PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – Nebraska Wesleyan will face #1 Whitman College in the quarterfinals of the 2018 NCAA III Men's Basketball Tournament on Saturday night (March 10) at Williams Fieldhouse/Bo Ryan Court on the campus of University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Tip-off between the Prairie Wolves and Blues is set for 7 pm.
The winner of the Elite 8 matchup earns a spot in next weekend's NCAA III Final Four in Salem, Virginia.
NWU advanced to the quarterfinals with a thrilling 79-78 upset victory over #8 UW-Platteville in front of a sold out home crowd.
Nate Schimonitz made a fade-away layup with 3.1 seconds remaining to lift NWU to the win and their first appearance in the Elite 8 since 1997.
Whitman moved on the quarterfinals with a 65-55 win over Wisconsin-Stevens Point in the first matchup of the sectional. Whitman forced Steven's Point into 22 turnovers to qualify for the quarterfinals a second straight year. The Blues led by double digits for the final 20 minutes of the game.
The Prairie Wolves set a school record with their 27
th victory on Friday night and now sit at 27-3 overall, having won 10 straight games. Whitman is now 29-1 overall as they have been ranked #1 the majority of the season. The Blues lone loss was in their conference tournament falling 91-88 to Whitworth, another top five ranked team.
Nebraska Wesleyan and Whitman are two of the top scoring teams in the nation. Whitman averages 97.9 points a game to rank 5
th in NCAA III, with NWU coming in at 95.1 points to rank 8
th in the nation. The two teams rank 1-2 in the country in scoring margin as Whitman has defeated their opponents by an average of 22.3 with NWU second at +17.6. Whitman ranks 2
nd in the NCAA III in steals, but NWU is 3
rd in the nation in assist/turnover ratio.
NWU and Whitman have met once before during the 2000-01 season.
Saturday's game can be heard live locally on KFOR Radio 1240 AM/103.3 FM or online at kfornow.com with Dick Janda calling all the action. A live video webcast is also available but does not include play-by-play.
