Men's Bracket Released

03/04/10

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - (Bracket) The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has officially released the 32-team bracket for the 19th Annual Division II Men's Basketball National Championship, held March 10-16 in Point Lookout, Mo. No. 1-seed Walsh (Ohio) tops the list and comes into the event with a 28-2 record. Defending national champion and No. 6 Oklahoma Wesleyan enters with a 27-4 record.

For ticket information, call 417-335-NAIA. Action tips off on March 10 with games starting at 8:30 a.m. CST the first three days. In all, there are 31 games spanning seven days.

Walsh lands the top seed for the first time in school history. The Cavs will attempt to become the sixth No. 1 seed to win the National Championship in the history of the event. They have won nine straight games and lead the NAIA in several statistical categories, including field goal percentage (.513) and field goal percentage (.372). Last year, Oklahoma Wesleyan was the top seed en route to the trophy.

Unseeded College of the Ozarks (Mo.) serves as host for the 11th straight year and receives an automatic bid as the host qualifier. Ozarks is making its 14th Championship appearance, a best among the 32-team field. The Bobcats are 22-12 overall in the event. No. 2 Oregon Tech earns its highest seed in its 12th overall trip. The Hustlin' Owls are one of two teams in the current field with multiple trophies winning it all in 2008 and 2004. They boast the most Championship wins among all the current teams with a 26-9 mark. The other team with multiple Championships (three), No. 9 Bethel (Ind.), is playing in its ninth event and is 25-5 in the postseason.

Two conferences will send four representatives each to Point Lookout. The Cascade Collegiate Conference has No. 14 Eastern Oregon, Evergreen State (Wash.), Oregon Tech and Warner Pacific (Ore.) while the Mid-Central College Conference has Bethel, No. 3 Indiana Wesleyan, No. 15 Saint Francis (Ind.) and Spring Arbor (Mich.).

Of the 32 teams, there are four teams appearing in their first Championship. Davenport (Mich.), Maine-Fort Kent, McPherson (Kan.) and William Jessup (Calif.) are breaking the seal to their postseason. Five other programs are searching for their inaugural victory in Championship action.

Thirty-one games will be played out in Point Lookout. The first 30 games will be video-streamed by NeuLion, the parent company of JumpTV. Three different subscription plans for basketball (Men's and Women's Division I; Men's and Women's Division II) will be available for tournament coverage. Users can purchase the All-Tournament pass, which includes every event offered on College Sports Direct from all four basketball tournaments for $39.95. Each of the four basketball tournaments can be purchased separately for $24.95 and any single day can be purchased for $9.95. In order to view the streaming, click here.

The Championship final on March 16 will be televised live nationally on CBS College Sports Television with tip-off at 7 p.m. CST.

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