The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division I. Its current 11 full members are located in four Northeastern states: Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Maryland. It was announced on October 23, 2023 that Sacred Heart University and Merrimack College will join the conference beginning in the 2024-25 season.
Manute Bol was a Sudanese-American professional basketball player and political activist. Listed at 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) or 7 ft 7 in (2.31 m) tall, Bol was one of the tallest players in the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Chukwuemeka Ndubuisi "Emeka" Okafor is an American former professional basketball player. Okafor attended Bellaire High School in Bellaire, Texas and the University of Connecticut, where in 2004 he won a national championship. In his first season in the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 2004–05, Okafor was named Rookie of the Year. He was traded to the New Orleans Hornets in 2009 and was then dealt to the Washington Wizards in 2012. However, a herniated disc in his neck caused Okafor to miss four consecutive seasons from 2013 to 2017 before being medically cleared to play.
Luol Ajou Deng is a South Sudanese-British former professional basketball player. He was a two-time NBA All-Star and was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in 2012. Born in what is now South Sudan, Deng fled the country with his family as a child, eventually settling in the United Kingdom. He became a British citizen in 2006, and has played for the Great Britain national team.
Robert Lee Parish is an American former professional basketball player. A 7'1" center, Parish played for four teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1976 to 1997. During his 14-year tenure with the Boston Celtics, Parish teamed with Hall-of-Fame forwards Larry Bird and Kevin McHale to form one of the greatest front lines in NBA history.
In basketball, a block or blocked shot occurs when a defensive player legally deflects a field goal attempt from an offensive player to prevent a score. The defender is not allowed to make contact with the offensive player's hand or a foul is called. In order to be legal, the block must occur while the shot is traveling upward or at its apex. A deflected field goal that is made does not count as a blocked shot and simply counts as a successful field goal attempt for shooter plus the points awarded to the shooting team. For the shooter, a blocked shot is counted as a missed field goal attempt. Also, on a shooting foul, a blocked shot cannot be awarded or counted, even if the player who deflected the field goal attempt is different from the player who committed the foul. If the ball is heading downward when the defender hits it, it is ruled as goaltending and counts as a made basket. Goaltending is also called if the block is made after the ball bounces on the backboard.
Total Mortgage Arena is a 10,000-seat multi-purpose arena in downtown Bridgeport, Connecticut. It is the home venue of the Bridgeport Islanders of the American Hockey League (AHL) and PWHL New York of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL).
Keith Mitchell Closs Jr. is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Santiago Basket Titanes of the Laliga de Campeones (LDC). He played at the center position.
The Fairfield Stags are the athletic programs representing Fairfield University in Fairfield, Connecticut. Most of the programs are members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) and classified as Division I (non-football) in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
Anthony Pelle is an American professional basketball player who was selected by the Denver Nuggets in the second round of the 1995 NBA draft. Pelle, who was born in the Bronx, New York and played collegiately at Villanova University and Fresno State University, did not appear in any NBA games but plied his trade several leagues in Europe, most notably in Greece, Spain and Italy as well as in second-tier leagues in the United States.
The Fairfield Stags men's basketball team represents Fairfield University in Fairfield, Connecticut and competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference of NCAA Division I. The Stags play their home games in the 3,500 seat Leo D. Mahoney Arena on campus. The team is currently coached by Chris Casey, his first year at the helm.
Darren Douglas Phillip is an American professional basketball player. Phillip a.k.a. "Primal Fear" is also a well known streetball player on the basketball courts of the New York City summer leagues. He was the 2000 NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leader.
The Fairfield Stags men's soccer team represents Fairfield University in Fairfield, Connecticut and competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) of NCAA Division I. The Stags play their home games at Lessing Field on the campus of Fairfield University. The team was ranked nationally in 1998 (24th), 2000 (15th), 2001 (12th), 2005 (24th), 2006 (15th) 2007 (17th) and 2011 (25th) and competed in the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament in 1999, 2006, 2008, and 2011. The 2006 team advanced to the second round in the NCAA Tournament after defeating in-state rival University of Connecticut, 2–1. The team also won the MAAC Championship Tournament in 1999, 2006, 2008, 2011, and 2017. Individually, ten players have earned Regional All-American honors including Mark Longwell '82 who was the first Stag to go on to play for the United States men's national soccer team and major professional soccer for the NASL Tampa Bay Rowdies. The Stags are currently coached by 1998 New England Coach of the Year Carl Rees.
Ajou Deng is a Sudanese-British retired professional basketball player and current coach. He is the son of Aldo Deng, a former Sudanese politician and is the brother of former NBA player Luol Deng.
The Marist Red Foxes men's basketball team is the basketball team that represents Marist College in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. The school's team currently competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. The Red Foxes have qualified for the NCAA tournament twice, losing in the first round in both instances. Prior to joining the MAAC in 1997, Marist was a charter member of the ECAC Metro Conference in 1981; which became the Northeast Conference in 1988.
Drew Henderson is an American-Dutch retired professional basketball player and coach and a current university administrator. He has played and coached internationally. Henderson has also been a member of the Dutch national basketball team.
Troy Bradford is a former American professional basketball player who played the point guard position. Bradford played college basketball for Fairfield University where he was named a preseason All-American in 1989 and 1st team Small American for three straight years between 1987 and 1989.
Kenechukwu "KC" Ndefo is an American basketball player for the South Bay Lakers of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Saint Peter's Peacocks and the Seton Hall Pirates.
