The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has officially released the bracket for the 76th annual Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship. The 32-team, single elimination format will take place from March 13 - 19 at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.
Coach Tommy Brown and his Flames finished third in the final NAIA poll and drew Voorhees (S.C.) in the opening round on Wednesday morning at 11:45 a.m. EST. The Tigers finished 22-11 and qualified for the national tournament by winning the NAIA Independant team tourney in Chicago.
"I like the game time," said coach Brown after viewing the bracket. "Anyone can obviously beat anyone in the tournament .Voorhees won that independant tourney that Cal State Marcos was in. I hear they are talented and like to play up tempo, so it should be exciting." If the Flames (29-3) can get past Voorhees, they would face the winner of Philander-Smith (Ark.) and Montana Western on Friday at 11:45 EST
The championship kicks off at 9 a.m. CST the first three days, with eight games scheduled each day. Quarterfinal action tips off at 2 p.m. on March 16. For the first time in the history of the event, the semifinals on March 18 will be broadcast live on ESPN3 at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. The championship final, which will be televised live on CBS Sports Network, will start at 7:30 p.m. on March 19.
NeuLion, the NAIA's official video streaming company of 12 select NAIA National Championship events, will be broadcasting the first 28 games from Kansas City, Mo. An all-tournament pass (28 games) is available for $29.95, while a single day pass can be purchased for $9.95. For more information and to pre-register go to NAIA.org. Also for the complete tournament bracket go to NAIA.org.
The 33rd annual Division I Women's Basketball National Championship will take place from March 13 - 19 at the Frankfort Convention Center in Frankfort, Ky.
Lee's (30-2) will face LSU-Shreveport (25-5) when the championship kicks off at 8:30 a.m. EST on day one and 9 a.m. on days two and three, with eight games scheduled each day.
The Lady Flames have never faced the Shreveport club and they are certainly use to rising early. Coach Marty Rowe had his club up early as they prepared for the early-morning starts in the SSAC tournament.
The Lady Pilots suffered defeats to Xavier (La.) and Wiley (Texas) before losing to Our Lady of Lake (Texas) three times. The final defeat came in the Red River Athletic Conference tournament. A win over LSU-Shreveport would give Lee a day off before returning to the hardwood on Friday at 9 a.m. and facing the winner of Carroll (Mont.) and The Masters (Calif.).
Quarterfinal action tips off at 2 p.m. on March 16 with the semifinals slated for March 18 at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. The championship final, which will be televised live on CBS Sports Network, will start at 6:30 p.m. on March 19.
NeuLion, the NAIA's official video streaming company of 12 select NAIA National Championship events, will be broadcasting the first 30 games from Frankfort, Ky. An all-tournament pass (30 games) is available for $29.95, while a single day pass can be purchased for $9.95. For more information and to pre-register go to NAIA.org. The complete tourney bracket can also be viewed at NAIA.org.