INDIANAPOLIS - If the season were to stop today, Carson-Newman's men's basketball program would be bound for a fourth trip to the NCAA tournament under South Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year Chuck Benson and a sixth overall.
Carson-Newman is ranked sixth in the final version of the NCAA region rankings. That is the final spot that would be included in the Southeast Regional. The rankings are the official poll utilized by the NCAA in the championship selection process and will continue to be released each week by the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Committee up to the NCAA Championship selections. The 2021 NCAA Division Men's Basketball Southeast Region Championship will be held at Lincoln Memorial, March 13-16.
The latest iteration of the region rankings only increases the significance of Carson-Newman's SAC semifinal matchup with Tusculum. The winner of that contest will almost assuredly lock up an at-large bid in the NCAA tourament. The loser still has a path to an at-large bid, but depends on outcomes of Benedict's final two games against Salem and Allen.
This year's field has been condensed to 48 teams and the region is adjusted to accommodate equal participation numbers across the eight regions. This means the Peach Belt will participate in the South while the SIAC moves to compete in the Southeast.
Lincoln Memorial, losers of two straight and in the middle of a CoVID pause, is the region's top team with a 15-3 record. The SAC is also represented by fourth-ranked Queens (13-3) and fifth-ranked Tusculum (12-4). Queens plays Lenoir-Rhyne in the other half of the SAC semifinals Thursday evening. Conference Carolinas has three programs ranked. Emmanuel and Belmont Abbey are ranked second and third in the region. The Lions are 12-4, while the Crusaders are 15-4. Belmont Abbey gets Chowan in the Conference Carolinas semifinals, while Emmanuel plays host to North Greenville.
The SIAC's lone representative is in seventh, that's Benedict. The Eagles downed the Tigers 86-69 back on Feb. 15. Benedict is 7-1. Teams need to play 11 games to qualify for this year's NCAA tournament.
Carson-Newman will find out its NCAA tournament fate Sunday evening at 10:30 p.m. during the NCAA selection show.
| SOUTHEAST | |||
| 1 | Lincoln Memorial | 15-3 | 15-3 |
| 2 | Emmanuel (Georgia) | 12-4 | 12-4 |
| 3 | Belmont Abbey | 15-4 | 15-4 |
| 4 | Queens (North Carolina) | 13-3 | 13-3 |
| 5 | Tusculum | 12-4 | 12-4 |
| 6 | Carson-Newman | 13-5 | 13-5 |
| 7 | Benedict | 7-1 | 7-1 |
| 8 | Southern Wesleyan | 9-4 | 9-4 |
