KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Rogers State men's basketball team is set to make its second appearance in the Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Championship Wednesday night at 8:45 p.m. as they face the tournament's No. 6 seed, Texas Wesleyan, inside Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City.
The 25th-ranked Hillcats first trip to Kansas City came in the 2008-09 season as the No. 1 team in the nation after winning both the regular season and conference tournament. RSU lost to William Jewell 76-73 in the opening round of the tournament and ended the season 30-2. RSU joins Oklahoma Baptist (No. 9 seed) and Southern Nazarene (No. 10 seed) as the three schools from the Sooner Athletic Conference to reach the tournament. Head Coach Justin Barkley leads the Hillcats to the tournament in his first season at the helm. Barkley spent the previous two seasons as an assistant coach on the RSU men's coaching staff. No. 25 RSU knocked off No. 10 Oklahoma Baptist and then No. 12 Southern Nazarene over a five-day stretch closing out the season winning 15 of its last 20 games.
The Cats are led by John Boyd. The senior is averaging 16.7 points and 6.7 rebounds this season while shooting an impressive 53 percent from the field. The Wagoner, Okla. native has knocked down 25-of-62 from behind the arc and brings sharp shooting from the charity stripe hitting 75 percent. The high-flying Hillcat forward holds the single-season record for points with 502. In three semesters of play at RSU, Boyd has scored 753 points.
The Rams (30-3) were an automatic qualifier after winning the Red River Athletic Conference regular season championship. TWU sits at No. 5 in the most recent NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Coaches poll and is making its 12th appearance to the NAIA National Tournament. In 2006, the Rams claimed its only National Title and hold a record of 13-10 all-time at the "Big Dance." This season TWU matched a school record for wins with 30. RRAC player of the year, Brian Wanamaker averaging 19.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and nearly five assists for the Rams. Wanamaker was joined on the conference first-team by Jonathan Blake as the Rams had five players named to the first, second or honorable mention conference teams.
The winner of the No. 6 Texas Wesleyan vs. RSU first-round game will advance to the second round to play the winner of the 11th seed Union (Tenn.) and Carroll (Mont.) contest. Both teams punched their ticket to the tournament with at-large bids. Union is making its 14th appearance and third straight while this is Carroll College's ninth appearance and first since 2007.
RSU Radio 91.3FM will broadcast the live play-by-play coverage of the Hillcats throughout the National Tournament. The games can be listened to live via the internet with live streaming by going to the official website of the Hillcats and clicking on the "webcasts" link.
