SEATTLE – For the second straight season the ninth-ranked Seattle Pacific men's basketball team will travel to Bellingham to compete in the West Regional of the NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament that begins Friday at Western Washington's Carver Gymnasium.
The 64-team field was announced Sunday night and the Great Northwest Athletic Conference champion Falcons (22-5) are one of eight teams vying for the West Region title. They join host Western Washington, BYU-Hawaii, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal State San Bernardino, Central Washington, Dixie State and Humboldt State.
“We do have to travel, but don't necessarily have to travel too far and that's a good thing,” said first-year coach
Ryan Looney. “Having a number of guys who have experience in the postseason should help.”
Last season in Bellingham, SPU defeated Western Washington 82-77 in the first round before losing 80-72 to eventual national runner-up Cal Poly Pomona.
Looney is the only coach to direct the Falcons into the playoffs in his first season at SPU.
The brackets for the other seven regions were announced Sunday. The West Regional pairings won't be released until Tuesday morning due to some postponed games in Hawai'i that will be played Monday night.
The first-round games will be played Friday, Mar. 12 with the winners moving into the regional semifinals, Saturday, Mar. 13. The West Region championship game is slated for Monday, Mar. 15. All three rounds will be played in Bellingham.
The West Region winner advances to the Elite Eight, set for Mar. 24, 25 and 27 in Springfield, Mass.
The SPU men make their sixth consecutive NCAA playoff appearance and 21st overall. They advanced to the national semifinals in 2000 and 2006.
The Falcons, ranked No. 1 in the region last week, were in position to host the West Regional before being swept in Alaska. They lost a 113-105 overtime decision on Thursday at Fairbanks before falling 75-64 on Saturday at Anchorage.
“We're excited to be in the it,” Looney said. “We were hoping that we would be able to play those games in Seattle, but at the same time our group has learned a lesson in the last week that if you don't prepare the right way it's hard to turn the switch on and off if you need to.”
Tickets for the West Regional go on sale Tuesday at 11 a.m. They can be purchased by calling the Western Washington ticket office at 360-650-2583 or by going on-line at
www.wwuvikings.com. Reserved tickets are $10, general admission is $8 and student/youth/senior/WWU faculty with ID are $5. Tickets are good all day on multiple-game dates.
2010 NCAA DIVISION II MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
West Regional
Carver, Gymnasium/Bellingham, Wash.
Friday, March 12
Game 1 - No.3 seed vs. No.6 seed - 12:30 p.m.
Game 2 - No.2 seed vs. No.7 seed - 2:30 p.m.
Game 3 - No.4 seed vs. No.5 seed - 5:30 p.m.
Game 4 - No.1 seed vs. No.8 seed - 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 13
Game 5 - Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2 – 5:00 p.m.
Game 6 - Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4 – 7:00 p.m.
Monday, March 15
Game 7 - Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6 – 7:00 p.m.
West Region Field
BYU-Hawaii
Cal Poly Pomona
Cal State San Bernardino
Central Washington
Dixie State
Humboldt State
Seattle Pacific
Western Washington (host)
