FAIRFIELD, Conn. — Winners of five straight, the Sacred Heart University men's basketball team continues Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play with a road trip to Merrimack on Sunday, February 1, at 1 p.m.

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OPENING TIP

• Sacred Heart and Merrimack meet for the second time this season and the 40th time overall in a series that dates back to 1967. The Pioneers hold a 23-16 advantage in the all-time series. However, the Warriors defeated the Pios earlier this season, 80-72.
• Sacred Heart enters the matchup riding a five-game winning streak, beginning with an 86–80 road win at Siena, a 105–85 victory at Rider, followed by a pair of home wins over Canisius (69–66) and Niagara 71–70, and a 98-91 win on the road at Quinnipiac last night.
• Four Pioneers scored in double figures in the win over Quinnipiac, led by Anquan Hill (26) and Nyle Ralph-Beyer (24), Dashon Gittens added 19 points and Mekhi Conner had a double-double with 17 points and a career-high tying 16 assists.
• Gittens ranks seventh in the MAAC in scoring at 15.1 points per game, while Ralph-Beyer sits 12th at 14.0. Sacred Heart ranks second in the conference in scoring offense (76.4 ppg) and leads the MAAC in three-pointers made per game (11.0).
• Four Pioneers are averaging double figures this season: Hill (17.3 ppg), Gittens (15.1 ppg), Ralph-Beyer (14.0 ppg), and Yann Farell (10.9 ppg).
• Sacred Heart was picked third in the MAAC Preseason Coaches' Poll and led the league with three preseason All-MAAC selections: Hill (First Team), Mekhi Conner (Second Team), and Ralph-Beyer (Third Team).
• The Pioneers return nine players from last season's roster and added transfers Gittens and Farell, along with four first-year players. Now in its second season in the MAAC, Sacred Heart is coming off a strong league debut that included a seventh-place finish, and a conference tournament win over Fairfield to reach the quarterfinals.
• Sacred Heart features three student-athletes from Africa—Fallou Gueye, Yann Farell, and Abdou Yadd.
• SHU is celebrating its 60th season of men's basketball.
• Head coach Anthony Latina is in his 13th season at the helm.

SCOUTING MERRIMACK

• Merrimack enters the contest with a 9-2 record, sitting in the second spot in the MAAC standings. The Warriors are coming off a 67-59 home win over Saint Peter's last Saturday.
• Three players are averaging in double figures, led by Kevair Kennedy (17.0), Ernest Shelton (16.0), and Tye Dorset (11.1)
• Kennedy and KC Ugwuakazi are tied for the team lead in rebounds (4.5) 
• Kennedy is second in the MAAC in scoring and Ugwuakazi leads the league in blocked shots with 41.

LAST TIME OUT

• Sacred Heart men's basketball earned its fifth straight MAAC victory on Friday night, defeating Quinnipiac, 98–91, on the road at M&T Bank Arena. Four Pioneers scored in double figures, highlighted by Conner's standout performance of 17 points and a career-high–tying 16 assists for a double-double.
• Sacred Heart came out firing from beyond the arc, knocking down 11 three-pointers in the opening half. The Pioneers shot 52.4% (11-for-21) from three-point range and 51.6% (16-for-31) from the field in the first 20 minutes.
• After trading baskets early, SHU trailed by two, 15–13, at the 15:56 mark before Ralph-Beyer connected on a three-pointer to spark an 11–0 run, giving the Pioneers a 24–15 advantage.
• Sacred Heart maintained the lead for several minutes until a Quinnipiac layup cut the margin to one, 36–35, at 7:13. Another Ralph-Beyer triple briefly extended the lead, but the Bobcats responded with a 10–0 run to go ahead, 47–41. A Hill three with 1:35 remaining pulled SHU within two, though Quinnipiac closed the half with a free throw to take a 50–47 lead into the break.
• The second half featured a tightly contested back-and-forth battle, with neither team leading by more than five until the final seconds. Conner and Gittens helped fuel the Pioneers down the stretch.
• Quinnipiac opened the half with a quick five-point cushion, but Hill and Ralph-Beyer attacked the basket to knot the score at 53–53. After the Bobcats regained a brief edge, back-to-back three-pointers from Ralph-Beyer and Hill put Sacred Heart back in front, 59–55, with 16:31 to play.
• The teams continued to trade leads late. Trailing by three at 4:33, Conner converted a layup and completed the three-point play to tie the game at 79–79. Quinnipiac again pushed ahead by five with 3:13 remaining, but Sacred Heart responded with eight unanswered points to take an 89–86 lead with 1:21 left.
• In the final minute, the Bobcats pulled within one but clutch free throws from Conner and Farell sealed the 98–91 road victory for the Pioneers.

INSIDE THE RANKINGS

• Sacred Heart's offense ranks second in the MAAC at 76.4 points per game. The Pioneers lead the conference with 254 made three-pointers, averaging 11.0 per game, 13th nationally. SHU is 18th in the country in three-point attempts per game (30.1), and its 77% free throw percentage is 29th in the country.
• Gittens is seventh in the MAAC in scoring at 15.1 ppg and owns the seventh-best field-goal percentage in the conference at 54.0%.
• Ralph-Beyer is 12th in scoring at 14.0 points per game. Ralph-Beyer (.453), Gittens (.439), and Farell (.411) are third, fourth, and sixth, respectively, in the MAAC in three-point percentage. Ralph-Beyer's 3PT FG percentage is eighth in the country.
• Conner is first in the conference with 6.7 assists per game, which is 13th nationally, and he holds the best assist-to-turnover ratio in the MAAC at 2.8. His 154 assists rank fourth in the country.