/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/49063303/usa-today-9023920.0.jpg)
History: On March 12, 2006, Cal State-Bakersfield lost 81-75 to Seattle Pacific in the NCAA Division II West Regional. It was their 16th trip to the NCAA D-II tournament in 20 years. It was also their last, as they began their transition to Division I that summer. On March 12, 2016, Derrick Basile hit a three with two-tenths of a second left to upset the New Mexico State Aggies 57-54, and the Roadrunners earned their first trip to the NCAA Division I tournament.
Exactly ten years. What a world.
Stony Brook, meanwhile, hasn't been to the NCAA Tournament since 1991 -- when they were in Division III. Over the next decade, the Seawolves embarked on an audacious plan to move to Division I, stopping over in D-II for five years. Whereas Bakersfield returned to the dance in short order once they were eligible again, Stony Brook has suffered a lot of heartbreak and close calls; three previous times, they won the America East regular-season title only to lose in the conference tournament and end up in the NIT. Yesterday, Jameel Warney wasn't having it. Warney ripped Vermont for 43 points and the Seawolves finally got over the hump, securing the America East tournament crown with an 80-74 win.
Welcome to the party, guys. Glad you finally made it.
Saturday's Men's Results
Of course, there were a lot of higher-profile title games yesterday. North Carolina won the ACC in a tight contest with Virginia, Seton Hall upset Villanova to win the Big East (and probably shake up the one seeds), Kansas easily handled West Virginia to take the Big 12 double, and Oregon absolutely smoked Utah to claim the Pac-12.
New Mexico State wasn't the only one-seed that will find themselves in the NIT. Akron was toppled by Buffalo in the MAC title game, and San Diego State probably slides to the NIT as well after being upended by Fresno State in the Mountain West. Oh, and then there's Temple, who lost to UConn in the American semifinals. They're probably not dancing now.
Also earning their tickets: Weber State, Hawai'i, Hampton, Southern, and our preferred "We're not there so let's root for them instead" target, Stephen F. Austin.
One more one-seed fell in a semifinal yesterday, as Dayton lost to Saint Joseph's in the A-10. Dayton's safely in the field, though. In the American, Memphis ended Tulane's reign of terror (and, unless the win over Houston earned him a reprieve, Ed Conroy's tenure as Tulane's head coach). All the results, SB Nation colleague recaps in green:
AMERICA EAST MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) Stony Brook 80, (3) Vermont 74 | Jameel Warney (SBU), 43 |
AMERICAN MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
SF | (5) Connecticut 77, (1) Temple 62 | Daniel Hamilton (CONN), 19 |
SF | (6) Memphis 74, (10) Tulane 54 | Dedric Lawson (MEM), 17 |
ACC MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) North Carolina 61, (2) Virginia 57 | Joel Berry II (UNC), 19 |
ATLANTIC 10 MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
SF | (4) Saint Joseph's (PA) 82, (1) Dayton 79 | Isaiah Miles (SJU), 26 |
SF | (2) Virginia Commonwealth 76, (6) Davidson 54 | Korey Billbury (VCU), 17 |
BIG EAST MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (3) Seton Hall 69, (1) Villanova 67 | Isaiah Whitehead (SHU), 26 |
BIG SKY MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) Weber State 62, (2) Montana 59 | Jeremy Senglin (WSU), 20 Martin Breunig (MONT), 20 |
BIG TEN MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
SF | (5) Purdue 76, (8) Michigan 59 | A.J. Hammons (PUR), 27 |
SF | (2) Michigan State 64, (3) Maryland 61 | Denzel Valentine (MSU), 18 Robert Carter (UMD), 18 |
BIG 12 MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) Kansas 81, (2) West Virginia 71 | Devin Williams (WVU), 31 |
BIG WEST MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) Hawai'i 64, (3) Long Beach State 60 | Nick Faust (LBSU), 17 |
CONFERENCE USA MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (2) Middle Tennessee State 55, (5) Old Dominion 53 | Trey Freeman (ODU), 17 |
MID-AMERICAN MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (3) Buffalo 64, (1) Akron 61 | C.J. Massinburg (BUFF), 18 |
MID-EASTERN MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) Hampton 81, (3) South Carolina State 69 | Eric Eaves (SCSU), 25 |
MOUNTAIN WEST MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (2) Fresno State 68, (1) San Diego State 63 | Malik Pope (SDSU), 19 |
PAC-12 MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) Oregon 88, (2) Utah 57 | Tyler Dorsey (Oregon), 23 |
SEC MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
SF | (1) Texas A&M 71, (4) Louisiana State 38 | Tonny Trocha-Morales (A&M), 13 |
SF | (2) Kentucky 93, (6) Georgia 80 | Jamal Murray (UK), 26 |
SOUTHLAND MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) Stephen F. Austin 82, (2) Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 60 | Thomas Walkup (SFA), 19 |
SWAC MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (4) Southern 54, (3) Jackson State 53 | Trelun Banks (SU), 19 |
SUN BELT MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
SF | (1) Arkansas-Little Rock 72, (4) Louisiana-Lafayette 65 | Shawn Long (ULL), 25 |
SF | (2) Louisiana-Monroe 82, (3) Texas-Arlington 71 | DeMondre Harvey (ULM), 21 |
WAC MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (2) Cal State-Bakersfield 57, (1) New Mexico State 54 | Dedrick Basile (CSUB), 18 |
Saturday's Women's Results
With three exceptions, order ruled the day in the penultimate wave of women's conference tournament action. Those exceptions loom large, though.
Buffalo, the eight seed, won the MAC in a tight battle with Central Michigan and will join their male counterparts in the dance. In the Southland, seven seed Sam Houston State ousted second-seeded Northwestern State to advance to tomorrow's Southland final, and Troy upset top seed Arkansas-Little Rock to win the Sun Belt.
Idaho, James Madison, North Carolina A&T, Army, Alabama State, and New Mexico State all also earned autobids... as did Middle Tennessee State and Hawai'i, which join the alarmingly large parade of schools winning both men's and women's tournament titles this year (joining Iona, Chattanooga, and South Dakota State). Connecticut, Florida Gulf Coast, UNC-Asheville, Wisconsin-Green Bay, and Northern Iowa could all join that club tomorrow.
BIG SKY WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (3) Idaho 67, (9) Idaho State 55 | Mikayla Ferenz (IDA), 18 |
BIG SOUTH WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
SF | (1) North Carolina-Asheville 65, (5) Presbyterian 55 | Chatori Major (UNCA), 22 |
SF | (2) Liberty 51, (3) Radford 41 | Jaymee Fisher-Davis (LIB), 11 |
BIG WEST WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (2) Hawai'i 78, (4) Cal-Davis 59 | Morgan Bertsch (UCD), 19 |
COLONIAL WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) James Madison 60, (2) Drexel 46 | Jazmon Gwathney (JMU), 19 |
CONFERENCE USA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (2) Middle Tennessee State , (5) Old Dominion | Jennie Simms (ODU), 21 |
HORIZON LEAGUE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
SF | (1) Wisconsin-Green Bay 80, (5) Northern Kentucky 78 (2OT) | Mehryn Kraker (UWGB), 32 |
SF | (2) Wisconsin-Milwaukee 68, (3) Wright State 60 | Jenny Lindner (UWM), |
MID-AMERICAN WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (8) Buffalo 73, (2) Central Michigan 71 | Joanna Smith (BUFF), 23 |
MID-EASTERN WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (2) North Carolina A&T 65, (4) Coppin State 46 | Keena Samuels (CSU), 20 |
MISSOURI VALLEY WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
SF | (1) Northern Iowa 67, (4) Southern Illinois 43 | Madison Weekly (UNI), 21 |
SF | (3) Missouri State 65, (2) Drake 61 | Sara Rhine (UD), 19 Tyonna Snow (MSU), 19 |
PATRIOT LEAGUE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) Army 69, (3) Loyola (MD) 51 | Kelsey Minato (ARMY), 25 |
SOUTHLAND WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
SF | (1) Central Arkansas 72, (4) McNeese State 64 | Jayln Johnson (MSU), 27 |
SF | (7) Sam Houston State 78, (2) Northwestern State 71 | Janelle Perez (NSU), 30 |
SWAC WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) Alabama State 55, (2) Southern 51 | Britney Wright (ASU), 17 |
SUN BELT WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (4) Troy 61, (1) Arkansas-Little Rock 60 | ArJae' Saunders (TROY), 21 |
WAC WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||
ROUND | RESULT | HIGH SCORER |
FINAL | (1) New Mexico State 80, (2) Texas-Rio Grande Valley 53 | Brooke Salas (NMSU), 20 |
Sunday's Men's Schedule
Not much going on, just five big title games. Three of them don't matter much, as the six teams involved are all locks. But the other two are absolutely play-in games, as the Sun Belt is a one-bid league and although UConn appears to be in on their own merit right now, a loss to Memphis might change that.
AMERICAN MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | 2:15pm | (6) Memphis | (5) Connecticut | Orlando FL | ESPN | |
ATLANTIC 10 MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | noon | (4) Saint Joseph's (PA) | (2) Virginia Commonwealth | Brooklyn NY | CBS | |
BIG TEN MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | 3:00pm | (5) Purdue | (2) Michigan State | Indianapolis IN | CBS | |
SEC MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | noon | (2) Kentucky | (1) Texas A&M | Nashville TN | ESPN | |
SUN BELT MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | noon | (2) Louisiana-Monroe | (1) Arkansas-Little Rock | New Orleans LA | ESPN2 |
Sunday's Women's Schedule
Six finals make up today's women's schedule, all in the mid-major ranks. In a vacuum, FGCU and Green Bay would probably both be in the field right now regardless of today's results, as Charlie Creme has them both seeded higher than Iowa and on the same line as Auburn; those are his last two in. But losses today would probably sink both ships, so it's best to just assume all six of these games are winner-take-all.
ATLANTIC SUN WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | 1:00pm | (2) Jacksonville | (1) Florida Gulf Coast | Fort Myers FL | ESPN3 | |
BIG SOUTH WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | 1:00pm | (2) Liberty | (1) North Carolina-Asheville | Asheville NC | ESPN3 | |
HORIZON LEAGUE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | noon | (2) Wisconsin-Milwaukee | (1) Wisconsin-Green Bay | Green Bay WI | ESPNU | |
MISSOURI VALLEY WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | 2:00pm | (3) Missouri State | (1) Northern Iowa | Moline IL | ESPN3 | |
NORTHEAST CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | 2:00pm | (3) Robert Morris (PA) | (1) Sacred Heart | ESPNU | ||
SOUTHLAND WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT | ||||||
ROUND | TIME (CT) | TEAM | - | TEAM | LOCATION | NETWORK |
FINAL | 11:30am | (7) Sam Houston State | (1) Central Arkansas | Katy TX | CBSSN |