ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The RIT men's basketball team opens the 2025-26 season on the road at Binghamton tomorrow (Nov. 5) with tip-off scheduled for 6:07 p.m. Here are six things you need to know about the Tigers.  
 
LAST SEASON
The Tigers finished the 2024-25 campaign with a 7-18 record while going 3-15 in Liberty League action. RIT was led by returning forward Josiah Turner, who averaged a team-high 12.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. The senior was a 2024-25 USBWA Rochester Area Division II & III First-Team selection.
 
TAKING IT UP A FEW NOTCHES
RIT faces Binghamton and Buffalo early in the season, marking the first time the Tigers have played Division I opponents since the 1974-75 season, when the team played a road game against The Citadel.

MEET THE VETS
RIT returns nine players for the 2025–26 season, led by sophomores Marcus Graves, Danny Cohen, Jaron Josephs, and Brighton Langenegger. Juniors Brody Brown, Zac Ditzel, and Nolan Smith, along with graduate students Jackson Otis and Josiah Turner, also return, providing experience and depth across the lineup.

MEET THE NEWCOMERS
This year's team features five first-years in addition to a pair of transfers. Nigel Pierman, Jakob Harken, Christian Eziakor, Joey Harris, and Xavier Nelson all join the Tigers as incoming first years. In contrast, junior forward Jalen Godette and sophomore guard Mushin Muhammad join the Tigers as transfer student-athletes.
 
Muhammad comes to RIT after averaging 5.1 points and 2.3 rebounds in 22 appearances for Marymount (Va.). The sophomore shot 47.7 percent from the field for the Saints last season, as the team reached the Atlantic East Tournament championship game.
 
Godette, measuring seven feet tall, will provide RIT with much-needed size around the post after spending two years at Lycoming (Pa.).
 
POSTSEASON PUSH
After missing out on qualifying for the Liberty League Tournament last season, the Tigers are hoping to earn a spot in the postseason. RIT last appeared in the conference tournament at the end of the 2023-24 season, reaching the semifinals after defeating Union, 74-71, in the first round.        
 
SCHEDULE
To open the season, RIT visits Binghamton on November 5 before traveling to Nazareth on November 11. The Tigers continue their non-conference slate with a trip to Buffalo (Nov. 15) and return home to host Geneseo (Nov. 18) and Keuka (Nov. 24). Coming out of the Thanksgiving break, RIT will host Brockport (Dec. 2).  

Liberty League play begins on the road at Skidmore (Dec. 5) and Bard (Dec. 6). The Tigers close out the calendar year at the Captain's Shootout hosted by Christopher Newport (Va.), facing Johnson & Wales (N.C.) on Dec. 29 and the host Captains on Dec. 30.

RIT opens 2026 at home against Union (Jan. 3) and Rochester (Jan. 6). The Tigers then begin a stretch of Liberty League play that includes road games at Hobart, RPI, Skidmore, Vassar, Union, Bard, and Ithaca, and home contests against Ithaca, Clarkson, St. Lawrence, RPI, Hobart, Vassar, and Skidmore.