WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. – Powered by six players in double-figures, Monmouth University claimed the No. 6 seed in the upcoming Northeast Conference Tournament with its 106-78 victory over regular season champion and tournament top-seed LIU Brooklyn, on Saturday night in the MAC. Monmouth, selected 10th in the NEC Preseason Coaches' Poll, finishes the regular season 12-19 overall and 10-8 in the league, and will face No. 3 seed Robert Morris in the quarterfinals.

The Blue and White, winners of nine of its last 12, claimed its first winning NEC regular season since its championship run in 2005-06. The Hawks handed the Blackbirds (22-8, 16-2 NEC) just their second conference loss of the season, and just their fourth NEC loss in the last two seasons.

First-year head coach King Rice stated, "What Jim [Ferry] has done at LIU over the past two years has been incredible. Tonight was our night. The seniors got us started. I just can't say enough about our kids and the way they played tonight. They just kept fighting, kept believing, and when you do that, great things can happen for you. And that's what happened for us tonight."

On Senior Day, the Hawks' trio of seniors (Mike Myers Keitt, Will Campbell, Phill Wait) combined for 40 points, 13 rebounds, three assists and two steals.

"Tonight, our seniors took the energy of our great, great fans and played as well as I've seen them play," added Rice. "I am proud of them. I am happy for them. When you can have senior leadership the way these guys showed it today, great things can happen. Our seniors really got us going the right way and our defense was awesome today."

Monmouth, which last scored 100 points in an overtime victory against these Blackbirds on February 20, 1997, was led by Myers Keitt, who netted a game-high 20 points behind five three-pointers. Freshman Andrew Nicholas, who hit 7-of-12 from the floor, added 18 points, five rebounds, five steals and four assists, while junior Jesse Steele recorded his first career double-double with 14 points and a career-high 10 assists.

Campbell chipped in 14 points, while Dion Nesmith and Austin Tillotson rounded out the Hawks' double-digit scorers with 11 and 10 points, respecitively.

The Hawks, who connected on 56.9% from the floor, including 24-38 (63.2%) in the second half, forced 23 turnovers, which turned into 33 points for MU. 

Monmouth raced out to a 7-0 lead 1:13 into the game following baskets from Wait and Ed Wait and a three-pointer from Myers Keitt, before the Blackbirds got on the scoreboard behind a pair of Julian Boyd free throws at 17:02. Consecutive three-pointers from Nesmith and Steele inflated the Hawks' lead to 13-2, while Tillotson's wing jumper pushed the Blue and White ahead 15-2 with 15:09 showing.

LIU, which opened the game missing its first 12 field goal attempts, made the score 15-4 on Boyd's lay-in at 14:59, but back-to-back hoops from Tillotson put the Hawks in front 19-4 with 13:45 left in the half.

The Blackbirds responded with an 18-0 run over three minutes of action to take a 22-19 advantage with 9:18 left in the stanza.

Monmouth halted the LIU streak on a Myers Keitt three-pointer to knot the score at 22-22, and after Boyd's three-point play reclaimed a lead for the Blackbirds, the Hawks, behind two Nicholas foul shots and a trey from Myers Keitt, hauled in a 27-25 advantage with 7:41 left.

With the score tied at 27-27 with 7:25 showing, the two sides battled within a six-point spread for the remainder of the half, as Tillotson's fast break lay-up as time expired, gave the Hawks a 48-42 lead at the intermission. In the final seven minutes, Monmouth led by at least five points six times, while the Blackbirds trimmed the deficit to a single point on three occasions.

Waite's lay-in started things off in the second half for the Hawks, as MU went ahead 50-42, but the Blackbirds climbed within 52-51 at 17:45 on Michael Culpo's trey.

Monmouth answered with a run of 7-1 and 10-3 to claim a 62-54 lead on Campbell's three-pointer with 15:54 left, and the Hawks inflated their edge to 71-60 with 11:50 remaining on Nesmith's three-point play following an offensive rebound.

The Blackbirds trimmed the deficit to 76-66 with 10:12 left on Gerrell Martin's trifecta, but the Hawks responded with a 14-0 spurt and 23-6 run to claim a 99-72 lead, following five straight Campbell points, with 4:42 remaining.

Monmouth, which ended the game on a 30-9 run, led 106-73 with 1:36 left.

The Wait-Waite duo combined for 12 points (6-of-8 FG) and 13 rebounds for the Hawks.

Monmouth returns to action on Thursday, March 1 when the Hawks travel to third-seeded Robert Morris (22-9, 13-5 NEC) to face the Colonials in the Sewall Center.