INDIANAPOLIS - Stony Brook, the 2016 America East men's basketball champion, will play Kentucky in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The field was unveiled during the NCAA selection show Sunday evening.
The Seawolves earned a 13 seed, the highest for an America East team since Albany was a 13 in 2007. They will face the fourth-seeded Wildcats, the SEC champions, in Des Moines, Iowa on Thursday at approximately 9:40 p.m. ET on CBS.
Stony Brook will be making its first appearance in the Division I tournament after winning the America East title for the first time on Saturday. The Seawolves overcame a 15-point second-half deficit to post an 80-74 victory over Vermont. Jameel Warney set a Division I program record and tied an America East championship game record with 43 points and was named the Reggie Lewis Most Outstanding Player.
The winner of Thursday's game will face Indiana or Chattanooga in the second round Saturday.
America East teams have won eight NCAA games all time, including two in each of the last four years.