BIDDEFORD, Maine – Suffolk men's basketball sets its sights on the postseason as the Rams head to the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Tournament as the fourth seed, the league office unveiled Saturday night.
Suffolk's first season in the CCC was one of the most competitive against conference counterparts with every team suffering as many as three set-backs in league action and a pair of ties in the final standings. The talented postseason field has been expanded from the usual eight teams to accommodate all 10 conference squads after the CCC's membership decided to expand this year's playoff field due to rescheduling challenges created by COVID-19 protocols.
The tournament tips off Monday, Feb. 21 with a pair of first round games: No. 10 Curry at seventh-seeded Gordon and No. 9 Wentworth at eighth-seeded the University of New England.
The first-round winners will be re-seeded when they move to the quarterfinals Tuesday, Feb. 22 with the lowest remaining seed set to visit to regular-season champion, top-seeded Nichols, with the other team headed to second-seed Salve Regina.
Suffolk avoided the play-in game after compiling a 10-8-0 league ledger to share the fourth spot with Endicott. A tiebreaker was needed to decide who would take the higher seed. The Rams and the Gulls split their head-to-head matchups, which offered no resolution, so the second step, a comparison of the teams' results against other conference opponents in rank order came into the picture. Thanks to Suffolk's thrilling 89-83 victory at Nichols, Feb. 14, 2022, the blue-and-gold secured home hardwood as the field's fourth seed, while the Gulls slipped to fifth.
The Suffolk, Endicott series is fairly new, dating back to 2018. The Rams are 2-3 all-time against the Gulls with all five meetings occurring with Jeff Juron on the bench. The blue-and-gold is unbeaten (2-0) when the foes play in Boston. The new rivals will square off against one another in the postseason for the first time.
After the quarterfinals, the tournament will continue onto the semis on Thursday, Feb. 24. The winner of the game at Nichols will play the victor of the Suffolk, Endicott matchup, while the winner of the game at Salve will take on the triumphant team of the third-seed Roger Williams, sixth-seed Wester New England outing.
The winners of the semifinals will clash in the title tilt Saturday, Feb. 26 with the 2022 CCC Champion earning the league's automatic ticket to the 2022 NCAA Division III Tournament.
Suffolk's first trip to the CCC postseason marks the Rams' 17th overall and ninth straight conference tournament appearance. The blue-and-gold has hosting rights in the postseason for the first time since 2019 when Suffolk was the GNAC's second seed.
Over its 17 conference tournament appearances, Suffolk has advanced to the semifinals four times, with the last coming in 2017-18, and competed in the championship contest once, when it hoisted the GNAC trophy in 2002.
Suffolk's quest for the CCC crown tips off Tuesday, Feb. 22 at Larry E. and Michael S. Smith Court against Endicott at 5:30 p.m.
2022 CCC MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
First Round – Monday, Feb. 21
#10 Curry at #7 Gordon – 7 p.m.
#9 Wentworth at #8 University of New England – 7 p.m.
Quarterfinals – Tuesday, Feb. 22
Lower-seeded First Round Winner at #1 Nichols
Higher-seeded First Round Winner at #2 Salve Regina
#6 Western New England at #3 Roger Williams
#5 Endicott at #4 Suffolk
Semifinals – Thursday, Feb. 24
#1/Lower-seeded First Round Winner vs. #4/5 Winner
#2/Higher-seeded First Round Winner vs. #3/6 Winner
Championship – Saturday, Feb. 26
Semifinal Winners