds.
As for Siena, KenPom has Merrimack with a 6-point edge (66-60). The Saints lost twice last week to Iona and Quinnipiac. Before they head to Merrimack on Sunday, they will host Sacred Heart on Thursday night.