2011 Men's Basketball Championship Bracket
INDIANAPOLIS -- The seedings are set for the 2011 Horizon League Men’s Basketball Championships, with a historic regular season concluding with a three-way tie for the regular season title. Milwaukee, Butler and Cleveland State all claimed shares of the regular-season crown, the first time in the 32-year League history a three-way tie occurred. Milwaukee, with a combined 3-1 record against the Bulldogs and Vikings, claimed the No. 1 seed for the tournament, giving the Panthers hosting duties for the second round, semifinals and championship (should they advance).
No. 1 Milwaukee (18-12, 13-5 Horizon) won its last nine Horizon League game to vault to the top of the standings, escaping with a 94-87 overtime victory at Youngstown State (9-29, 2-16 Horizon) on Sunday afternoon. Anthony Hill and Kaylon Williams have formed a solid inside-outside combination, with a host of shooters giving opposing defenses fits if they collapse on Hill.
Joining the Panthers with the double bye into the semifinals is No. 2 Butler (21-9, 13-5 Horizon), who set a new League record with a share of its fifth consecutive regular season title. The battle-tested Bulldogs are led by senior Matt Howard and junior Shelvin Mack, each of whom has earned multiple all-league honors in their careers.
Cleveland State (24-7, 13-5 Horizon) takes the League’s No. 3 seed, hosting No. 10 UIC (7-23, 2-16 Horizon), whom it swept in the regular season. The Vikings claimed an 83-59 win at the Wolstein Center on Jan. 1 before taking a 63-49 decision at the UIC Pavilion 26 days later.
No. 6 Wright State (18-13, 10-8 Horizon) hosts No. 7 Green Bay (14-17, 8-10 Horizon) at the WSU Nutter Center on Tuesday for the right to meet eight the Vikings or Flames on Friday. The Raiders swept the Phoenix by a total of five points on the year, getting a three-pointer at the buzzer from Vaughn Duggins to claim a 67-64 win on Jan. 1 and used a N’Gai Evans layup with two ticks left in a come from behind 63-61 win at Green Bay on Jan. 28.
Fourth-seeded Valparaiso (21-10, 12-6 Horizon) will welcome No. 9 Youngstown State (9-20, 2-16 Horizon) to the ARC on Tuesday after getting past UIC, 79-65, on Saturday evening. The Crusaders took the season series with the Penguins, 2-0, racing out to a 79-55 victory at the ARC on Jan. 7 and squeaking past YSU, 86-78, in overtime on Feb. 5.
The winner of the 4-9 game will meet the victor of the No. 5 Detroit (16-15, 10-8 Horizon) and No. 8 Loyola (16-14, 7-11 Horizon) clash at Calihan Hall. The Titans’ physical presence made the difference in the two Detroit victories between the Jesuit rivals, with Detroit taking a 12-point decision at Loyola on Jan. 6 and getting past the Ramblers, 81-71, at Calihan Hall.
The winners of the four first round games will meet in the second round on Friday, March 4, with ESPN Full Court carrying the contests at 6 p.m. ET and 8:30 p.m. ET. The victors advancing to meet Butler and Milwaukee in the semifinals the following day at 6 and 8:30 p.m. ET, respectively, on ESPNU. The championship will be held at the venue of the highest remaining seed at Tuesday, March 8, at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Media members can apply for credential for the second round, semifinals and championship by clicking here.
Horizon League representatives have won at least one NCAA Tournament game in each of the last six seasons, making it the sole conference outside of the six BCS conferences to achieve the feat.
Tags: All Teams - Men's Basketball
