WALTHAM, Mass. – Five days after facing each other in the regular season finale, the women's basketball teams from Bentley University and Merrimack College will renew acquaintances on Sunday at Bentley's Dana Athletic Center in the quarterfinals of the Northeast-10 Conference Championships. Tip-off is slated for 3 pm with a free webcast available at www.bentleyfalcons.tv.

Bentley, the top seed out of the Northeast Division, has been idle since edging the Warriors 59-53 Tuesday night, the Falcons' 12th straight win. Merrimack earned the right to play Sunday with a 63-51 first-round victory at Pace University Friday.

Bentley, 24-4 overall and ranked 15th nationally in Division II, swept Merrimack during the regular season but neither came easy.  The Falcons held on for a 68-65 homecourt win back in November in a game the Warriors had a chance to tie in the final seconds, and prevailed by six earlier this week on the strength of four free throws and two steals by junior guard Macchi Smith (Los Angeles, Calif./Windward School) in the final minute.

Coach Barbara Stevens' Falcons, whose only two losses since late November were by two and one points, have won 15 consecutive Northeast-10 championship tournament games and have cut down the nets five of the last six years, including last March.

As was the case the last two seasons, this year's Bentley team features senior All-America forward Jen Gemma (Milton/Fontbonne Academy), who was named the NE10 Player of the Year Friday for the second straight year. She'll enter Sunday's game with 2,085 career points, 27 shy of tying the school record set by former WBCA Division II National Player of the Year Lauren Battista from 2010-14. She's had that many or more in a game once this season, 28 against Stonehill earlier this month.

Gemma, a first-team All-Northeast selection for the third straight year, enters the postseason with averages of 18.8 points and 8.8 rebounds after scoring 20-plus in each of the last five games. Included was a game-high 23 at Merrimack Tuesday.

When Gemma takes to the court Sunday, she'll be joined by a pair of teammates who were voted second-team All-Conference, Smith and junior guard Lauren Green (Damascus, Md./Damascus HS). Green, 29 away from joining Bentley's 1,000-point club, is tied for the NE10 lead in three-pointers (69) and is averaging 12.3 points. Smith is one of only two players in the conference producing at least 11 points, four rebounds and four assists a game.

Stevens' usual starting five also includes junior guard Trevena Bennett (Union, N.J./Gill St. Bernard HS) and sophomore forward Victoria Lux (Arundel, Maine/Thornton Academy). Bennett has averaged 10 points in her last two games and Lux has had at least ten rebounds in six of Bentley's last nine contests.

Off the bench, sophomore guard Amy McConnell (South Windsor, Conn./South Windsor HS) has seen the most playing time. Over the last six games, she's knocked down 10 of 14 three-pointers.

Merrimack advanced past Pace on the strength of a 21-9 third quarter that extended a one-point halftime lead to 13. Sophomore guard Lexi Martin scored 18 points on 8-of-14 shooting and came within a rebound of a double-double. Six-one freshman Denia Davis-Stewart, who had eight blocks against Bentley on Tuesday, followed with 13 points and 13 rebounds.

The Warriors, 13-14 overall, will be looking to string together consecutive wins for the first time since a five-game streak in early January. Senior guard My'Asia Alston is the team's top scorer at 10.4 a game and Martin follows at 9.4. Davis-Stewart is the team's top rebounder (8.4) and her 79 blocks is a conference-best and nine more than Bentley has as a team.

Bentley, a win away from a 23rd 25-win season, and Merrimack have met in the conference championships eight times previously with the Falcons having won seven of the last eight. The most recent came in 2010 with Stevens' team prevailing 88-77.

In the other quarterfinal games, Adelphi is hosting Southern Connecticut, American International is at home against Saint Anselm and Le Moyne is at Assumption. The Bentley-Merrimack winner will be pitted against the AIC-Saint Anselm survivor in one of Thursday's semifinal games.

2017 NE10 Women's Basketball Championship

First Round ­- Friday, February 24

Game 1:  Southern Connecticut 62, Stonehill 60
Game 2:  Merrimack 63, Pace 51

Quarterfinals - ­Sunday, February 26

Game 3:  Southern Connecticut (No. 5 seed SW) at Adelphi (No. 1 seed SW) – 3:00 PM
Game 4:  Merrimack (No. 5 Seed  NE) at Bentley (No. 1 seed NE) – 3:00 PM
Game 5:  Saint Anselm (No. 3 seed NE) at American International (No. 2 seed SW) – 3:00 PM
Game 6:  Le Moyne (No. 3 seed SW) at Assumption (No. 2 seed NE) – 3:00 PM

Semifinals -­ Thursday, March 2 (at highest remaining seeds)

Game 7:  Game 6 winner vs. Game 3 winner (7:00 PM)
Game 8:  Game 5 winner vs. Game 4 winner (7:00 PM)

Championship ­- Sunday, March 5 (at highest remaining seed)

Game 9:  Game 8 winner vs. Game 7 winner (1:00 PM)