MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Saint Anselm College men's basketball team won its ninth Northeast-10 Conference postseason championship on Saturday, earning an automatic bid to the 2020 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship.
VIDEO: NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship Selection Show
LINK: NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship Bracket
Saint Anselm (21-8) looks to defend its 2019 East Region Championship this Saturday, Mar. 14 as the Hawks, seeded fourth in the eight-team East Region field, will take on fifth-seeded Le Moyne (19-9) in the regional quarterfinals at a time to be determined.
The East Region Championship will be played at top-seeded Bridgeport (24-4). The hosts will battle eighth-seeded Daemen (24-8) while second-seed Saint Thomas Aquinas (25-5) will take on seventh-seeded Dominican (N.Y.), owners of a 25-6 overall record. Third-seeded Jefferson (27-4) will oppose the sixth-seeded Stonehill (18-11) program.
The Hawks and Dolphins have met once this season, doing so in Syracuse, N.Y. as Saint Anselm fell to the home team, 108-88, on Jan. 25. Saint Anselm claimed the 2019 East Region title while Le Moyne took home the regional championship in 2018.
Detailed information about the game, including start times, ticket information and a comprehensive game preview, will be released in the coming days.
Winners of both the NE10's regular season and postseason championships this year, the Hawks will be making their 20th appearance in the NCAA Tournament under Head Coach Keith Dickson. The Hawks own the third-longest active NCAA appearance streak in Division II, drawing a spot in the national postseason across eight consecutive seasons.
The Hawks opened the season with six wins in its first seven games and, most recently, the Hawks went the entire month of February without a defeat (7-0). The Hawks are enjoying an active 11-game winning streak entering NCAA Tournament play, the sixth-longest active streak in NCAA Division II.
Saint Anselm owns the fourth-most potent offense in the East Region, averaging 82.3 points per game entering play this past weekend. Prior to Saturday's league championship, the Hawks owned the fourth-best rebound margin (+4.4) in the region.
The regional semifinals will take place on Sunday, Mar. 15 and the East Region's championship game is slated for Tuesday, Mar. 17. The 2020 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Elite Eight will be held in Evansville, Ind. from Mar. 25-28.
