Men's Basketball

2025 MAAC Men’s Basketball Championship Day Four Recap Presented by Bally’s Atlantic City

ATLANTIC CITY, NJ (Mar. 14, 2025) – The 2025 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Men’s Basketball Championship at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall semifinal round wrapped up on Friday night with No. 4 Iona and No. 6 Mount St. Mary’s clinching championship final berths. The title game between the Gaels and Mount will take place on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. live on ESPNU. The matchup will put contrasting programs against each other with Iona having the most postseason success in MAAC history against Mount St. Mary’s, which is making its first ever MAAC Championship title game.
 
No. 4 Iona – 81 | No. 1 Quinnipiac – 73
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
Box Score (XML)
Box Score (PDF)
 
Iona earned an 81-73 upset win over top-seeded Quinnipiac in the first semifinal meeting. The Gaels never trailed and picked right back up where they left off following the previous round. Iona bolted out to a double digit lead with just over eight minutes in the half left. The lead would grow to 13 following a triple by Adam Njie Jr., before Iona eventually took its largest lead of the night at 14 at the 1:18 mark. The Gaels led 41-31 at the break. In the second half, the Gaels maintained a double figure lead up until the mid-point of the half. Trailing 57-47 with 10 minutes on the clock, Quinnipiac ran off 10 straight, capped off by back-to-back dunks by Amarri Monroe. Iona retook the lead, but the high intensity bout remained close. Up two with 1:46 to play, Njie hit a pull-up mid-range jumper to put Iona in a four-point lead and followed that up with a pair of clutch free throws to ultimately put the Gaels back in the championship for a record 21st time.
 
Iona Notes and Notables
  • Njie and DeJour Reaves once again led the offense for Iona, with the backcourt duo combining to score 44 points.
  • Reaves was the team-leader in scoring for the second straight tournament game, finishing with 23 points, while adding six rebounds, two steals and a block.
  • Njie concluded the night with 21 points and six assists, while making all eight of his free throw attempts in the win.
  • Yaphet Moundi recorded his sixth double-double this year, scoring 17 points and collecting 11 rebounds.
  • The most efficient scorer in the contest was Jalen Barr, who scored 11 points, going 5-for-6 from the field.
  • The Gaels combined to shoot 52.5 percent from the floor in the win.
  • Iona led from tip to final buzzer, owning the lead for 39:01.
  • The Gaels dominated the painted area outrebounding the league’s top rebounding unit, 38-29 and scoring 50 points from the paint.
  • Iona is back in the championship finale for the first time in three seasons, last making an appearance in 2023 – the last time the program won the championship – and will be participating in its 21st overall championship.
  • The Gaels are the most successful team in MAAC history, owning a MAAC all-time high, 14 league trophies – eight more than the next closest program.
 
Quinnipiac Notes and Notables
  • MAAC Player of the Year, Monroe, led all scorers with 25 points.
  • He also had six rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
  • Jaden Zimmerman was 7-for-10 in field goals, scoring 17 points.
  • Alexis Reyes was the third Bobcat in double figures, ending with 10 points.
  • Quinnipiac held an advantage in points off turnovers (13-8), second chance points (15-14), and bench points (15-9).
  • This marks the second straight season Quinnipiac has fallen in the semifinal round after winning the Regular Season Championship.
 
No. 6 Mount St. Mary’s – 57 | No. 2 Merrimack – 55
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
Box Score (XML)
Box Score (PDF)
 
Mount St. Mary’s Cinderella run in the MAAC postseason continued with the team’s second upset of the tournament, this time knocking off second-seeded Merrimack, 57-55. Merrimack controlled the bulk of the first half, leading for over 16 minutes and holding as much as a seven-point advantage in the half. Although the Warriors led for as long as they did, Mount St. Mary’s found themselves in a one-point lead at the half. The second half played out similar to the first, with the Warriors jumping back to a seven-point lead at the 12:31 mark. Merrimack kept a close edge, but Mount St. Mary’s continued to trim the lead, knotting the game twice before eventually going ahead in the contest with five to play. Down the stretch, Devon Savage hit a contested corner three for the Warriors, putting them ahead by one point with 1:45 left. The score remained the same after a few possessions and with 34 seconds to go, the Mountaineer’s Arlandus Keyes was fouled in the act of shooting, putting him on the line. Keyes converted both, giving the one point lead back to the Mount. With a chance to take the lead, Sean Trumper missed a three point attempt and Merrimack put the Mount’s Dallas Hobbs at the line for a one-and-one. Hobbs made the front end but missed the back end and with 11 ticks to play Merrimack would have one more opportunity to tie or win the game. With time running out, Matt Becht hoisted up a three-pointer that missed, giving the Mount the two-point victory.
 
Mount St. Mary’s Notes and Notables
  • Keyes was the lone Mount player to surpass double figures, scoring a team-high 13 points.
  • Jedy Cordilia finished with nine points and 10 rebounds, just failing to reach a double-double.
  • Hobbs and Patrick Haigh added eight points apiece.
  • The Mount almost doubled up Merrimack on the glass (40-24).
  • The Mountaineers also prevailed in second chance points (11-0) and bench points (28-2).
  • Mount St. Mary’s only led for 7:33 in the contest.
  • Mount St. Mary’s is making its first ever trip in the championship, just three years into the program’s MAAC tenure.
  • Despite the lack of MAAC success, the Mount will be playing for it’s program’s seventh conference championship, having previously won six Northeast Conference titles, the last one in 2021 a year before joining the MAAC.
 
Merrimack Notes and Notables
  • Trumper scored a game-high 20 points for Merrimack and had five rebounds.
  • Adam “Budd” Clark chipped in with 13 points, seven assists.
  • The Warriors led for more than half the game, controlling the lead for 27:22 despite the defeat.
  • Merrimack scored more points in the paint (20-14) and had more fast break points (13-5).
 
For all information regarding the 2025 MAAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships, please visit MAACSports.com/basketball and by following @MAACHoops and #MAACHoops on Twitter.
 
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 13 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 44th year of competition during the 2024-25 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius University, Fairfield University, Iona University, Manhattan University, Marist University, Merrimack College, Mount St. Mary’s University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Sacred Heart University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.
 
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