The Cougars (24-6), who earned the second of eight at-large berths in the tournament field after falling 102-100 in overtime at Notre Dame College in the semifinals of the American Mideast Conference Tournament, will take on unseeded Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) University (24-7) in the first round of the tournament on Thursday, March 8, at 11:15 a.m. EST.

MVNU, which earned a share of the AMC South Division regular-season title and was ranked 10th in the final NAIA Division II poll, is led by sophomore guard Ben Falkenberg, who was named the AMC South Division Player of the Year. Falkenberg ranks third in NAIA Division II in scoring (24.4 ppg) and leads NAIA Division II in three-pointers made per game (3.9). He is shooting 48.2 percent from the field (246-for-510), 44.4 percent from three-point range (116-for-261), and 89.8 percent at the free throw line (123-for-137).

Sophomore guard Dan Borcherdt (12.2 ppg), senior post Mark Hess (12.0 ppg), and senior forward Ryan Seesholtz (11.1 ppg) also average in double figures in points, while senior center Steve Mayes leads the team in rebounds (7.4 rpg) and ranks second in NAIA Division II with 130 blocked shots. Hess (6.5 rpg) and Seesholtz (6.2 rpg) are also among the team leaders in rebounding, while Borcherdt and Seesholtz lead the team with 86 and 84 assists respectively. Junior forward Connor Gregg (6.6 ppg and 5.4 rpg) and junior guard Dustin Ultican (4.9 ppg and 65 assists) are also key contributors off the Cougars’ bench.

The Tigers of Dakota Wesleyan were ranked 16th in the final poll and finished third in the Great Plains Athletic Conference. The Tigers fell 63-49 to Concordia (Neb.) University in the quarterfinals of the GPAC Tournament and earned an at-large berth into the national tournament as they make their first appearance since 1995.

Senior forward Brock Seim leads Dakota Wesleyan in scoring at 23.8 points per game. Seim, who was named the GPAC Player of the Year this season and was an NAIA Division II Second Team All-American last year, has nailed 65 three-pointers and is shooting 83.5 percent from the free throw line (213-for-255). He also leads the team in rebounding (8.5 rpg) and has 19 blocked shots.

Sophomore forward Preston Broughton and senior guard Kevin Talley were named to the GPAC Second Team this season. Broughton contributes 13.9 points and 6.7 rebounds per game with a team-high 37 blocked shots, while Talley adds 13.1 points while shooting 85.3 percent at the free throw line and nailing 61 three-pointers. Andrew Laschè has also handed out a team-high 101 assists. As a team, the Tigers are shooting 73.3 percent at the free throw line and have made more free throws (667) than their opponents have attempted (615).

The winner of Thursday’s first-ever meeting between MVNU and Dakota Wesleyan will advance to the second round to face the winner of the game between second-seeded MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) University (29-2) and unseeded Trinity International (Ill.) University (14-19) on Friday at 2:45 p.m. EST. MidAmerica Nazarene, which has been ranked no lower than sixth all season and spent four weeks in the top spot, won the Heart of America Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament title and advanced all the way to the Final Four last year. Meanwhile, Trinity International won the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament title to earn a berth.

The tournament will get under way on Wednesday, March 7, at 9:30 a.m. EST when eighth-seeded Walsh University (27-5) will take on King (Tenn.) College (23-10). Cedarville University (21-7) received the 12th seed and will take on unseeded Evangel (Mo.) University (20-12) at 8:30 p.m. EST on Thursday, while third-seeded Point Park (Pa.) University (29-1) will face unseeded Spalding (Ky.) University (19-13) on Wednesday at 6:45 p.m. EST in the three other games involving AMC teams.

All of the Cougars’ games will be heard live on WNZR 90.9 FM and also through the internet at http://wnzr.fm. In addition, the NAIA has partnered with XOS Technologies to provide streaming live video and audio of the entire tournament through College Sports Direct. Three different subscription plans will be available for tournament coverage. Users can purchase the All-NAIA pass, which includes every game offered on CSD from all four tournaments for $39.95. Each of the four tournaments can be purchased separately for $24.95 and any single game can be purchased for $7.95. Fans can purchase a subscription plan and find more information on the NAIA tournament brackets and schedules by visiting www.collegesportsdirect.com or www.naia.org.  You can also click on the logo below.

Official Tournament Bracket