MBB: Monks Complete Undefeated Conference Season, Will Be Top Seed In 2026 Men's Basketball Tournament
WINTHROP, Mass. – Saint Joseph's (Maine) went on a tear in conference play this season, winning all conference games in the 2025-26 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) season as the Monks locked up the No. 1 seed in the upcoming GNAC Men's Basketball Championship Tournament with a victory over the University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) to claim the top spot.
The Monks went 12-0 in conference play (17-8 overall) and are hoping to go back-to-back next weekend as the Monks will will face Norwich (5-7 GNAC; 10-15 overall) as the Cadets collected the eighth seed.
Earning the No. 2 seed in this year's bracket is USJ (Conn.), who put together a 11-1 GNAC (18-7 overall) season as the Blue Jays will look to claim their spot at the top for the first time since 2023-24. They will meet with no. 7 Dean, who finished 5-7 and 15-10 overall in the regular season.
At no. 3 is Albertus Magnus, who finished 10-2 in conference play (18-7 overall) as the Falcons will will take on Regis, who collected the sixth seed after a huge road victory over Dean this afternoon. The Pride come in with a record of 5-7 (14-11 overall).
At the 4/5 slots will be Lasell and Emmanuel as the Lasers will host the Saints after Lasell posted an 8-4 record in conference play (13-12 overall) and Emmanuel collected a 7-5 record (13-12 overall).
The league's tiebreaking procedure was used to determine the 6-8 spots this year as there was a four-way tie between Dean, Norwich, Regis, and Rivier.
Norwich, Dean, and Regis all went 2-1, thus eliminating Rivier. Because all three-teams tied against each other, the next step was results against highest-ranked teams, which resulted in the next step of the tiebreaker which was results versus common opponents. They all shared a common opponent, which was Anna Maria as Norwich was the only team that was defeated between the three. After that was separated, it went to Regis and Dean, which Regis had the head to head advantage against Dean and collected sixth seed. Dean defeated Norwich which resulted them in the seventh spot and Norwich at eight.
Quarterfinals play will start on Wednesday Feb. 25 after an initial start date of Tuesday, Feb. 24 was moved due to the incoming blizzard. The four quarterfinal winners will earn the right to compete in the GNAC Semifinals, which are scheduled for Friday, Feb. 27. They will be competing for the opportunity to play in the GNAC Championship on Sunday, Mar. 1. The winner of the GNAC Championship game will be named the 2026 GNAC Men's Basketball Champion and earn the league's automatic qualifier into the 2026 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship.
2026 GNAC Men's Basketball Tournament Schedule
Quarterfinals – Wednesday, Feb. 25
(Hosted by higher seeds)
#1 SJC (Maine) vs. #8 Norwich, 7 p.m.
#2 USJ (Conn.) vs. #7 Dean, 7 pm
#3 Albertus Magnus vs. #6 Regis, 7 p.m.
#4 Lasell vs. #5 Emmanuel, 7 p.m.
Semifinals – Friday, Feb. 27
(Hosted by higher seeds)
Winner of #1/#8 vs. #4/5 Winner, TBD
Winner of #2/#7 vs. #3/6 Winner, TBD
Championship – Sunday, Mar. 1
Semifinal winners, TBD
ABOUT THE GREAT NORTHEAST ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 14 member institutions and over 4000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 20 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.
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