Men Make 14th Consecutive SLC Appearance
3/9/2016 11:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Receiving a bye in today's first round of the Southland Conference Tournament, the Sam Houston men's basketball team will be making their 14th consecutive appearance in the event Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. when the Kats take on today's McNeese State vs. Nicholls first round winner.
No other program can match the Kats' consecutive streak of Southland tournaments. Stephen F. Austin has a string of 11 consecutive berths after missing out on the 2005 post-season affair. Nicholls has eight straight appearances, last missing in 2008.
Sam Houston enters the 2016 tournament at the Leonard E. Merrell Center in Katy as the No. 3 seed. The Bearkats have been one of the top three seeds 10 of the last 12 years. Sam Houston has finished as the runner-up the past two years, falling to Stephen F. Austin in the championship.
The Jacks again are the No. 1 seed and have earned a double-bye into the semifinals. In the SFA half of the bracket are No. 4 seed Houston Baptist, No. 5 seed Southeastern Louisiana and No. 8 seed New Orleans. The Lions and Privateers will open the tournament Wednesday at 5 p.m. UNO, which is 10-19 overall and 6-12 in conference, won its regular-season finale 97-86 against Northwestern State to clinch the league's final postseason bid. It is the second all-time tournament appearance for UNO. The Lions are in the tournament for the 12th time, all in the last 13 years. The Lions, who are 11-20 overall and 9-9 in conference, enter the tournament having won eight of their last 11 contests.
The winner of the Southeastern-UNO game will play No. 4 seed Houston Baptist Thursday at 5 p.m. The Huskies are in their first Southland tournament after finishing the year 16-15 overall and 10-8 in conference. HBU started out league play with an 8-0 record and will look to regain that momentum in Katy.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi is the No. 2 seed after finishing 15-3 in league play and 24-6 overall in the regular season. The Islanders won their last six games, and eight of their last nine.
The first game on the Islanders' side of the bracket pits No. 6 seed McNeese State and No. 7 seed Nicholls. McNeese, which is in the tournament for the league-best 29th time, has won its last three games and finished the regular season 9-19 overall and 7-11 in league play. The Colonels, who are 10-22 overall and 6-12 in conference, reeled off three consecutive wins to conclude the regular season to clinch a spot in Katy. The game between McNeese and Nicholls is set for Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
No. 3 seed Sam Houston State awaits the winner of the McNeese-Nicholls game for a second-round game Thursday at 7:30 p.m. The Bearkats, who finished the regular season 17-14 overall and 12-6 in conference, are in the tournament for the 19th time and for the 13th consecutive year. The Bearkats reached the championship game the last two seasons and are looking for their third tournament title and first since 2010.
The 2016 Southland Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Tournament returns to the Leonard E. Merrell Center in Katy, Texas. This will be the ninth consecutive year for the tournament to be held in Katy. The 2016 tournament will be the 17th in league history to be played at a neutral site. The tournament was played in Shreveport, La., from 1995-2001 and was held in Houston before moving to Katy in 2008.
For the first time, all rounds of the men's tournament will be televised. The first and second rounds along with the semifinals will be available solely on ESPN3, while the championship game will be covered exclusively ESPN2 and WatchESPN. Randy McIlvoy and Jim Haller with be on the call during Wednesday games, while Lincoln Rose and Haller will be on the call Thursday and Friday.
The championship game will be covered exclusively by ESPN2 and WatchESPN Saturday at 8:30 p.m., CT. Bob Wischusen is set to call the Southland Conference final and will be joined alongside Sean Harrington as the color analyst.
The Southland Conference tournament champion will earn the league's automatic bid into the NCAA tournament. The 68-team field for the 2016 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship will be unveiled Sunday at 4:30 p.m., CT on CBS. This year's Final Four will be held in NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.
The official website for the 2016 Southland Conference Basketball Tournament is www.Southland.org/katy. The official twitter feed, @SouthlandSports, will also have all the latest updates of not only the conference tournament, but all 17 Southland Conference sports. Fans and media are also encouraged to use the following hashtags on social media throughout the tournament: #SLCMBB, #SLCWBB and #SouthlandStrong. If Facebook or Instagram are your preferred social networks, search SouthlandConference on those apps.
KSAM 101.7 FM will carry the Bearkat men's game live in the Walker County area.
The complete Southland tournament men's basketball schedule:
Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Game 1: No. 8 New Orleans vs. No. 5 Southeastern Louisiana, 5 p.m.
Game 2: No. 7 Nicholls vs. No. 6 McNeese State, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, March 10
Game 3: Winner Game 1 vs. No. 4 Houston Baptist, 5 p.m.
Game 4: Winner Game 2 vs. No. 3 Sam Houston, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, March 11
Game 5: Winner Game 3 vs. No. 1 Stephen F. Austin, 5 p.m.
Game 6: Winner Game 4 vs. No. 4 A&M-Corpus Christi, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 12
Championship Game: 8:30 p.m.
