Mids Face Familiar Postseason Foe Thursday in League Tourney Quarterfinal Game at Boston U.

Patriot League Tournament Quarterfinal
No. 5 Navy (13-18, 10-8 Patriot League) at No. 4 Boston U. (16-15, 10-8 Patriot League)
Thursday, March 6 • 7 p.m.
Case Gym • Boston, Mass.

Series History
Overall: Boston U. leads, 15-12 / Patriot League Tournament: Boston U. leads, 2-1
Last Game: Boston U., 87-65 / Feb. 5, 2025 (Boston, Mass.)
at Boston U.: Navy leads, 7-6 / Patriot League Tournament: Boston U. leads, 2-0
Last Game: Boston U., 87-65 / Feb. 5, 2025

Broadcast Information
Video: ESPN+ / Brian Maurer, John Papale
Navy Radio: WNAV / Matt Sabados

Five Starting Notes
1 – Navy and Boston U. are meeting in the postseason for the second year in a row and the fourth time in six seasons. 
2 – This is Boston U.'s first time as the No. 4 seed and Navy's fifth time as the No. 5 seed.
3 – Navy's Patriot League Tournament seed (No. 5) was higher than its preseason poll prediction (No. 8).  The Mids have bettered their poll prediction for the ninth time in the last 11 years (tied their prediction in the other two years).
4 – This was the fourth time in the last five fully played seasons in which Navy and Boston U. finished first and second in some order in offensive rebounding average during the Patriot League season.  The Mids led the league at 10.5 orpg and the Terriers were second at 10.4 orpg.
5 – Navy and Boston U. split the regular season series for the second year in a row and the seventh time in the 11 years in which they have faced each other in the Patriot League.

Game Information
•    Navy enters its 34th Patriot League Tournament Thursday when the fifth-seeded Mids play at No. 4 Boston U. at 7 p.m. in a quarterfinal round game in Case Gym.
•    A video stream of the game will be available through ESPN+ and WNAV will carry the game on the radio. 

About Boston U.
•    The Terriers compiled a 16-15 record during the regular season.  This includes a 12-3 record in home games.  BU has won its last 12 home games.
•    Boston U. tallied a 10-8 record in Patriot League play.  The Terriers posted a 9-0 record in home games.  BU won four its last five games of the regular season.  Three of those victories were by two points and the one loss was by four points.
•    Boston outscored its opponents by 6.7 points a game at home (9-0 record), while the Terriers were outscored by 11.4 points per game on the road (1-8 record).

Series History
•    The Navy-Boston U. series dates back to the 1959 NCAA Tournament.  The Terriers defeated the Mids, 62-55 in overtime, in a regional semifinal round game played in Charlotte, N.C.
•    Boston U. leads the all-time series with Navy, 15-12.  The Mids lead the Terriers, 7-6, in games played in Boston, including a 7-4 record in Case Gym.  BU has won the last three games played on its home floor.
•    This is the fourth postseason meeting of the teams in six years.

Navy vs. Boston U. in Patriot League Tournament
2020 - QF - at #3 Boston U. 69, #6 Navy 63
2022 - SF - at #2 Navy 85, #3 Boston U. 80 / OT
2024 - QF - at #2 Boston U. 70, #7 Navy 61

Series Trends
•    The team leading at halftime has posted a 7-1 record in the last eight games and a 20-5 record since the teams have been fellow members of the Patriot League.
•    The team making more three-point field goals has compiled a 15-6 record in the last 25 games (four ties).
•    The team grabbing more rebounds has tallied a 3-4 record in the last seven games and a 16-7 record in the last 25 games (two ties).
•    The team committing fewer turnovers has posted a 0-3 record in the last four games (one tie) and a 10-14 record in the last 25 games (one tie).
•    The home team in the Navy-Boston U. series has posted a 9-2 record in the last 11 games.  This is after the home team had compiled a 2-12 record in the first 14 games when the teams first became fellow members of the Patriot League.

Mids and Terriers Atop League in Off. Boards
•    Navy and Boston U. again rank toward the top of the Patriot League for the most offensive rebounds during league games.
•    However, the team grabbing more offensive rebounds in the last 15 Navy-Boston U. games has posted a 5-9 record (one tie).

On This Date
•    Navy has posted an 2-4 record in games played on March 6.  This includes a 1-3 record in Patriot League Tournament games.
•    Navy defeated Boston U., 85-80 in overtime, on March 6, 2022, in the semifinal round of the league tourney.

Against Massachusetts
•    Navy has totaled a 68-74 record in games played against opponents located in Massachusetts. 

In Massachusetts
•    Navy has totaled a 26-49 record in games played in Massachusetts.  This includes a 9-9 record in Boston.

Mids Earn Another First Round Bye
•    Navy earned a first round Patriot League Tournament bye for the eighth time in the last nine years (2017-25). Only Colgate (0 games) has played fewer first round games in this span.

Navy Improves Upon Poll Prediction
•    Navy's Patriot League Tournament seed (No. 5) was higher than its preseason poll prediction (No. 8).
•    The Mids have now bettered their poll prediction for the ninth time in the last 11 years (tied their prediction in the  other two years).

Patriot League Tournament Seeding Note
•    The No. 4 seed holds a 23-11 advantage over the No. 5 seed in Patriot League Tournament history.
•    The No. 5 seed has compiled a 4-3 record against the No. 4 seed in the last seven seasons.

Navy Patriot League Tournament History
•    34th Patriot League Tournament
•    20-30 overall record
•    Three tournament titles (1994, 1997, 1998)
•    Four other finals appearances (1995, 2000, 2001, 2022)
•    2-18 record in road games
•    7-23 record in quarterfinal round games
•    1-11 record in road quarterfinal round games
•    Fifth time as the No. 5 seed (1-4 record)
•    3-3 record vs. the No. 4 seed

Boston U. Patriot League Tournament History
•    12th Patriot League Tournament
•    11-10 overall record
•    One tournament title (2020)
•    One other finals appearance (2014)
•    9-4 record in home games
•    6-5 record in quarterfinal round games
•    5-1 record in home quarterfinal round games
•    First time as the No. 4 seed
•    1-0 record vs. the No. 5 seed

Improving Down the Stretch
•    Navy has been a much improved team over the last third of the Patriot League campaign.
•    The Mids posted a 5-7 record through 12 games of the season, but closed with a 5-1 record over the last six.
•    The lone loss for Navy in this span was a four-point setback at Colgate.

A Look Back (Navy 81, Loyola 68)
•    Loyola led by as many as seven points in the first half and took a 39-35 lead at the break.
•    Navy tied the game at 39-39, then fell behind, 49-43.  The score would be tied at 50, 52 and 55.
•    The Mids scored on their next three times down the floor to take a 61-55 lead.  After a Loyola field goal, Navy stretched its advantage out to 69-57 and then 73-60.
•    Loyola was 6-11 from three-point range and made 57.1 percent of its overall attempts in the first half, but was limited to a 4-12 effort from three and a 35.7 percent shooting mark in all after halftime.
•    Navy improved its shooting from 41.4 percent in the first half to 48.3 percent in the second.
•    Navy registered 17 steals and forced 19 Loyola turnovers.  The Mids committed 10 turnovers in the game.
•    Austin Benigni tallied 24 points and five assists.  Donovan Draper totaled 14 rebounds and nine points.  Jordan Pennick recorded 18 points.  Mike Woods accounted for seven of the 19 steals.

A Look Ahead
•    The winner of Thursday's game will play either No. 1 Bucknell or No. 8 Loyola in the semifinal round of the tournament.  That game will be played Sunday.
•    A win by Bucknell sends either Navy or Boston to Lewisburg, while a victory by Loyola means the game will be played at the home of the Navy-Boston winner.

Benigni Earns Two League Postseason Honors
•     Austin Benigni received a pair of postseason accolades from the Patriot League this week.
•    He first garnered First-Team All-Patriot League laurels.
•    This season's first-team nod comes one year after he received second-team honors.
•    Benigni then was named to the Patriot League All-Academic Team for a second year in a row.
•    The junior computer science major carries a 3.33 cumulative grade-point average.
•    Benigni and Cam Davis (2020, 2021) are the only Mids to be named to the all-academic team multiple times since it was established with the 2010-11 season.

Draper's Rebounding of Late
•     Donovan Draper tied –– for the second time this season –– his career high of 16 rebounds during Navy's Feb. 23 game against Holy Cross.
•    He then snared 16 boards again in Navy's next game, Feb. 26 at American.
•    The last Mid to grab at least 16 rebounds in back-to-back games was Derric Turner, who had 16 boards against Jacksonville on Dec. 5, 1987, and 19 against Towson two days later.
•    Draper then snared 14 rebounds in the regular season finale against Loyola.  That gave him 46 rebounds in the last three games.
•    The last Mid with at least 46 caroms over a three-game span was Turner, who produced 49 boards from Dec. 5-8, 1987.

Pennick Named Player of the Week
•    Jordan Pennick was named the Patriot League Player of the Week on March 3.  It was the first weekly award of his career.
•    Pennick averaged 20 points a game in Navy's wins over American and Loyola.
•    He made six three-point field goals in scoring 22 points against the Eagles, then was 8-10 from the foul line with two more treys in totaling 18 points against the Greyhounds.
•    Pennick was 10-19 from the floor, 8-12 from three-point land and 12-16 from the foul line on the week.
•    Pennick was the third Mid to be named player of the week this season.  Austin Benigni earned the award on Nov. 11 and Donovan Draper followed on Jan. 6.
•    The only other season in which three different Mids earned the player-of-the-week award was in 2009-10 when O.J. Avworo, Chris Harris and Jordan Sugars all received the accolade.

Pennick on a Good Run
•    Jordan Pennick has scored in double figures in nine of Navy's 10 Patriot League wins and three times in Navy's eight league losses.
•    Pennick totaled a career-high 20 points in Navy's Jan. 26 game at Army.  He was 4-6 from three-point range and 5-8 from the floor in scoring 15 second-half points. 
•    He scored all 17 of his points in the second half Jan. 29 at Lehigh.  Pennick was 5-7 from three-point range and 6-8 from the floor in the second half.
•    He also tallied 17 points and five rebounds Feb. 15 against Army.
•    Pennick then set a new career high with 23 points in Navy's overtime victory against Holy Cross on Feb. 23.
•    The next game, Feb. 23 at American, he was 6-8 from three-point range in scoring 22 points.
•    He is averaging 15.9 points (191 total) and 3.9 rebounds a game (47) over the last 12 games.  Pennick is shooting 44.8 percent (65-145) from the floor and 39.8 percent (33-83) from three-point land in this span.

DeChellis On Top Spot for Navy Coaches
•    Ed DeChellis set the school record for the most games as a Navy head coach Feb. 12.  The Lehigh game was his 418th on the sideline, which is one more than Ben Carnevale's 20-year total.
•    Navy's Jan. 2 win over American moved Ed DeChellis into third place for the most wins as a Navy head coach.
•    DeChellis coached in his 29th Army-Navy game on Feb. 15.  That tied him with Navy's Don DeVoe for the most games as a head coach from either school in the series.
•    DeChellis has posted a 9-5 record in Star Games.

Navy Good Again on the Offensive Boards
•    Navy has been very good over the last number of years at winning the offensive rebound margin.
•    The Mids ranked first in the Patriot League and 40th nationally during the 2023-24 season with an average of 12.45 offensive rebounds per game.
•    Navy stands first in the league and 116th nationally with an average of 11.32 offensive boards a game this year.
•    Aidan Kehoe (3.55 OR/G, 1st PL, 12th NCAA) and Donovan Draper (2.45 OR/G, 4th PL) rank among the league leaders in offensive rebounds.

Second-Chance Points 
•    Navy has regularly turned those second-chance opportunities into points. 
•    The Mids have scored more second-chance points than their foes in 12 of the last 15 games.  Navy has totaled 158 second-chance points (10.5 ppg) and allowed 98 (6.5 ppg) in this span.

Benigni's 10+ Point Scoring Streaks
•    Austin Benigni saw his streak of 26 games with scoring in double figures come to an end when he scored eight points in 18 minutes of playing time Nov. 25 against Washington (Md.).  
•    His run of 26 games is tied for fifth place for the longest streak of scoring in double figures in school history.
•    Benigni enters the league tournament having scored in double figures in 15-straight games and in 20 of the last 22 games.  He has scored 412 points (18.7 ppg) over this 22-game span.

Benigni's 20+ Point Scoring Streaks
•    Twice this season Austin Benigni has scored at least 20 points in three consecutive games.  
•    He opened the year with 23 points at Saint Joseph's, 34 against Harvard and 23 against Rider.
•    Then from Jan. 15-22, he totaled 25 points against Colgate, 23 at Bucknell and 21 vs. Boston.
•    The last Mid to score at least 20 points in as many as three-straight games was Cam Davis, who did it in three games in a row during the 2020-21 season.

500-Point Seasons
•    Austin Benigni has scored 566 points this season.
•    This is after he totaled 526 points in 2023-24.
•    He has become the fourth Mid to have scored 500 points in multiple seasons.
•    His 566 points ninth among the most by a Mid for a season.

Points in a Patriot League Season
•    Benigni set the Navy record a year ago for the most points scored during a Patriot League regular season with 332.
•    He broke his own record with 342 points this season.
•    He ranks fourth with an average of 19.00 points per game in league play this season.
•    Benigni is one of seven Mids to have scored at least 700 career points in Patriot League regular season games.

Benigni Scores 1,000th Point
•    Austin Benigni became the 27th Mid to score 1,000 career points during Navy's Jan. 18 game at Bucknell.
•    He reached the milestone in his 81st career game.  That ranks him 12th for the fewest games to score 1,000 points.
•    13 Mids who have played all four seasons during the program's Patriot League era have scored 1,000 points.
•    Ed DeChellis has now coached seven Navy players who have scored 1,000 career points.
•    The last to do so was John Carter Jr., on Jan. 22, 2022.
•    Benigni is tied for 19th place for the most career points by a Mid with 1,239 points.  

At the FT Line – Austin Benigni / 2024-25
•    Austin Benigni ranks first in the Patriot League and third in the NCAA for free throws made (184).
•    He ranks first in the league and 10th nationally in free throws attempted (215). 
•    He also ranks first in the league and 65th nationally with a free throw percentage of 85.6 percent.
•    Benigni ranks second at Navy during the Patriot League era (1991-92 to present) and 13th in program history for the highest career free throw attempts per game average with 477 attempts in 93 games (5.13 fta/g).

Benigni Leading in Points and Assists
•     Austin Benigni typically has led the Mids in either points or assists –– and occasionally both –– in a game since the start of the 2023-24 season.
•     Benigni will become the third Mid to lead the team in total points and assists in multiple seasons since assists began being tracked with the 1972-73 season.
•     Benigni has become the eighth Mid with 1,000 points and 300 assists in a career.
•     Benigni also has posted the second 400-point, 100-assist season of his career and the 10th by a Mid.
•    Additionally, he has accounted for two of the four 500-point, 100-assist seasons at Navy.
•    Benigni enters the game leading the Patriot League in scoring and ranked second in assists.
•    Since the league expanded to 10 teams starting with the 2013-14 season, a player has finished among the top-three in both statistical rankings three times.

Draper's Steals and Rebounds
•    Donovan Draper spent the 2021-22 academic year as a football player at the Naval Academy Prep School.  He then was wide receiver at Navy on the 2022-23 team.
•    Draper, who was an all-county basketball player in high school, joined the Navy basketball team in the spring of 2023.
•    After going 994 days between his last high school basketball game and first as a Mid, he made an immediate impact as he ranked among the Patriot League and NCAA leaders in multiple statistical categories.
•    He ranks among the Navy career leaders (seventh) in steals average with 105 steals in 62 games (1.69 spg).
•    Navy has scored on 83 of the 166 possessions (50%) in which Draper has grabbed an offensive rebound.
•    Draper ranks among the Navy leaders for the highest career offensive rebounding average (second, 2.74 orpg).

Draper's Points and Rebounds
•    Donovan Draper has become the second Mids to have totaled over 500 points and 500 rebounds in their first two seasons with the team.
•    He is one of five Mids have posted 500 points and 500 rebounds by the end of their junior season.

Kehoe on the Boards
•    Navy has scored on 40 of the 67 possessions (59.7%) in which Aidan Kehoe has grabbed an offensive rebound since the start of the 2025 Patriot League season.
•    Kehoe broke a tie with David Robinson for the most offensive rebounds in a season by a Mid.
•    Kehoe currently ranks third at Navy for the most defensive rebounds in a season.
•    Kehoe surpassed teammate Donovan Draper for the most rebounds in a season by a Mid during the program's Patriot League era with 287.
•    Kehoe has set a new school record for the most rebounds in a Patriot League regular season with 184.
•    Kehoe ranks first at Navy for the highest rebounding average in a Patriot League regular season (10.22 rpg).

Kehoe Over the Last Year 
•    Aidan Kehoe moved into the regular rotation during Navy's Feb. 21, 2024, game at Loyola and made his first start in the next game against Holy Cross.
•    He had totaled 26 points (1.0 ppg) and 40 rebounds (1.5 rpg) in 26 career games prior to taking to the floor against the Greyhounds.
•    Since then, he has totaled 333 points (9.0 ppg) and 334 rebounds (9.0 rpg). 
    
Pennick Over the Last Year
•    Jordan Pennick had appeared in 16 games prior to Navy's Feb. 17, 2024, game at Boston U., and totaled 26 points (1.6 ppg) and 18 rebounds (1.1 rpg).
•    Since then, he has scored 394 points (10.4 ppg), made 68 three-point baskets (1.79 fgm/g) and grabbed 132 rebounds (3.5 rpg).

Woods Lately 
•    Navy's 5-1 record down the stretch coincided with Mike Woods having a resurgence on the court.  
•    He scored in double figures in three of the last six games and shot 76.9 percent from the floor in this span.
•    Woods recorded seven steals in Navy's March 1 game against Loyola.  That tally was one away from tying the mark for the most by a player in the NCAA this season (eight steals in a game has been achieved nine times).
•    It also places him in a tie for third for the most steals by a Mid in a game in school history and a tie for second for the most in a league regular season game.