Staff report

Catawba’s men’s basketball team was selected for the Division II playoffs on Sunday night.

It’s a 64-team field. Competition starts with eight regionals made up of eight teams each.

Catawba will play in the Southeast Regional that’s being held on March 14, 15 and 17 at Lincoln Memorial’s Tex Turner Arena.

Catawba is seeded sixth and plays third-seeded UNC Pembroke in the first round at noon on Saturday, March 14.

Second-seeded Queens plays seventh-seeded Southern Wesleyan in the other game in Catawba’s half of the bracket.

Top-seeded Lincoln Memorial, ranked second nationally, takes on eighth-seeded Belmont Abbey. Fifth-seeded Lander plays fourth-seeded Augusta.

UNC Pembroke (24-6) was the regular-season champion in the Peach Belt Conference. UNCP made the field as an at-large team after losing in the PBC tourney semifinals.

Catawba (20-10) finished third in the South Atlantic Conference behind Lincoln Memorial and Queens in the regular season and lost in the SAC tournament semifinals to Queens.

Catawba beat UNC Pembroke 80-61 in the first round of the regional held at Queens last season behind 26 points by Marcell Haskett.

UNC Pembroke is ranked 17th nationally and beat Catawba 95-90 in overtime to open this season despite 30 points by Devin Cooper.

UNCP is in the playoffs for the fourth straight season.

The eight regional champions advance to the Elite Eight, will be held at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana, March 26 and 28.

Winners advance to the Division II National Championship in Atlanta on April 5, in conjunction with the NCAA Division I Final Four.

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The CIAA teams in the field are tournament champion Winston-Salem State and Virginia State.

Winston-Salem State is seeded eighth and takes on Indiana (Pa.), the top seed and host team for the Atlantic Regional. That game is on Friday, March 13.

Seventh-seeded Virginia State plays No. 2 seed West Liberty in the first round.

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Catawba’s women’s team did not receive a regional bid, although it was in the running with a 23-6 record.

Tournament champ Tusculum, regular-season champion Anderson and Carson-Newman, which beat Catawba twice, will represent the South Atlantic Conference in the Southeast Regional.

Anderson is seeded third and will play No. 6 Carson-Newman in the first round. Tusculum is seeded fourth and takes on No. 5 Belmont Abbey. Lander is the host and the top seed and is matched up with No. 8 Limestone. No. 2 seed North Georgia plays No. 7 Clayton State in the first round. The regional starts on Friday, March 13, with the semifinals on Saturday and the finals on Monday.

The regional winner advances to the women’s Elite Eight on March 24-27 in Birmingham, Ala.

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Three CIAA women’s teams made the Atlantic Regional field.

Eighth-seeded Fayetteville State will play top-seeded host Indiana (Pa.) in the first round.

No. 4 seed Bowie State and No. 5 seed Virginia Union are matched up in the opening round.

First-round games are on Friday, March 13.