Owls to Play Randolph-Macon in NCAA opener
Westfield State University will play Randolph-Macon (Va.) College in the opening round of the NCAA Division 3 Men’s Basketball national championship tournament on Friday, March 7 in Lancaster, Pa.
WESTFIELD, Mass. – Westfield State University will play Randolph-Macon (Va.) College in the opening round of the NCAA Division 3 Men's Basketball national championship tournament on Friday, March 7 in Lancaster, Pa.
Westfield (21-6) drew the Yellow Jackets (23-4), ranked #5 in the nation in the most recent D3hoops.com poll, as part of a four-team pod that will play at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pa. The host Diplomats (21-6) will face Catholic University (Md.) in the other first round game on Friday.
The winners of Friday night's two first round games will clash on Saturday evening for the right to play in the Sweet 16.
Westfield earned an automatic bid to the tournament by virtue of winning the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Tournament on Saturday, with an 93-63 win over Salem State in the title game, setting a record for the largest margin of victory in the league's championship game.
The Owls have won four of their last five games entering the tournament, the only loss in that span was a buzzer-beater against Salem State, which was avenged on Saturday.
Westfield is making its sixth NCAA tournament appearance. The Owls previously qualified in 1985, 1993, 2015, 2020 and 2022.
Westfield's most recent appearance in the NCAA's resulted in a hard-fought, 78-71 loss in a first-round exit at Nazareth (NY) College. Only current Owls' senior Eric Johnson was a member of the roster for that game.
Westfield lost to Clark, 88-78, in 1985, and fell to UMass-Dartmouth, an eventual final four participant, 90-81, in the first round in 1993. Westfield fell to another final four team, Babson, 75-62 in 2015. Westfield fell to Middlebury College, 78-69, in the opening round of the 2020 tournament.
In total, 64 teams were selected by the NCAA committee for the single-elimination tournament.
More information on game times, tickets, broadcasts, etc., will be released during the week, and will be posted on WestfieldStateOwls.com when available.