GRAND FORKS, N.D. - This time there were no guarantees, but the
University of North Dakota men's basketball team found out late Sunday
night that it would play in the postseason for the third straight
season. UND accepted an at-large bid from CollegeInsider.com
Postseason Tournament officials to play Northern Iowa in the first
round of the event.
This will be the third straight CIT appearance for UND, who earned the tournament's only automatic bid the previous two seasons by winning the Great West Tournament title. That scenario was not possible this season as UND (16-16) enjoyed a 12-8 campaign in its new league - the Big Sky Conference.
The Green and White advanced to the semifinals of the Big Sky Tournament this past week before falling 76-74 to No. 2 seed Weber State in a contest UND led for most of the second half. UND's 69-52 quarterfinal victory over Southern Utah clinched postseason eligibility for the team.
As of right now, the UND-UNI game is scheduled for Tuesday at 7 p.m. CT at the McLeod Center in Cedar Falls. A Winter Storm warning is in effect in the Midwest and could alter travel plans, which may force the contest to be played later in the week. That will be determined on Monday.
This will be UND's second trip to play in the McLeod Center this season as the Panthers (18-14, 11-7 Missouri Valley) knocked off the Green and White 72-47 on Nov. 17. That was the second of an eight-game stretch that UND (16-16) played without leading scorer Troy Huff, who returned to health to lead the Big Sky in scoring with a 19.2 ppg average.
Both head coaches in this contest will be facing their alma maters as well. UNI's Ben Jacobson played at UND from 1990-93, while Jones was a four-year letterwinner at UNI from 1990-94.
This will be the fifth meeting between the head coaches since UND moved to the Division I ranks prior to the 2008-09 season and 83rd overall between the two schools. UND leads the all-time series 48-34.
-- UND --
This will be the third straight CIT appearance for UND, who earned the tournament's only automatic bid the previous two seasons by winning the Great West Tournament title. That scenario was not possible this season as UND (16-16) enjoyed a 12-8 campaign in its new league - the Big Sky Conference.
The Green and White advanced to the semifinals of the Big Sky Tournament this past week before falling 76-74 to No. 2 seed Weber State in a contest UND led for most of the second half. UND's 69-52 quarterfinal victory over Southern Utah clinched postseason eligibility for the team.
As of right now, the UND-UNI game is scheduled for Tuesday at 7 p.m. CT at the McLeod Center in Cedar Falls. A Winter Storm warning is in effect in the Midwest and could alter travel plans, which may force the contest to be played later in the week. That will be determined on Monday.
This will be UND's second trip to play in the McLeod Center this season as the Panthers (18-14, 11-7 Missouri Valley) knocked off the Green and White 72-47 on Nov. 17. That was the second of an eight-game stretch that UND (16-16) played without leading scorer Troy Huff, who returned to health to lead the Big Sky in scoring with a 19.2 ppg average.
Both head coaches in this contest will be facing their alma maters as well. UNI's Ben Jacobson played at UND from 1990-93, while Jones was a four-year letterwinner at UNI from 1990-94.
This will be the fifth meeting between the head coaches since UND moved to the Division I ranks prior to the 2008-09 season and 83rd overall between the two schools. UND leads the all-time series 48-34.
-- UND --
