NCAA Men's Lacrosse Week 11 Preview: Odds, TV and More

Schedule | TV Listings | Rankings

We've reached the glorious time of year when lacrosse fans no longer have to become IT masters - logging into multiple accounts to pull up streams on the phone, laptop, tablet or downloading apps to their smart TV.

This weekend will feature eight games on linear TV, beginning with a trio tonight, spread across four different networks — the ACC Network, Big Ten Network, CBS Sports Network and ESPNU. If only the powers that be could find a way to push the season later and not compete head-to-head with college basketball during the first half of the season.

All of that said, you don't want to put away your streaming setup just yet. There are some great games in the streaming sphere on Saturday, including Cornell at Harvard (ESPN+), UMass at Richmond (ESPN+) and Fairfield at Towson (LacrosseTV).

No matter how you choose to watch them, you can rely on our Q-Collar TV Listings page to get the full schedule of games for your viewing pleasure.

Enjoy the weekend.

FIVE TO WATCH

No. 17 Rutgers (6-7, 2-2 B1G) at No. 5 Penn State (8-3, 2-2 B1G)

Fri 6 pm EDT | Watch: Big Ten Network | DK: Penn State -3.5

Rutgers storyline to watch: The Scarlet Knights have some big wins – notably Maryland and Johns Hopkins – but they haven’t been able to string together success. Only once, season-opening wins against Lehigh and LIU, have they won consecutive games. To win in Happy Valley, they can’t completely rely on the goaltending of Cardin Stoller. Rutgers has scored more than 11 goals just twice all season. 

Penn State storyline to watch: A victory, coupled with some help in other games could push the Nittany Lions to the No. 2 seed in the league, resulting in a first-round bye in the Big Ten tournament. Goals will be at a premium in this game with both teams ranking in the top 12 in the country in scoring defense. Penn State can rely on Matt Traynor to score them. He’s coming off a seven-goal effort against Johns Hopkins and has 29 goals in just nine games.

No. 1 Cornell (10-1, 4-0 Ivy) at No. 10 Harvard (9-2, 3-1 Ivy)

Sat 12 pm EDT | Watch: ESPN+ | DK: Cornell -3

Cornell storyline to watch: C.J. Kirst needs just five goals to tie Virginia graduate Peyton Cormier as the NCAA’s all-time leading goal scorer. Kirst has 219 and Cormier finished up his Virginia career last year with 224. Adding to the lore, Kirst has reached his 219 total in just 59 games. Cormier, with the addition of a partial extra year to COVID and two runs to NCAA championships, hit his total in 73 games. 

Harvard storyline to watch: Has the Crimson defense turned the corner for real? Harvard gave up double-digit goals in its first seven games, but has held three of its last four opponents to single digits. First-year goalie Graham Stevens has been 50 percent or better on save percentage the last four games and now must face his biggest test – No. 1 ranked Cornell, and the nation’s top-rated offense.

No. 14 Fairfield (11-1, 4-1 CAA) at Towson (7-5, 5-0 CAA)

Sat 12 pm EDT | Watch: LacrosseTV | DK: Fairfield -1.5

Fairfield storyline to watch: A victory for Fairfield would match the school record of 12 wins set in 2012 and matched in 2014. A win would also put Fairfield on the doorstep of winning its first league regular season championship since 2016. Put simply, a win keeps adding to the magical season Fairfield is having. 

Towson storyline to watch: Mikey Weisshaar was an All-American midfielder last year, but recognizing the need to get his best player on the field more regularly on offense this year, Shawn Nadelen moved Weisshaar to attack in the middle of the season. It’s paid off. After starting the season 1-5, Towson has ripped off six straight wins. Weisshaar leads the team with 34 goals and 47 points. 

No. 9 Notre Dame (6-3, 2-1 ACC) at No. 8 North Carolina (9-2, 2-0 ACC)

Sat 12 pm EDT | Watch: ESPNU | DK: Notre Dame -1.5

Notre Dame storyline to watch: With talented midfielders Jordan Faison (sophomore) and Matt Jeffery (freshman) getting late starts on the lacrosse field after their football seasons stretched to late January, Notre Dame’s offense was always going to be a work in progress. Jeffery, the No. 1 recruit in the country, is coming off a career-best two-goal game in Notre Dame’s 12-7 win over Virginia. The Irish scored eight goals over the last 18 minutes of that game and could be poised to make another championship run as the loaded offense comes together.

North Carolina storyline to watch: North Carolina hasn’t beaten Notre Dame since 2021, which was also the last time Carolina won double-digit games in a season. A win over Notre Dame would be UNC’s 10th of the season. Carolina has held five of its last six opponents to single digits, including Duke last weekend. Michael Gianforcaro was the USA Lacrosse Player of the Week after making 12 saves, five of them in the fourth quarter, in an 8-7 win over the Blue Devils. 

No. 19 UMass (9-3, 2-1 A-10) at No. 12 Richmond (9-3, 3-0 A-10)

Sat 12 pm EDT | Watch: ESPN+ | DK: Richmond -4.5

Massachusetts storyline to watch: UMass has been one of the most pleasant surprises in the country this year. Despite heavy graduation losses, at 9-3, UMass already has its most wins in a season since going 10-5 in 2019. The future could be even better. Freshman Robbie Granara leads the team with 30 goals and freshman goalie Owen Salanger has a 61.2 save percentage. 

Richmond storyline to watch: Richmond owns non-league wins over Georgetown and Virginia and nearly beat Cornell and Duke — losing to both by a goal. This could be a special season for a program that has played in the conference championship game every year of its existence and has made five NCAA tournament appearances since 2014. But it has some obstacles to get through first, namely closing the regular season with its top two challengers in the A-10, UMass and Saint Joseph’s.