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GENESEO, N.Y. – The State University of New York at New Paltz men's basketball team (11-14, 9-9 SUNYAC) will look to avoid a third loss to SUNY Geneseo (16-9, 12-6 SUNYAC) in 2012-13, as the Hawks square off with the Blue Knights on Tuesday, Feb. 19, in the quarterfinal round of the 2013 State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Men's Basketball Tournament. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. in Geneseo's Schrader Gymnasium. New Paltz holds the No. 6 seed in the tournament, while Geneseo possesses the No. 3 seed.

TICKETING INFORMATION
Tickets for adults are $6, while children ages 12 and under will be admitted for $3. SUNY students with valid college identification will be admitted free of charge.

ABOUT THE SERIES
New Paltz has lost five straight games against Geneseo, with its last win coming on Jan. 14, 2011. The two teams have met twice in the SUNYAC Tournament before, and the postseason series is tied at 1-1. Geneseo knocked off New Paltz, 74-54, in the semifinal round of the 1999 SUNYAC Men's Basketball Tournament, while the Hawks prevailed, 76-65, over the Blue Knights in the quarterfinal round of the 1996 SUNYAC Men's Basketball Tournament.

NEW PALTZ IN THE POSTSEASON
New Paltz has qualified for the SUNYAC Tournament for a record fourth year in a row, but it has not won a playoff game since the 2002-03 campaign. The Hawks have made the conference finals twice—in 1996 and 2003—but they have never won the league title. In both of the SUNYAC finals, New Paltz fell to Buffalo State by double-digit margins. All-time, New Paltz is 6-11 in the SUNYAC Tournament.

NEW PALTZ IN THE NATIONAL RANKS
Senior forward Matt Devine (Manalapan, N.J./Freehold Township) ranks 25th in NCAA Division III in scoring (20.9 points per game) and 70th nationally in free-throw percentage (82.8 percent). As a team, the Hawks rank eighth in NCAA Division III in free-throw percentage (75.8 percent), and they rank 42nd nationally in rebounding margin (+5.4 rebounds per game). Furthermore, New Paltz is 44th in NCAA Division III in scoring offense with 77.6 points per game.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
New Paltz scores 77.6 points per game, but it allows 78.9 points per game. The Hawks outrebound their opponents, on average, by a 40.5-to-35.1 margin, but they commit an average of 16.9 turnovers per game. Beyond Devine, senior guard/forward Shereef Taylor (Hyde Park, N.Y./Franklin D. Roosevelt) helps pace the attack with 17 points per game. Devine leads the team in rebounding with 7.0 per game, while Taylor paces the squad in assists per game (2.3), steals per game (2.0) and blocks per game (1.0).

ABOUT HEAD COACH MIKE REJNIAK
Head coach Mike Rejniak is wrapping up his second year at the helm of the New Paltz men's basketball program, and he owns a career record of 20-31. This season marked a banner year for the program under his guidance, as the team achieved nine conference wins for the first time since the 1998-99 campaign. That year, the Hawks went 11-9 in league play. Rejniak has coached two players to All-SUNYAC honors, as Devine and former New Paltz standout Harris Wichard were named to the All-SUNYAC Second and Third teams, respectively.

SCOUTING THE BLUE KNIGHTS
Geneseo enters Tuesday's quarterfinal game as one of the outside favorites to win the league title. The Blue Knights rank second in the SUNYAC in scoring margin (+7.1 points per game), and they allow just 68.4 points per game. Connor Fedge and Gordon Lyons both ignite the attack, scoring 13.7 points per game and 13.6 points per game, respectively. Lyons ranks second in the league in rebounding (8.6 per game), while Ryan Riefenhauser dishes out a team-best 3.2 assists per game. Riefenhauser also leads the Blue Knights in steals (1.4 per game), while James McKenna reinforces Geneseo's interior defense with 0.3 blocks per game.