KANSAS CITY, Mo. – No. 9-ranked Rogers State men will kickoff the 75th Annual Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship with a 9 a.m. showdown with Tougaloo (Miss.) from Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City on Wednesday, March 14.
The No. 9-seed Hillcats will make their third appearance in the program's fifth season with a record of 22-8 in 2011-12. The No. 3 at-large team this marks the second consecutive season the Hillcats have reached the national tournament. Last season the Cats made a remarkable run to the Final Eight of the Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship and hold a record of 2-2 in the tournament all-time. RSU finished second in the Sooner Athletic Conference with a record of 15-7.
RSU is led in scoring by Donald Williams as the junior guard averages 13.9 points per game he is joined by Kendrell Thompson with 13.2 points per game as the Hillcats, led by coach Justin Barkley, are outscoring opponents by an average of 10.4 points.
No. 24-ranked Tougaloo College, located in Tougaloo, Miss. is a member of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference holding a record of 25-8 the Bulldogs were the No. 13 at-large team. Tougaloo went 11-3 in the GCAC sharing the conference regular season championship with Xavier (La.). This is the fifth tournament appearance for the Bulldogs and fourth consecutive for TC as the Bulldogs are 2-4 all-time in the tournament.
Coached by Lafayette Stribling the Bulldogs are led in scoring by Marquise Mems averaging 21.2 points per game while pulling in 6.4 rebounds.
The Sooner Athletic Conference boasts the most qualifiers this year of any conference or unaffiliated group with five programs: John Brown (Ark.), Oklahoma Baptist, Oklahoma Christian, RSU and Southern Nazarene (Okla.).
To view the complete bracket of the 75th Annual Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship click here.
Coined College Basketball's Toughest Tournament, the event will be hosted in the City of Fountains for the 11th-straight year and 68th time overall. Tickets can be purchased by calling 816.595.8000 or clicking here.
There are eight games scheduled each of the first three days, with the quarterfinals set for March 17. The semifinals will play out at 6 and 8 p.m. on March 18 and the Championship final will be televised live nationally on CBS Sports Network on March 20 at 7 p.m.
The opening round game between the Hillcats and Bulldogs will be streamed with live audio on the Hillcat Network at www.rsuhillcats.com/live.
