The Northwest Missouri State University Bearcat men’s basketball program will serve as the host for the fourth straight year of the Central Region as a part of the 2020 NCAA Division II Tournament.

The Central Region will take place March 14 (four games), March 15 (two games) and March 17 (regional final) in Bearcat Arena in Maryville, Missouri.

Northwest will be taking part in its 20th NCAA tournament. It is the Bearcats’s eighth trip to the NCAA Tournament under 11th-year head coach Ben McCollum. The Bearcats are 31-1 in 2019-20 and won NCAA Division II national championships in 2017 and 2019. Northwest has won seven consecutive MIAA regular season titles to go along with the five straight MIAA tourney crowns. Earlier today, Northwest secured the MIAA’s automatic bid the regional with its 78-76 victory over Missouri Southern in the tournament’s championship game.

Northwest will match up against No. 8 seed Oklahoma Baptist, on Sat., March 14, at 6 p.m. in Bearcat Arena.

The Elite Eight and national semifinals will be held at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana, on March 26 and 28.

This year’s national championship game will be held Sunday, April 5, in Atlanta, Georgia.

Tickets for the regional can be purchased online HERE starting at 8 a.m. Tuesday. All seating for the regional will be general admission. Fans can purchase single session tickets in person at the Cashiering office. The Cashiering office, located on the first floor of the Administration Building, will be open from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m., Tuesday through Friday. Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets early.

Single session tickets can be purchased for $12 each for adults and $7 for students. Children 2 and under are free per NCAA policy. The ticket office will open 1 hour and 15 minutes prior to the start of each session.

NCAA Central Region
1. Northwest Missouri State (Host)
2. Southern Nazarene
3. Southeastern Oklahoma State
4. Northern State
5. Missouri Southern State
6. Rogers State
7. Henderson State
8. Oklahoma Baptist

Saturday, March 14
Noon: No. 3 Southeastern Oklahoma State vs. No. 6 Rogers State (Session 1)
2:30 p.m.: No. 2 Southern Nazarene vs. No. 7 Henderson State (Session 1)

6 p.m.: No. 1 Northwest Missouri vs. No. 8 Oklahoma Baptist (Session 2)
8:30 p.m.: No. 4 Northern State vs. No. 5 Missouri Southern (Session 2)

Sunday, March 15
5 p.m.: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2
7:30 p.m.: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4

Tuesday, March 17
7 p.m.: Regional Championship Game

KANSAS CITY, Missouri – The No. 1-ranked Northwest Missouri State Bearcat men’s basketball team claimed its fifth consecutive MIAA Tournament title with a 78-76 triumph over No. 22-ranked Missouri Southern at Municipal Auditorium.

Northwest (31-1 overall) won its 23rd straight game and 39th in a row on a neutral court with its third triumph this year over Missouri Southern. Missouri Southern is 23-8 on the year.

Northwest built a 15-point cushion in the opening half at 45-30 on the strength of 16 first-half points from both sophomore Trevor Hudgins and freshman Wes Dreamer. Northwest did not commit a turnover in the opening 20 minutes in taking a 45-33 lead to the locker room.

The Lions slowly chipped away at the Bearcat advantage in the second half. Northwest led 63-51 after a pair of free throws from sophomore Diego Bernard with 8:38 to play. MSSU went on an 11-2 run that put the Northwest lead at 65-62 with 4:50 on the clock.

Hudgins claimed Most Outstanding Player honors in the tournament after leading the squad with 31 points. Hudgins scored nine of Northwest’s final 11 points after Missouri Southern tied the game at 67-67 with 3:07 to play.

Hudgins turned into the closer as he hit on an old-fashioned three-point play with 2:49 left to give Northwest a 70-67 lead. Following a bucket from MSSU’s Cam Martin, Hudgins hit a floater in the lane that rattled in the rim but settled into the net for a 72-69 lead with 2:09 to play. Martin answered again as he matched Hudgins point-for-point with 31 in the contest. Martin’s bucket left the Lions trailing 72-71 with 1:40 to play.

Hudgins hit a right-handed layup with 1:11 to play to extend the lead back to three. After a Bearcat defensive stop, Hudgins went to work and tallied his final points on the day with :22.8 to play that gave Northwest a 76-71 cushion. MSSU’s Winston Dessesow tallied a layup with :07.6 to play that cut the lead back to three.

Bernard then caught the ensuing inbounds pass at half court, avoided an attempted foul by the Lions and laid in the Bearcats’s final basket with 3.6 to play. Dessesow nailed a triple at the buzzer for the final two-point margin and Northwest claimed the MIAA title for the fifth straight season, 78-76.

Bernard capped the game with a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Bernard also handed out six assists.

Dreamer finished with 18 points on 7-of-14 shooting that included 4-of-10 from three-point range.

Class 1A Quarterfinals

9:30 a.m.—#4 Montezuma (23-2) vs. #5 Martensdale-St. Marys (23-3)

11:15 a.m.—#1 Lake Mills (23-2) vs. #8 Wapsie Valley, Fairbank (18-7)

1:00 p.m.—#2 Bishop Garrigan, Algona (22-2) vs. #7 Springville (20-5)

2:45 p.m.—#3 St. Mary’s, Remsen (22-3) vs. #6 West Fork, Sheffield (23-2)

Class 2A Quarterfinals

4:30 p.m.—#3 North Linn, Troy Mills (24-0) vs. #6 West Sioux, Hawarden (22-2)

6:30 p.m.—#2 Treynor (24-1) vs. #7 Pella Christian (13-10)

8:15 p.m. —#1 Boyden-Hull (21-3) vs. #8 Woodward-Granger (22-2)