WASHINGTON - It's tournament time for American University men's basketball, and the second-seeded Eagles will host seventh-seeded Lafayette in the quarterfinal round of the 2025 PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Men's Basketball Championship. Game time is set for 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 6 in Bender Arena, and there are plenty of giveaways for students and fans.
A select limited amount of a premium location sideline chairback seats remain. Click
HERE to purchase tickets online and avoid the box office rush.
Gameday Giveaways
- The first 500 AU students get a FREE American Madness Rally Towel and T-Shirt.
- Students will also get FREE slices of pizza from Gregorio's Trattoria and samples of Celsius energy drinks.
- The first 300 fans will receive a FREE American Madness rally towel.
Quick Info
- Date/Time: Thursday, March 6; 7 pm
- Site: Washington, D.C. (Bender Arena)
- Series History: AU leads 42-32
- TV: ESPN+
- Talent: Dan Laing, Gordon Austin
Hospitality Offerings and Enhanced Fan Experience
- American has an exciting hospitality area, new this season for all fans, as well as revamped premium courtside seating as part of an upgrade to the fan experience in Bender Arena on game days.
- The Perch is a new game day hospitality area offering beer, wine and seltzers for purchase.
- In addition to our concession menu from Gregorio's Trattoria, fans can now enjoy select beverages and snacks just steps from the baseline in Bender Arena. Fans must be 21+ years old to enter.
- Additionally, Bender Arena's courtside seats have been moved closer to the action, with additional seating now available in the end zone baseline area for fans to experience all the action - up close and personal.
Inside the Series
- This will be the 75th meeting between American and Lafayette, with AU leading 42-32.
- AU has won three of the last five contests, including both in the regular season. American got a road win on Jan. 29, 75-68, after Matt Rogers scored 21 points to lead four Eagles in double digits. AU trailed by seven with 5:46 to play, but closed out the game going 12-of-12 at the free-throw line to secure the comeback victory.
- Rogers was the hero in the 60-58 home win on Feb. 10, hitting a jumper with 3.2 seconds left to cap a 19-point effort.
- Lafayette knocked AU out of the Patriot League Tournament in 2023 in a double-overtime thriller in the semifinals.
What to Know About American
- AU's 19 wins are its most overall victories since a 20-13 record in 2014-15. The Eagles' 13 PL wins are their most since 2013-14, with both 2024-25 and 2013-14 tying 2008-09 for most PL wins in program history.
- The Eagles are co-regular season PL champions with Bucknell, but got the No. 2 seed after the PL's tiebreaking procedure. Previously, the last regular season championship for AU was in 2009.
- The last PL Tournament Championship for AU was in 2013-14 (three total).
- Ten of AU's games this season have been decided by five or fewer points, and the Eagles have won eight of those, including a Lincoln Ball buzzer-beater over Lehigh on Jan. 22, an OT win at Lehigh on Feb. 8, and a win on a Matt Rogers jumper with 3.2 seconds left against Lafayette on Feb. 10.
- All three graduate students (Ball, Rogers, and Colin Smalls) have now hit a crucial late shot to help win a game.
- Rogers is an All-PL First Team honoree for the second time (earned Second Team honors as a junior).
- Senior Elijah Stephens is an All-PL Third Team honoree (was Second Team and Defensive Team as a junior, and All-Rookie as a freshman).
- Sophomore Greg Jones is a PL All-Defensive Team honoree (first honor).
- Rogers, who ranks sixth all-time at AU with 1,804 points, averages 17.2 points per game to rank fourth in the PL, while his 5.6 rebounds per game rank ninth. He's hitting shots at a 55.9 percent clip, good enough for fourth in the PL. His three-point field-goal percentage of .409 ranks sixth in the PL.
- American finished the regular season with a win at Colgate on March 1, becoming the first Patriot League team to sweep five-time defending PL champion Colgate since 2020, and the first team to beat Colgate on its home court in March since 2020.
- The Eagles are hosting a PL quarterfinal for the second year in a row in head coach Duane Simpkins' second season, going from 10 PL wins last year to 13 this year. Simpkins is one of 25 finalists for the Ben Jobe Award, honoring the top minority coach in Division I basketball.
What to Know About Lafayette
- A pair of Caleb Williams free throws with four seconds left sent Lafayette into the quarterfinals of the Patriot League Tournament as the Leopards fended off 10th-seeded Holy Cross, 69-68. It was a back-and-forth game that saw 12 lead changes.
- Senior center Justin Vander Baan led the effort in the first round game with 25 points. He also had 11 rebounds and five assists in 36 minutes. Freshman guard Alex Chaikin scored 18 points and Williams, a freshman guard who was 7-for-9 from the line, added 13.
- Lafayette went 12-19 in the regular season and 7-11 in the Patriot League to finish seventh in the conference. The Leopards won two straight at home against Lehigh and Army West Point before dropping their regular season finale at Boston University. They have not won a road game since a 76-61 victory at Colgate on February 1.
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