Former Bishop Hannan and Syracuse Orange nice Gerry McNamara is one win away from returning to the large dance – this time as a head coach.
McNamara and his Siena Saints (22-11) play top-seeded Merrimack (23-10) for the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament championship Tuesday in Atlantic City, N.J., with an automated berth within the NCAA Tournament on the road.
Game time is ready for 9 p.m.
On Sunday taking part in in its first MAAC semifinal in seven years, the No. 3 Saints (22-11) defeated No. 7 Fairfield, 76-61, within the semifinals behind a season-high 26 factors from Holy Redeemer graduate Justice Shoats and 25 factors from Gavin Doty.
Shoats shot 8 of 15 from the sphere, together with 3 for 3 from 3-point vary, and went 7 for 11 from the free-throw line for the Saints. Doty hit 6 of 11 pictures (3 for 4 from 3-point vary) and 10 of 11 from the foul line, including eight rebounds. Francis Folefac contributed 10 factors, 9 rebounds and 5 assists.
Siena and Merrimack will meet for the third time this season. The Warriors received each earlier conferences, 63-59, on Jan. 9 at Siena, and 79-72 in additional time Feb. 21 at residence.
Kevlar Kennedy leads Merrimack in scoring with 18.5 factors per game.
Doty is averaging 17.7 factors and 7 rebounds for the Saints whereas Shoats averages 13.3 factors and leads the crew with 146 assists and 48 steals.
McNamara, 42, is in his second season as head coach of the Saints after spending the earlier 15 years at Syracuse. He began with the Orange as a graduate assistant in 2009, earlier than being promoted to full-time assistant in 2011, then affiliate head coach in 2023, following the hiring of Adrian Autry to exchange Jim Boeheim.
McNamara is Syracuse’s all-time chief in 3-point targets (400), free-throw share (.888), and minutes (4,799), and ranks second in steals (258), third in assists (648), fourth in scoring (2,099), and sixth in free throws (435). He began all 135 of his profession video games from 2002-06, and led the Orange in threes and assists in all 4 seasons, which every culminated in NCAA Tournament appearances, together with the National Championship in 2003.
At Bishop Hannan, McNamara was a two-time Pennsylvania Player of the Year (2001, 2002), and completed his profession because the seventh all-time scorer in state historical past with 2,917 factors after main the Lancers to the 2002 PIAA Class 2A championship..
