Both Minnesota Duluth basketball teams will start the NCAA Division II tournament in the same position in different locations after Central Region brackets for the men’s and women’s tournaments were announced late Sunday night.
The UMD men had an automatic bid into the tournament after winning the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference tournament championship last Tuesday in Sioux Falls, while the UMD women snagged the last possible at-large berth. Both teams will be the eight seeds in their region and play true road games against the No. 1 seed.
The Bulldogs men will play at Washburn on Saturday in Topeka, Kansas. It’s their seventh trip to the NCAA tournament and fourth under head coach Justin Wieck.
Washburn was 31-1 this season and won the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association tournament. UMD (21-11) has won eight in a row, including four NSIC tournament games and the last four games of the regular season dating back to Feb. 12.
Minnesota Duluth head coach Mandy Pearson speaks during the postgame press conference at the NCAA Division II National Championship at the American Airlines Center on Saturday, April 1, 2023 in Dallas.
Clint Austin / File / Duluth News Tribune
On the women’s side UMD will face a much more familiar opponent on Friday at 5 p.m.: Minnesota State Mankato.
The Mavericks went 29-2 and dominated the NSIC regular season, though they lost to Concordia-St. Paul in both their regular-season finale and in the championship of the NSIC tournament. CSP is also in the tournament as the 2 seed on the other side of the bracket.
The Bulldogs (20-8) and Mavericks played once this season, on Jan. 16 in Mankato, a crazy contest which Minnesota State Mankato led by 21 points with 5:47 to play and still had to survive three possessions in the last 36 seconds in which the Bulldogs had a chance to tie or take the lead before the home team held on, 81-78.
This is UMD’s 16th NCAA appearance in program history and sixth under coach Mandy Pearson.
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