INDIANAPOLIS – Carson-Newman has been listed among eight teams up for consideration for one of six slots in the upcoming NCAA Men's Basketball Championships Wednesday.
Normally the region rankings are truly rankings. However, this year the NCAA changed the format to schools under consideration for the first two "rankings" before unveiling the final batch on March 3rd. Schools will be listed in alphabetical order for the first two releases.
According to the NCAA releases, this is "due to the disparity of games played this season and the limited data available."
The initial batch of rankings, which only includes games through Sunday, features five SAC teams and three Conference Carolinas teams. Carson-Newman, Lincoln Memorial, Queens, Lenoir-Rhyne and Newberry represent the SAC, while Belmont Abbey, Emmanuel and Lees-McRae are the three representing Conference Carolinas.
Carson-Newman is one of four that has made it to double-digit wins along with LMU, Queens and Belmont Abbey.
The Eagles have a win over Lenoir-Rhyne among teams under consideration and have the third highest strength of schedule among teams listed.
At seven straight games, C-N owns the longest active win streak in the region.
The official NCAA selection show is scheduled for March 7 at 10 p.m. where the field and seeds will be announced on NCAA.com.
This year's field has been condensed to 48 teams and the region is adjusted to accommodate equal participation numbers across the eight regions meaning the Peach Belt will participate in the South and the Southeast region is adding the SIAC.
|
Southeast (Under Consideration) |
Belmont Abbey |
11-4 |
11-4 |
|
Carson-Newman |
10-5 |
10-5 |
|
|
Emmanuel (Georgia) |
8-3 |
8-3 |
|
|
Lees-McRae |
5-0 |
5-0 |
|
|
Lenoir-Rhyne |
7-3 |
7-3 |
|
|
Lincoln Memorial |
15-2 |
15-2 |
|
|
Newberry |
6-3 |
6-3 |
|
|
Queens (North Carolina) |
11-3 |
11-3 |
