Indianapolis – Two East Coast Conference
schools will be among 64 teams vying for a National Championship in
the bracket for the 2012NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball
Tournament released on Sunday evening. The C.W. Post Pioneers, who
earned the conference’s automatic berth after capturing the
ECC Men’s Basketball Championship title, will be joined by
University of the District of Columbia, who will be making their
first NCAA Tournament appearance in 25 years.
C.W. Post is the top seeded school from the ECC, earning the No. 6
seed in the East Region field. The Pioneers will face off against a
familiar foe, former ECC rival Adelphi. The Panthers, who earned an
at-large bid, were Regular Season Co-Champions of the Northeast 10
Conference. C.W. Post, who makes their fourth NCAA appearance in
the last five seasons, will look for revenge after falling to
Adelphi by a score of 83-79 on December 13.
UDC grabs an at-large bid and the No. 7 seed in their first season
in the ECC. The Firebirds will take on the No. 2 seed, Stonehill
Skyhawks, who are fresh off capturing their first Northeast 10
Conference Tournament title in 23 years. UDC ends a long drought of
their own, as the Firebirds will make their first appearance in the
NCAA Tournament since 1987. UDC has made a remarkable turnaround,
making the tournament two seasons after finishing with a 1-20
record.
Franklin Pierce earned the top seed in the field after a stunning
turnaround of their own. After finishing last in the Northeast 10 a
season ago, the Ravens were Co-Regular Season Champions and posted
a 21-7 record to earn the top spot in the region. Despite holding
the top seed and hosting duties, the tournament will not take place
on the Franklin Pierce’s campus in Rindge, N.H. The Ravens
will instead host at Assumption College in Worcester, Mass.
In other games in the tournament, Franklin Pierce will face No. 8
seed Philadelphia University and fourth seeded UMass Lowell will
try to knock off the defending East Region Champion and No. 5 seed
Bloomfield.
Tournament action will get under way with quarterfinal action on
Saturday, March 10. The semifinals will follow the next day on
Sunday, March 11. An off day will follow before the championship
game on Tuesday, March 13. Tip-off times have yet to be
released.
Click here for full bracket.
NCAA Division II
East Region Men’s Basketball Tournament at Assumption College
(hosted by Franklin Pierce)
Quarterfinals - Saturday, March 10
No. 1 Franklin Pierce vs. No. 8 Philadelphia
No. 2 Stonehill vs. No. 7 District of Columbia
No. 3 Adelphi vs. No. 6 C.W. Post
No. 4 UMass-Lowell vs. No. 5 Bloomfield
Semifinals - Sunday, March 11
No. 3-No. 6 winner vs. No. 2-No. 7 winner
No. 1-No. 8 winner vs. No. 4-No. 5 winner
Championship - Tuesday, March 13
Semifinal winners
Winner advances to Elite Eight in Heighland Heights, Kentucky, March 21-24.
