NCAA DIVISION II MEN’S BASKETBALL 2012 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP THE BANK OF KENTUCKY CENTER
HOSTED BY NORTHERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY
MARCH 21, 22 & 24, HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. An elite eight begin quest for Division II national title
Western Washington’s Rory Blanche West Liberty’s Alex Falk Montevallo’s D.J. Rivera Stonehill’s Brian Hamor
Alabama-Huntsville’s Josh Magette Midwestern State’s Michael Loyd Metro State’s Reggie Evans Bellarmine’s Braydon Hobbs
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - Eight of the nation’s top NCAA The semifinals are set for March 22 at 7 p.m. and 9:30 Division II men’s basketball teams will be on display March p.m., with the national championship game scheduled for 21-24 in The Bank of Kentucky Center as Northern Kentucky 1 p.m. March 24. The national championship game will be University hosts the Elite Eight. televised live on CBS. The Elite Eight begins March 21 with four national quar- Bellarmine, which captured the Midwest Region cham- terfinal games. Stonehill (Mass.) plays West Liberty at noon, pionship for the second straight year, is 3-0 all-time in The followed by Midwestern State taking on Western Washington Bank of Kentucky Center. All three of the Knights’ victo- at 2:30 p.m. In the night session, defending national champion ries in the 9,400-seat arena have come at the expense of Bellarmine meets Alabama-Huntsville at 6 p.m., with Metro Northern Kentucky during regular-season play. State playing Montevallo (Ala.) at 8:30 p.m. The Knights are 28-3 and feature Great Lakes Valley
CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 NCAA Division II national championship to be held in The Bank of Kentucky Center - CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
Conference Player of the Year Braydon Hobbs. Bellarmine is looking to become the first repeat national champion in Divi- sion II since Cal State Bakersfield won titles in 1993 and ‘94. Two more teams back in the Elite Eight this season are No. 3 West Liberty and No. 5 Midwestern State. West Lib- erty meets Stonehill - the East Regional champ and only unranked team in the field - while Midwestern State is in the Elite Eight for the third straight season and will look to advance against Western Washington, which earned its spot by beating Seattle Pacific in the West Re- gional championship game. West Liberty enters the Elite Eight with the nation’s top offense, as the Hill- toppers average 102.8 points per game. West Liberty’s Cedric Harris scored 26 points and dished out eight assists in the Atlantic Region championship game against Shaw (N.C.) to lead the Hilltop- pers to an 89-78 victory. Six of the eight No. 1 seeds in the regionals came away victorious (the other two regional champs were No. 2 seeds). Four of the top five teams in the Cedric Harris (32) led West Liberty to the Atlantic Region title. final NABC Division II national poll will be at The Bank of Kentucky Center in the quest for the NCAA title. Missing from that group, however, is No. 1-ranked Colorado School of Mines, which was bumped off by crosstown rival Metro State in the Central Regional final that completed the Elite Eight field. Metro State, ranked 13th nationally, will face No. 22 and Southeast Regional champ Montevallo in one of the quarterfi- nal games. The other matchup on that side of the bracket features Bellarmine and the highest-ranked team remaining in the field, No. 2 Alabama-Huntsville. The Chargers are also back in the Elite Eight for the second straight year.
2012 NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Elite Eight Quarterfinals – Wednesday, March 21 Noon - Stonehill College Skyhawks (24-8) vs. West Liberty University Hilltoppers (32-2) 2:30 p.m. - Midwestern State University Mustangs (29-3) vs. Western Washington University Vikings (28-5) 6 p.m. - University of Alabama-Huntsville Chargers (29-3) vs. Bellarmine University Knights (28-3) 8:30 p.m. - Metro State College of Denver Roadrunners (25-6) vs. University of Montevallo Falcons (27-7)
Semifinals – Thursday, March 22 7 p.m. - Stonehill/West Liberty State winner vs. Midwestern State/Western Washington winner 9:30 p.m. - Alabama-Huntsville/Bellarmine winner vs. Metro State/Montevallo winner
Championship – Saturday, March 24 1 p.m.
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