2025–26 Merrimack Warriors men's basketball team

2025–26 Merrimack Warriors men's basketball
2025–26 Merrimack Warriors men's basketball
MAAC regular season champions
Conference	Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Record	23–11 (17–3 MAAC)
Head coach	Joe Gallo (10th season);
Assistant coaches	Micky Burtnyk; Jimmy Langhurst; Juvaris Hayes; Chris Mohr; Jared Czech;
Home arena	Lawler Arena

2025–26 MAAC men's basketball standings
	Conf.				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Merrimack	17	–	3	.850	23	–	11	.676
Saint Peter's	14	–	6	.700	17	–	12	.586
Siena †	13	–	7	.650	23	–	12	.657
Quinnipiac	12	–	8	.600	19	–	13	.594
Marist	12	–	8	.600	19	–	12	.613
Mount St. Mary's	11	–	9	.550	15	–	17	.469
Fairfield	11	–	9	.550	21	–	13	.618
Iona	10	–	10	.500	18	–	14	.563
Sacred Heart	9	–	11	.450	14	–	19	.424
Manhattan	8	–	12	.400	12	–	20	.375
Niagara	5	–	15	.250	8	–	22	.267
Canisius	5	–	15	.250	10	–	21	.323
Rider	3	–	17	.150	4	–	25	.138

† 2026 MAAC tournament winner

The 2025–26 Merrimack Warriors men's basketball team represented Merrimack College during the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Warriors, led by tenth-year head coach Joe Gallo, played their home games at Lawler Arena in North Andover, Massachusetts as second-year members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

During the season the Warriors won a program best 23 games and claimed their first MAAC regular season championship. The Warriors went undefeated at home (11–0), for the first time since 1990–91.^[1] During the postseason they reached 2026 MAAC men's basketball tournament final after defeating Sacred Heart and Marist, however they were defeated by Siena 64-54 in the championship game.

Previous season

The Warriors finished the 2024–25 season 18–15, 14–6 in MAAC play, to finish in second place.^[2] They defeated Sacred Heart,^[3] before being upset by #6 seed and eventual tournament champions Mount St. Mary's in the semifinals of the MAAC tournament.^[4]

Preseason

On September 30, 2025, the MAAC released their preseason coaches poll. Merrimack was picked to finish seventh in the conference.^[5]

Preseason rankings

MAAC Preseason Poll
Place	Team	Points
1	Quinnipiac	158 (8)
2	Siena	152 (3)
3	Sacred Heart	140 (2)
4	Manhattan	133
5	Marist	115
6	Iona	104
7	Merrimack	85
8	Fairfield	74
9	Mount St. Mary's	69
10	Rider	59
11	Saint Peter's	48
12	Niagara	26
13	Canisius	20
(#) first-place votes

Source:^[5]

Preseason All-MAAC Teams

No players were named to the First, Second or Third Preseason All-MAAC Teams.^[5]

Roster

2025–26 Merrimack Warriors men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
F	0	Dylan Veillette	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	Fr	St. George's School	Ridgefield, Connecticut
G	1	Jaylen Stinson	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	GS	James Madison	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
F	2	Aliou Cisse	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Sr	Bridgeport	Yonkers, New York
G	3	Ernest Shelton	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Jr	Gannon	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
G	4	Tye Dorset	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	So	Lenape High School	Mount Laurel, New Jersey
G	5	Kevair Kennedy	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Fr	Father Judge High School	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
F	7	Jacob Moore	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Fr	Paul VI Catholic High School	Hamilton, Virginia
G	9	Malik Edmead	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	RS Sr	Albany	Deer Park, New York
G	10	Andrés Marrero	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	GS	La Salle	Caracas, Venezuela
G	11	Quinn "Turtle" Kwasniak	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Fr	Cornerstone Christian Academy	Chesterland, Ohio
F	12	David Munro	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	Fr	Camden High School	Neptune, New Jersey
F	14	Brandon Legris	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Sr	Perkiomen School	Hatfield, Pennsylvania
F	20	Todd Brogna	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Jr	Stonehill	Southborough, Massachusetts
G	21	Brendan Johnson	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	RS Fr	Calvert Hall High School	Pikesville, Maryland
F	23	KC Ugwuakazi	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	Jr	East Texas A&M	Boston, Massachusetts

Head coach

Joe Gallo (Merrimack)

Assistant coach(es)

Micky Burtnyk (Merrimack)
Jimmy Langhurst (Robert Morris)
Juvaris Hayes (Merrimack)
Chris Mohr (Merrimack)
Jared Czech (Manhattanville)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: November 15, 2025

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Regular season
November 3, 2025* 9:00 pm, YouTube		vs. South Dakota State Field of 68 Opening Day Marathon	L 66–75	0–1	Sanford Pentagon (1,784) Sioux Falls, SD
November 6, 2025* 8:00 pm, SECN+		at No. 20 Auburn	L 57–95	0–2	Neville Arena (9,121) Auburn, AL
November 11, 2025* 8:00 pm, ESPN+		at Tarleton State	L 62–76	0–3	EECU Center (1,353) Stephenville, TX
November 15, 2025* 1:00 pm, ESPN+		at Boston University	W 91–79	1–3	Case Gym (1,024) Boston, MA
November 19, 2025* 7:30 pm, ESPN+		Maine	W 72–65	2–3	Lawler Arena (1,572) North Andover, MA
November 21, 2025* 7:00 pm, SECN+		at No. 10 Florida	L 45–80	2–4	O'Connell Center (10,935) Gainesville, FL
November 28, 2025* 4:30 pm, ESPN+		at Penn Cathedral Classic	L 65–77	2–5	Palestra (1,440) Philadelphia, PA
November 29, 2025* 2:00 pm, ESPN+		vs. Hofstra Cathedral Classic	L 58–78	2–6	Palestra Philadelphia, PA
November 30, 2025* 12:00 pm, ESPN+		vs. La Salle Cathedral Classic	W 66–60	3–6	Palestra Philadelphia, PA
December 4, 2025 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Rider	W 68–66	4–6 (1–0)	Lawler Arena (1,876) North Andover, MA
December 7, 2025 12:00 pm, ESPN+		Fairfield	W 74–63	5–6 (2–0)	Lawler Arena (1,193) North Andover, MA
December 10, 2025* 5:00 pm, ESPN+		at Princeton	W 59−56	6−6	Jadwin Gymnasium (1,048) Princeton, NJ
December 14, 2025* 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at Vermont	L 59−66	6−7	Patrick Gym (2,013) Burlington, VT
December 29, 2025 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at Sacred Heart	W 80–72	7–7 (3–0)	William H. Pitt Center (642) Fairfield, CT
January 2, 2026 3:00 pm, ESPN+		Mount St. Mary's	W 75–65	8–7 (4–0)	Lawler Arena (1,542) North Andover, MA
January 4, 2026 11:00 am, ESPN+		Manhattan	W 73–66	9–7 (5–0)	Lawler Arena (427) North Andover, MA
January 9, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Siena	W 63–59	10–7 (6–0)	MVP Arena (4,833) Albany, NY
January 11, 2026 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at Saint Peter's	L 63–76	10–8 (6–1)	Run Baby Run Arena (450) Jersey City, NJ
January 17, 2026 3:00 pm, ESPN+		Quinnipiac	W 83–71	11–8 (7–1)	Lawler Arena (1,300) North Andover, MA
January 19, 2026 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at Marist	W 68–55	12–8 (8–1)	McCann Arena (1,542) Poughkeepsie, NY
January 22, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Iona	L 60–61	12–9 (8–2)	Hynes Athletics Center (1,820) New Rochelle, NY
January 24, 2026 3:30 pm, ESPN+		Saint Peter's	W 67–59	13–9 (9–2)	Lawler Arena (1,812) North Andover, MA
February 1, 2026 1:00 pm, ESPN+		Sacred Heart	W 75–58	14–9 (10–2)	Lawler Arena (1,974) North Andover, MA
February 5, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Mount St. Mary's	W 87–70	15–9 (11–2)	Knott Arena (1,637) Emmitsburg, MD
February 7, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Rider	W 73–47	16–9 (12–2)	Alumni Gymnasium (1,521) Lawrenceville, NJ
February 12, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		Marist	W 81–56	17–9 (13–2)	Lawler Arena (1,678) North Andover, MA
February 15, 2026 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at Quinnipiac	W 56–49	18–9 (14–2)	M&T Bank Arena (1,829) Hamden, CT
February 20, 2026 8:00 pm, ESPNU		Siena	W 79–72 ^OT	19–9 (15–2)	Lawler Arena (2,919) North Andover, MA
February 22, 2026 1:00 pm, ESPN+		Iona	W 88–86 ^2OT	20–9 (16–2)	Lawler Arena (2,109) North Andover, MA
February 27, 2026 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Canisius	L 62–67	20–10 (16–3)	Koessler Athletic Center (553) Buffalo, NY
March 1, 2026 2:00 pm, ESPN+		at Niagara	W 73–66	21–10 (17–3)	Gallagher Center (890) Lewiston, NY
MAAC tournament
March 6, 2026 6:00 pm, ESPN+	(1)	vs. (9) Sacred Heart Quarterfinals	W 70–48	22–10	Boardwalk Hall Atlantic City, NJ
March 8, 2026 6:00 pm, ESPN+	(1)	vs. (5) Marist Semifinals	W 58–57	23–10	Boardwalk Hall Atlantic City, NJ
March 10, 2026 9:00 pm, ESPN2	(1)	vs. (3) Siena Championship	L 54–64	23–11	Boardwalk Hall Atlantic City, NJ
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern.

Sources:^[6]^[7]

Awards

MAAC Player of the Year: Kevair Kennedy

MAAC Defensive Player of the Year: KC Ugwuakazi

MAAC Rookie of the Year: Kevair Kennedy

MAAC Coach of the Year: Joe Gallo

All MAAC First team: Kevair Kennedy and Ernest Shelton
MAAC All-Defensive Team: KC Ugwuakazi
MAAC All-Rookie Team: Kevair Kennedy

sources^[8]^[9]

References

^ "2025-26 Men's Basketball Schedule". Merrimack College Athletics. Retrieved March 14, 2026.
^ "2024-25 Men's Basketball Standings". Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Retrieved November 15, 2025.
^ "Merrimack wins 66-62 in OT against Sacred Heart in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament". AP News. Retrieved November 15, 2025.
^ "Mount St. Mary's upsets No. 2 Merrimack 57-55 in Metro Atlantic semifinals". FOX Sports. Retrieved November 15, 2025.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Quinnipiac Voted as MAAC Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll Favorites". Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Retrieved November 15, 2025.
^ "2025-26 Men's Basketball Schedule". Merrimack College Athletics. Retrieved November 15, 2025.
^ "Merrimack Warriors 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved November 15, 2025.
^ "2026 MAAC Men's Basketball All-MAAC Teams Announced". maacsports.com. March 4, 2026. Retrieved March 4, 2026.
^ "2026 MAAC Men's Basketball Major Awards Announced". maacsports.com. March 4, 2026. Retrieved March 4, 2026.

[1] "2025-26 Men's Basketball Schedule". Merrimack College Athletics. Retrieved March 14, 2026.

[2] "2024-25 Men's Basketball Standings". Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Retrieved November 15, 2025.

[3] "Merrimack wins 66-62 in OT against Sacred Heart in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament". AP News. Retrieved November 15, 2025.

[4] "Mount St. Mary's upsets No. 2 Merrimack 57-55 in Metro Atlantic semifinals". FOX Sports. Retrieved November 15, 2025.

[poll-5] "Quinnipiac Voted as MAAC Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll Favorites". Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Retrieved November 15, 2025.

[6] "2025-26 Men's Basketball Schedule". Merrimack College Athletics. Retrieved November 15, 2025.

[7] "Merrimack Warriors 2025-26 Regular Season NCAAM Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved November 15, 2025.

[8] "2026 MAAC Men's Basketball All-MAAC Teams Announced". maacsports.com. March 4, 2026. Retrieved March 4, 2026.

[9] "2026 MAAC Men's Basketball Major Awards Announced". maacsports.com. March 4, 2026. Retrieved March 4, 2026.

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Merrimack Warriors men's basketball
Venues	Merrimack Athletics Complex (1972–present)
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26