Blue Jays Rise To 17th In National Rankings
WEST HARTFORD, Conn. - The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's basketball program is on the move again, climbing two more spots to 17th in this week's D3Hoops.com Top 25 National Poll, which was released Monday. The Blue Jays broke into the Top-25 for the first time in program history during week 10 of the national poll, and continue to climb in week 11 and week 12 as the team heads into the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament Tuesday evening.
D3Hoops.com Top 25 Poll
The Blue Jays, under the direction of Hall of Fame head coach Jim Calhoun, won their last 22 games of the regular season, and finished 23-2 overall. The streak is the third-longest in Division III, behind only Swarthmore and Yeshiva. Swarthmore has won 25 straight and is ranked No. 1 in the Top 25, while Yeshiva has won 24 straight, and is ranked ahead of the Blue Jays as well at No. 15.
Saint Joseph, in just its second season fielding a men's basketball team, clinched the 2019-20 GNAC regular-season title and home-court throughout the postseason tournament with a 95-83 road win over Emmanuel on February 15. The Blue Jays finished 11-0 in conference play, joining Albertus Magnus in 2012 (18-0) and 2015 (18-0) as the only teams in GNAC Men's Basketball history to go undefeated in league play.
In non-conference action, USJ most notably went 3-1 this season against New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) opponents, picking up wins over Trinity College, Bates College, and Williams College. Its lone NESCAC loss - and last loss to date - was at Tufts University on November 23, more than three months ago. Tufts was previously in the Top-25 for multiple weeks this season.
The Blue Jays rank in the top-five in Division III in numerous statistical categories. They lead the nation in scoring margin (winning by an average of just under 20 points per game), are third in rebounding margin (grabbing 11 rebounds more per game than opponents), are third in field-goal percentage (shooting it at nearly 52% from the field), and are fifth in defensive rebounds per game at nearly 32. Additionally, junior forward Jordan Powell (Middletown, Conn.) continues to lead the nation in field goal-percentage at nearly 71% from the floor, tied currently with Trenton Krueger of Bethany Lutheran.
The D3hoops.com Top-25 is voted on by a panel of 25 coaches, sports information directors, and media members from across the country and is published weekly. Points are awarded on a 25-24-23-22-etc. basis. Other Northeast region schools in the National Top 25 include No. 11 Colby, No. 14 Springfield, No. 19 Middlebury, and No. 25 Babson. A total of 416 schools, representing 43 separate conferences, are eligible for the NCAA Division III National Tournament.
UP NEXT
It's on to the postseason, as the USJ men's basketball team hosts its first-ever home playoff game in program history, when they go head-to-head with the eight seed, Regis College, on Tuesday, February 25 at 7:00 p.m. in the O'Connell Center. Tickets are sold out, but the game will be streamed live on usjbluejays.com
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