ERIE, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend men's basketball team earned a bid to the 2018 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III Men's Basketball Championship, announced on Monday.
The Lions (20-7) earned the No. 1 seed in Pod 3 and will host the first round against No. 4 Alfred University at 7 p.m. on Wednesday night. The winner of this matchup will face off against the No. 2 seed, and host school, Wilkes University. This game will take place at Wilkes on Friday, March 2 at 5 p.m.
Juniata claimed the overall-top seed of the tournament and the right to host the first round in Pod 1. Wilson College will host Pod 2 and Bethany College has earned hosting privileges of Pod 4.
The winners of each pod, will go on to compete in the semifinal rounds on Saturday, March 3 at Wilkes. Pod 1 winner will play against the winner of Pod 4, while the winner of Pod 2 will face off against the Pod 3 winner. The championship will be held the following Sunday between the two semifinal winners.
Behrend is making its 16th appearance, and fourth consecutive, in the ECAC Tournament. The Lions were victorious in 2010, claiming the ECAC Championship crown. Behrend recently finished second in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) regular season and received a first-round bye in the conference playoffs.
The Lions were defeated by No. 1 seed La Roche in the AMCC Championship, 77-74. The No. 4 seed Alfred in the Empire 8 Athletic Conference (E8) was knocked out in their conference tournament. They lost to top-seeded Nazareth in the final seconds of the semifinal contest, 73-72.
Behrend and Alfred will be meeting for the first time since the 1997-98 season where the Lions snagged a 78-69 victory.
The tournament layout is as follows:
First Round – Wednesday, February 28
Game #1: No. 4 Arcadia University (14-13) at No. 1 Juniata College* (22-5)
Game #2: No. 2 Neumann University (20-8) at No. 3 Drew University* (16-10)
Game #3: No. 4 Penn State Altoona (17-9) at No. 1 Bethany College* (16-12)
Game #4: No. 3 Medaille College (17-10) at No. 2 Westminster* (19-8)
Game #5: No. 4 Alfred University (18-8) at No. 1 Penn State Behrend* (20-7)
Game #6: No. 1 Wilson College (20-7) at No. 4 Widener University* (15-10)
Game #7: No. 3 Baruch College (15-11) at No. 2 William Paterson University* (16-12)
*denotes host
Quarterfinals – Friday, March 2 at Wilkes University
QF #1: Winner of Game #1 vs. Winner of Game #2
QF #2: Winner of Game #3 vs. Winner of Game #4
QF #3: Winner of Game #5 vs. Wilkes Universiity
QF #4: Winner of Game #7 vs. Winner of Game #8
Semifinals – Saturday, March 3 at Wilkes University
Semifinal #1: Pod 1 Winner vs. Pod 4 Winner - 3:00 p.m.
Semifinal #2: Pod 2 Winner vs Pod 3 Winner - 6:00 p.m.
Championship – Sunday, March 4 Wilkes University
Winner Semifinal #1 vs. Winner Semifinal #2 – 1:00 p.m.