FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Media Relations
Complete Regional Rankings
SOMERS, Wis. (Feb. 20, 2013)-- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside men's basketball team is third in the Midwest Region in the first installment of the regional rankings, released Wednesday by the NCAA Division II basketball selection committee.
The Rangers (17-5 overall, 14-5 vs. Division II, 14-4 in-region), winners of eight straight games, claim the No. 3 spot in the rankings and are one of seven Great Lakes Valley Conference squads to appear in the Top 10 of the Midwest Region. GLVC West Division champion Drury University (17-4 overall, 17-2 in-region) sits atop the region followed by Bellarmine University (14-5, 14-5 in-region) at No. 2. University of Southern Indiana (15-5, 15-4 in-region) is fourth with the University of Indianapolis (13-6, 13-6 in-region) claiming fifth. Lewis University (12-8, 12-8 in-region) and Kentucky Wesleyan College (15-6, 13-6 in-region) round out the GLVC contingent, occupying the No. 8 and No. 9 positions in the ranking.
UW-Parkside, ranked 13th nationally in the NABC Coaches' Poll, owns an 8-3 record against teams appearing in the regional rankings. The Rangers own a pair of wins against Southern Indiana and Kentucky Wesleyan while owning single wins over Drury and UIndy. UWP is 1-1 against Bellarmine and suffered one loss against Lewis and No. 7 Michigan Tech University.
The regional rankings are utilized to select participants for the 64-team NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament which is slated to begin on March 16. 10 teams are ranked in each of the 10 regions of NCAA Division II. The top squad in each region earns the right to host the opening three rounds of the tournament.
The Rangers return to the court on Thursday for the regular season home finale against Saint Joseph's College at 7:30 p.m. inside DeSimone Gymnasium. A victory secures a share of the GLVC East Division title for the Rangers while a win coupled with a Bellarmine win over USI gives the Rangers an undisputed division crown.
