NAIA D-II Men’s Basketball Tournament

by | Feb 28, 2019 | Basketball Blogs, Featured | 0 comments

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – [BRACKET] The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has officially announced the 32 qualifiers for the 28th annual NAIA Division II Men’s Basketball National Championship, presented by Athletic Care. The event takes place at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D., March 6-12.

This year’s field consists of 23 automatic berths and 9 at-large spots. Automatic qualification is given to conference regular-season champions, regular-season runners-up, tournament champions or tournament runners-up depending on the league. At-large teams were determined using the final regular-season Coaches’ Top 25 Poll released today. To access the poll, click HERE.

The NAIA Network (www.NAIANetwork.com) – the association’s official video streaming home – will broadcast the first 30 games leading up to the championship final on ESPN3. The video platform, powered by Stretch Internet, allows users to access video, statistics, and social interaction on a number of devices, including mobile. Single-day passes can be purchased for $9.95, while an all-tournament package is available at $34.95.

Qualifier Notes

• Defending national champion Indiana Wesleyan enters the tournament as the No. 1 overall seed looking to become only the second team in Division II men’s basketball history to win back-to-back national titles. Bethel (Ind.) accomplished the feat in 1997 and 1998.

• This will be Indiana Wesleyan’s 12th trip to the national tournament. The Wildcats hold an overall record of 28-5 and leads the Crossroads League with a 14-4 record. The team also leads the division in field goal percentage (0.539).

• Twenty teams return to the championship from the 2018 field

• Eight teams have made at least 10 appearances at the national championship. College of the Ozarks (Mo.) leads the group as 2019 will mark the Bobcats 22nd time competing in the tournament. Oregon Tech and Cornerstone (Mich.) are next with 17 appearances each.

• Three different institutions in this year’s tournament have won three national titles. Cornerstone (1999, 2011, 2015), Oregon Tech (2004, 2008, 2012), Indiana Wesleyan (2014, 2016, 2018) pace the field with three national titles each.

• IU Kokomo (Ind.) and Ave Maria (Fla.) all making their first-ever trip to the national championship.

Team Name Qualification Record Appearance Tournament Record Last Time Titles
Antelope Valley (Calif.) California Pacific Conference Tournament Champion 16-12 1 0-1 2018 0
Ave Maria (Fla.) The Sun Conference Tournament Champion 23-8 0 0 0 0
Bethel (Ind.) At-Large 21-10 15 32-12 2018 3
Briar Cliff (Iowa) At-Large 20-8 12 7-12 2018 0
College of Idaho Cascade Collegiate Conference Tournament Champion 28-5 13 17-12 2018 1
College of the Ozarks (Mo.) AII Tournament Runner-up 22-10 21 28-20 2017 1
Cornerstone (Mich.) Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Regular Season Champion 25-8 16 39-13 2018 3
Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) At-Large 22-9 10 8-10 2018 0
Friends (Kan.) At-Large 22-9 6 2-6 2015 0
Indiana East (Ind.) At-Large 24-8 6 8-6 2018 0
Indiana Tech Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Tournament Champion 22-11 8 4-8 2018 0
Indiana Wesleyan Crossroads League Tournament Champion 28-5 11 30-8 2018 3
IU Kokomo (Ind.) River States Conference East 25-7 0 0 0 0
Jamestown (N.D.) Great Plains Athletic Conference Tournament 28-5 9 5-9 2013 0
Madonna (Mich.) At-Large 23-9 1 0-1 2013 0
Marian (Ind.) At-Large 25-7 5 6-5 2018 0
Mayville State (N.D.) North Star Athletic Association Tournament Champion 20-8 7 8-7 2018 0
Montreat (N.C.) Appalachian Athletic Conference Tournament Runner-up 24-7 2 1-2 2006 0
Morningside (Iowa) Great Plains Athletic Conference Regular Season Champion 27-3 6 7-6 2018 0
Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio) At-Large 26-7 8 6-8 2009 0
Oklahoma Wesleyan Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Champion 30-3 6 13-5 2018 1
Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Regular Season Champion 23-8 2 0-2 2016 0
Oregon Tech Cascade Collegiate Conference Regular Season Champion 24-7 16 33-13 2018 3
Southeastern (Fla.) Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference Regular Season Champion 20-9 4 3-2 2018 0
Southwestern (Kan.) At-Large 27-4 4 1-4 2018 0
Spring Arbor (Mich.) Crossroads League Regular Season Champion 25-7 2 3-2 2010 0
St. Francis (Ill.) Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Champion 25-7 2 0-2 2016 0
Union (Ky.) Appalachian Athletic Conference Regular Season/Tournament Champion 26-6 6 6-5 2018 1
Voorhees (S.C.) AII Tournament Champion 24-5 1 0-1 2018 0
Warner (Fla.) The Sun Conference Regular Season Champion 21-10 6 10-6 2018 0
Washington Adventist (Md.) AII Tournament Third Place 22-10 2 0-2 2017 0
WVU Tech River States Conference Tournament Champion 29-4 2 0-2 2018 0

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