Golden Eagles Awarded Seventh Trip to Kansas City
SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. (March 6, 2013) - The John Brown men's basketball team has been awarded the fourth overall seed in the 2013 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Tournament, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics announced today.
Held in Kansas City, Mo., since 2002, the national tournament will take place at historic Municipal Auditorium. There are 31 games scheduled from March 13-19 in single-elimination format.
Featuring a 27-6 overall record, and 14-2 in SAC conference play, the Golden Eagles established a new program-high in wins (27) while recording its first-ever SAC regular season championship. John Brown features four All-Conference players and the newly-appointed Coach of the Year, Clark Sheehy.
"Seeding is not always a good indicator of success at the tournament," admitted Sheehy of his squad's highest-ever seed at the national tournament. "Of course, I'm very proud of the progress we've made over the course of the season and the ranking we've earned. But, in these types of must-win circumstances, seeding doesn't really matter."
Joining the Golden Eagles in Kansas City are tenth-seeded Oklahoma Baptist and unseeded Science and Arts (Okla.) and surprise SAC tournament champion, Oklahoma City.
Despite falling in the Sooner Athletic Conference tournament title game, the Golden Eagles were awarded the No. 2 at-large bid and will face the Running Eagles of Life (Ga.) in the opening round.
"Life has a ton of momentum right now," Sheehy noted of the Running Eagles' play as of late. "They're very athletic and earned a spot by winning their conference tournament. They will play well and we'll need to bring our best effort to win."
JBU, beyond its heralded 2005 national championship, has pieced together an overall record of 9-5 in Kansas City and is making its third appearance in four years and its seventh all-time. John Brown holds a 64.3 win percentage at Municipal Auditorium and is the only institution from the state of Arkansas to win a title in Kansas City.
The opening rounds are set to begin on Wednesday, March 13, and will continue through the following day. The Golden Eagles' tilt with Life will tip-off at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 14.
NeuLion, the NAIA's Digital Media Partner and official video-streaming company, will broadcast the first 28 games from Kansas City, Mo. Tournament packages can be purchased for $29.95 and any single day can be purchased for $9.95.
In a groundbreaking agreement, the national semifinals will be broadcast live on ESPN3 at 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. CST on March 18. The championship final will be televised live on CBS Sports Network at 7:30 p.m. on March 19.
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