By Bill Cloutier
Assistant Sports Editor
Get ready for a postseason edition of the Connecticut Classic as Yale will play Fairfield in the first round of the CollegeInsider.com men’s basketball tournament on Wednesday night.
The matchup, comfirmed by Yale coach James Jones, is contingent on whether Fairfield receives a berth into the NIT. The Stags (19-14) lost in the finals of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament.
Yale finished fourth in the Ivy League after carrying its Ivy League hopes into the final weekend of league play. The Bulldogs were swept at Princeton and Pennsylvania, ending their NCAA hopes. Penn is expected to get the league’s NIT berth for finishing in second place.
The complete 24-team field for the CIT will not be announced until Sunday night, after the NCAA pairings are announced. Yale (19-9) last appeared in the postseason in 2002 when it won at Rutgers in the first round of the NIT. The Bulldogs lost in the second round against Tennessee Tech.
The game is slated for the Webster Bank Arena on Wednesday night at 7 p.m.
Fairfield finished fourth in the MAAC (12-6) regular season standings. The Stags and Elis last met in the 2007-08 season with Yale winning 70-66 in overtime at the Arena at Harbor Yard.
The CIT schedules geographical matchups. First round games are scheduled for March 13-15, second round games, March 16-18, Quarterfinals, March 20-21, semifinals, March 23-24 and the Championship game is set for March 28.