Bentley Men’s Basketball Back in the NCAA’s; Will Face Stonehill Saturday in Philadelphia
WALTHAM, Mass. – For the first time since 2011, the Bentley University men's basketball team is back in the NCAA Division II Championships.
Bentley's 18th appearance in the NCAAs has the Falcons seeded fifth in the East Regional, which will be held in Philadelphia at Holy Family University, and paired against fourth-seeded Stonehill College in an all-Northeast-10 quarterfinal game on Saturday.
It'll be the fourth meeting of the season between the two 21-8 teams. Stonehill swept the Falcons during the regular season but Bentley, the NE-10 Northeast Division champion, turned the tables in the Northeast-10 semifinals Wednesday night, winning 89-84.
Bentley was one of five Northeast-10 teams selected for the eight-team regional, and also one of five at-large selections, along with Stonehill, Saint Anselm College, Southern Connecticut State University and Philadelphia University.
The other three teams were automatic selections by virtue of winning their conference championship tournaments. Those were Southern New Hampshire (Northeast-10), Holy Family (Central Atlantic) and Saint Thomas Aquinas College (East Coast Conference). SNHU edged Bentley in the NE-10 final on Saturday, 90-87.
The other quarterfinal match-ups have top-seeded Holy Family (26-5) taking on number eight Southern New Hampshire (22-10), second-seeded Saint Anselm (21-7) facing number seven Philadelphia (23-8) and third-seeded Southern Connecticut meeting Saint Thomas Aquinas (26-4), the sixth seed.
The semifinals will be Sunday evening and the regional championship game Tuesday night.
The regional champion will move on to Frisco, Texas for the Elite Eight Mar. 23-26.
At Holy Family University, Philadelphia, Pa.
QUARTERFINALS – SATURDAY, MARCH 12, 2016
#3 Southern Connecticut State (22-7) vs. #6 Saint Thomas Aquinas (26-4)
#2 Saint Anselm (21-7) vs. #7 Philadelphia (23-8)
#1 Holy Family (26-5) vs. #8 Southern New Hampshire (22-10)
#4 Stonehill (21-8) vs. #5 Bentley (21-8)
SEMIFINALS – SUNDAY, MARCH 13, 2016
#3-#6 winner vs. #2-#7 winner
#1-#8 winner vs. #4-#5 winner
CHAMPIONSHIP – TUESDAY, MARCH 15, 2016
Winner advances to Elite Eight in Frisco, Texas Mar. 23-26.