Fairleigh Dickinson’s upset over Purdue on Friday is made even more amazing by the fact that they are not even supposed to be in the men’s NCAA tournament by normal standards. While the Knights did finish the season with 21 wins, they didn’t earn a traditional automatic qualifier bid because they didn’t win the Northeast Conference tournament.
That honor belonged to Merrimack, who beat the Knights 67–66 in the NEC tournament final. However, because Merrimack is ineligible for the tournament as it transitions from Division II to Division I, Fairleigh Dickinson was given the nod.
So, does Merrimack feel robbed of the chance to upset Purdue? Not quite.
