The Northeast Conference men's basketball tournament is the conference championship tournament in basketball for the Northeast Conference, now officially known by its initialism of NEC. It has been held every year since the NEC was established in the 1981–82 season. The tournament is an eight-team single-elimination tournament and seeding is based on regular season records. The bracket is reseeded after the quarterfinals, with the highest remaining seed playing the lowest remaining seed in the semifinals. The tournament winner receives the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA basketball tournament.
Robert Morris, which left the NEC in 2020 for the Horizon League, is the program that has won the most NEC Tournament Championships (9), followed by current NEC members LIU (7), then Fairleigh Dickinson (6) as well as Mount St. Mary's (also 6), which left the NEC in 2022 for the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. LIU, which before 2019–20 represented only the university's Brooklyn campus, has been the only program to win three consecutive tournament championships, from 2011–2013. Robert Morris won back-to-back championships on three occasions (1982–83, 1989–90 and 2009–10), the only other programs to win back-to-back championships, Marist and Rider, are also no longer members of the NEC. Of the current conference members (9 programs), three have not won a championship. Sacred Heart has participated in all NEC tournaments since joining the conference; Le Moyne and Stonehill have yet to participate.
Through the 2022 tournament, schools transitioning from NCAA Division II were ineligible for the conference tournament, paralleling NCAA policy that prohibits such schools from NCAA-sponsored postseason play (either the NCAA tournament or the NIT). After the 2021–22 season, the NEC presidents voted to allow transitional members to participate in the NEC tournament starting with the third season of their four-year transition. Merrimack, which joined the NEC in 2019–20, was thus eligible for the 2023 tournament, its last before completing its D-I transition. Stonehill, a 2022–23 arrival, was only in its first transition year and, therefore not eligible to participate in the 2023 NEC tournament. Under the 2022 rule, should a transitional program win the conference tournament, the automatic NCAA tournament bid went to the other finalist.
Effective for the 2023–24 academic year, NEC teams transitioning from Division II are eligible for the NEC tournament during the entirety of their transition periods. If a reclassifying institution wins the NEC tournament championship, the tournament runner-up will be awarded the NEC's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. If two reclassifying teams reach the final of the NEC tournament, the conference will stage an automatic qualifier game between the two non-advancing semifinalists. The rule change resulted in Stonehill and Le Moyne being eligible for the 2024 NEC tournament, since that was Stonehill's second transition year and Le Moyne's first. Similarly, Mercyhurst, which joins the NEC from Division II in July 2024, will be eligible for the 2025 NEC tournament.
For the third straight year, the NEC changed its rules regarding eligibility for the conference tournament for the 2024–25 season. Teams transitioning from Division II may participate in the NEC tournament starting with the third year of their transition. Therefore, Mercyhurst will not be eligible for the NEC tournament until 2027. The change is prospective rather than retroactive. Consequently, Le Moyne, in their second transition year, remain eligible for the 2025 tournament.
History of the tournament final Year Champion Score Runner-up Tournament MVP Location1982Robert Morris85–84Tom Parks, RMUArnold and Marie Schwartz Athletic Center (Brooklyn, New York)1983Robert Morris79–67Chipper Harris, RMUJohn Jay Center (Moon Township, Pennsylvania)1984Long Island87–81Carey Scurry, LIUMcCann Field House (Poughkeepsie, New York)1985Fairleigh Dickinson63–59Larry Hampton, FDUReitz Arena (Baltimore, Maryland)1986Marist57–56OTRik Smits, MARISTCharles L. Sewall Center (Moon Township, Pennsylvania)1987Marist64–55OTDrafton Davis, MARISTMcCann Field House (Poughkeepsie, New York)1988Fairleigh Dickinson90–75Jaime Latney, FDURothman Center (Hackensack, New Jersey)1989Robert Morris69–68Vaughn Luton, RMUCharles L. Sewall Center (Moon Township, Pennsylvania)1990Robert Morris71–66Alex Blackwell, MONMOUTHCharles L. Sewall Center (Moon Township, Pennsylvania)1991St. Francis (PA)97–82Mike Iuzzolino, SFUDeGol Arena (Loretto, Pennsylvania)1992Robert Morris85–81Myron Walker, RMUCharles L. Sewall Center (Moon Township, Pennsylvania)1993Rider65–64Darrick Suber, RIDERAlumni Gymnasium (Lawrenceville, New Jersey)1994Rider62–56Charles Smith, RIDERAlumni Gymnasium (Lawrenceville, New Jersey)1995Mount St. Mary's69–62Silas Cheung, MSMAlumni Gymnasium (Lawrenceville, New Jersey)1996Monmouth60–59Corey Albano, MONMOUTHWilliam T. Boylan Gymnasium (West Long Branch, New Jersey)1997Long Island72–67Charles Jones, LIUSchwartz Athletic Center (Brooklyn, New York)1998Fairleigh Dickinson105–91Rahshon Turner, FDUSchwartz Athletic Center (Brooklyn, New York)1999Mount St. Mary's72–56Gregory Harris, MSMSpiro Sports Center (Staten Island, New York)2000Central Connecticut63–46Rick Mickens, CCSUSovereign Bank Arena (Trenton, New Jersey)2001Monmouth67–64St. Francis (BKN)Rahsaan Johnson, MONMOUTHSovereign Bank Arena (Trenton, New Jersey)2002Central Connecticut78–71Damian Battles, CCSUWilliam H. Detrick Gymnasium (New Britain, Connecticut)2003Wagner78–61St. Francis (BKN)Jermaine Hall, WAGNERSpiro Sports Center (Staten Island, New York)2004Monmouth67–55Blake Hamilton, MONMOUTHWilliam T. Boylan Gymnasium (West Long Branch, New Jersey)2005Fairleigh Dickinson58–52Tamien Trent, FDURothman Center (Hackensack, New Jersey)2006Monmouth49–48Marques Alston, MONMOUTHRothman Center (Hackensack, New Jersey)2007Central Connecticut74–70Javier Mojica, CCSUWilliam H. Detrick Gymnasium (New Britain, Connecticut)2008Mount St. Mary's68–55Jean Cajou, MSMWilliam H. Pitt Center (Fairfield, Connecticut)2009Robert Morris48–46Jeremy Chappell, RMUCharles L. Sewall Center (Moon Township, Pennsylvania)2010Robert Morris52–50Karon Abraham, RMUTD Bank Sports Center (Hamden, Connecticut)2011Long Island85–82OTRobert MorrisJamal Olasewere, LIUWellness, Recreation & Athletics Center (Brooklyn, New York)2012Long Island90–73Robert MorrisJulian Boyd, LIUWellness, Recreation & Athletics Center (Brooklyn, New York)2013Long Island91–70Mount St. Mary'sC. J. Garner, LIUWellness, Recreation & Athletics Center (Brooklyn, New York)2014Mount St. Mary's88–71Robert MorrisRashad Whack, MSMCharles L. Sewall Center (Moon Township, Pennsylvania)2015Robert Morris66–63St. Francis (BKN)Rodney Prior, RMUGeneroso Pope Athletic Complex (Brooklyn, New York)2016Fairleigh Dickinson87–79WagnerEarl Potts, Jr., FDUSpiro Sports Center (Staten Island, New York)2017Mount St. Mary's71–61St. Francis (PA)Elijah Long, MSMKnott Arena (Emmitsburg, Maryland)2018Long Island71–61WagnerJoel Hernandez, LIUSpiro Sports Center (Staten Island, New York) 2019 Fairleigh Dickinson85–76 St. Francis (PA) Darnell Edge, FDU DeGol Arena (Loretto, Pennsylvania)2020Robert Morris77–67St. Francis (PA)Dante Treacy, RMUUPMC Events Center (Moon Township, Pennsylvania)2021Mount St. Mary's73–68BryantNana Opoku, MSMChace Athletic Center (Smithfield, Rhode Island)2022Bryant70–43Wagner Peter Kiss, BUChace Athletic Center (Smithfield, Rhode Island)2023 Merrimack67–66 Fairleigh Dickinson Ziggy Reid, MRMK Lawler Arena (North Andover, Massachusetts)2024Wagner54–47Merrimack Tahron Allen, WAGNERLawler Arena (North Andover, Massachusetts)2025 St. Francis (PA)46–43 Central Connecticut Juan Cranford Jr., SFUWilliam H. Detrick Gymnasium (New Britain, Connecticut)2026LIU79–70MercyhurstGreg Gordon, LIUSteinberg Wellness Center (Brooklyn, New York)
Championships by school ‡Denotes school is a former member of the NEC, as of the 2026–27 NCAA basketball season School Championships Championship YearsRobert Morris‡ 9 1982, 1983, 1989, 1990, 1992, 2009, 2010, 2015, 2020LIU 7 1984, 1997, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2018, 2026Fairleigh Dickinson 6 1985, 1988, 1998, 2005, 2016, 2019Mount St. Mary's‡ 6 1995, 1999, 2008, 2014, 2017, 2021Monmouth‡ 4 1996, 2001, 2004, 2006Central Connecticut 3 2000, 2002, 2007Marist‡ 2 1986, 1987Rider‡ 2 1993, 1994Wagner 22003, 2024 Saint Francis (PA)‡ 21991, 2025Bryant‡ 12022 Merrimack‡ 12023 St. Francis Brooklyn‡ 0—Quinnipiac‡ 0—Sacred Heart‡ 0—Loyola (MD)‡ 0— Le Moyne 0— Stonehill 0— Chicago State 0— Mercyhurst 0 — New Haven 0 —
Notes
NCAA Tournament appearances Year NEC Team Opponent Result 1982 (12) Robert Morris (5) Indiana L 62–94 1983 (12) Robert Morris (12) Georgia Southern(5) Purdue W 64–54L 53–55 1984 (11) Long Island (11) Northeastern L 87–90 1985 (16) Fairleigh Dickinson (1) Michigan L 55–59 1986 (15) Marist (2) Georgia Tech L 53–68 1987 (14) Marist (3) Pittsburgh L 68–93 1988 (16) Fairleigh Dickinson (1) Purdue L 79–94 1989 (16) Robert Morris (1) Arizona L 60–94 1990 (15) Robert Morris (2) Kansas L 71–79 1991 (15) Saint Francis (PA) (2) Arizona L 80–93 1992 (16) Robert Morris (1) UCLA L 53–73 1993 (16) Rider (1) Kentucky L 52–96 1994 (15) Rider (2) Connecticut L 46–64 1995 (16) Mount St. Mary's (1) Kentucky L 67–113 1996 (13) Monmouth (4) Marquette L 44–68 1997 (13) Long Island (4) Villanova L 91–101 1998 (15) Fairleigh Dickinson (2) Connecticut L 85–93 1999 (16) Mount St. Mary's (1) Michigan State L 53–76 2000 (15) Central Connecticut State (2) Iowa State L 78–88 2001 (16) Monmouth (1) Duke L 52–95 2002 (14) Central Connecticut State (3) Pittsburgh L 54–71 2003 (15) Wagner (2) Pittsburgh L 61–87 2004 (15) Monmouth (2) Mississippi State L 52–85 2005 (16) Fairleigh Dickinson (1) Illinois L 55–67 2006 (16) Monmouth (16) Hampton(1) Villanova W 71–49L 45–58 2007 (16) Central Connecticut State (1) Ohio State L 57–78 2008 (16a) Mount St. Mary's (16b) Coppin State(1) North Carolina W 69–60L 74–113 2009 (15) Robert Morris (2) Michigan State L 62–77 2010 (15) Robert Morris (2) Villanova L 70–73OT 2011 (15) Long Island (2) North Carolina L 87–102 2012 (16) Long Island (1) Michigan State L 67–89 2013 (16) Long Island (16) James Madison L 55–68 2014 (16) Mount St. Mary's (16) Albany L 64–71 2015 (16) Robert Morris (16) North Florida(1) Duke W 81–77L 56–85 2016 (16) Fairleigh Dickinson (16) Florida Gulf Coast L 65–96 2017 (16) Mount St. Mary's (16) New Orleans(1) Villanova W 67–66L 56–76 2018 (16) Long Island (16) Radford L 61–71 2019 (16) Fairleigh Dickinson (16) Prairie View A&M(1) Gonzaga W 82–76L 49–87 2021 (16) Mount St. Mary's (16) Texas Southern L 52–60 2022 (16) Bryant (16) Wright State L 82–93 2023 (16) Fairleigh Dickinson (16) Texas Southern(1) Purdue(9) Florida Atlantic W 84–61W 63–58L 70–78 2024 (16) Wagner (16) Howard(1) North Carolina W 71–68L 62–90 2025 (16) Saint Francis (PA) (16) Alabama State L 68–70 2026 (16) Long Island (1) Arizona L 58–92 2020 NCAA tournament was canceled due to COVID-19.
Broadcasters Television Year Network Play-by-play Analyst Sidelinereporter2026ESPN2Jay AlterDan Bonner2025Doug ShermanTim Welsh2024202320222021 Rich Hollenberg Dan Dakich2020 Dave Flemming Sydney Johnson Meaghan McKeown2019 Mike Couzens Chris Spatola2018Rece Davis Tom Crean2017Jim Calhoun2016 Karl Ravech2015 John Brickley Craig Robinson2014Mike Crispino Miles Simon2013Tim Welsh2012Jon Sciambi 2011 LaPhonso Ellis 2010 Bob Wischusen Tim Welsh
Radio Year Network Play-by-play Analyst 2016Westwood One Gary Cohen Doug Gottlieb 2015 Jason Benetti Alaa Abdelnaby 2014John Sadak Donny Marshall 2013 Dial Global Kelly Tripucka 2011 Westwood One John Tautges Alaa Abdelnaby
See also Northeast Conference women's basketball tournament
References