GLVC Men's Basketball Weekly Release - Elite Eight
In anticipation of the GLVC’s return to the NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Championship Elite Eight, where Midwest Region Champion Bellarmine (30-3) will take on Central Region Champion Minnesota State Moorhead (35-3) in tonight’s 8:30 p.m. CT matchup at the Ford Center in Evansville, Ind., here are eight “elite” notes showcasing the conference’s postseason history.
[ONE] This is the 25th time since the GLVC’s inception in 1978 that a league team has been represented in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Championship.
[TWO] This is the GLVC’s sixth straight appearance in the NCAA Men’s Elite Eight, which is the second-longest streak in conference history. The league advanced to 11 consecutive Elite Eights from 1994-2004, however Kentucky Wesleyan’s 2002 and 2003 trips were later vacated, leaving the official span at eight years. The conference made four straight visits at the Elite Eight from 1989-92 and back-to-back bids in 1984-85, while also advancing in 1979, 1982, 1987, and 2006.
[THREE] Making its third Elite Eight appearance, Bellarmine is one of eight conference teams to have ever advanced to the national quarterfinals. Former GLVC member Kentucky Wesleyan (1982-84-85-87-89-90-92-98-99-2000-01) owns 11 official trips, followed by Southern Indiana (1994-95-2004) and Bellarmine (2011-12-15) with three, Drury (2013-14), Northern Kentucky (1996-97), and Saint Joseph’s (1979-2010) with two each, and former conference colleagues Ashland (1991) and SIU Edwardsville (2006) with one apiece.
[FOUR] The GLVC owns a 39-18 (.684) combined record at the Elite Eight, which includes national quarterfinal, semifinal and championship final competition.
[FIVE] In the 24 previous trips to the NCAA national quarterfinals, the GLVC owns a 17-7 record. In those 17 trips to the NCAA national semifinals, the GLVC has posted a 13-4 mark, with a 7-6 record in the NCAA Championship final.
[SIX] The GLVC has won seven NCAA Championships in men’s basketball. Kentucky Wesleyan earned four of its eight titles under the GLVC banner in 1987, 1990, 1999 and 2001. Southern Indiana (1995), Bellarmine (2011) and Drury (2013) have won one each, while USI (1994-2004), Northern Kentucky (1996-97) and KWC (1998-2000) have each finished runner-up twice.
[SEVEN] Of the four GLVC teams that have combined for the league’s seven national titles, Bellarmine could be the second to have not won the conference title. Southern Indiana won the 1995 NCAA title after finishing third in the GLVC race at 15-3 behind co-champions Northern Kentucky and Kentucky Wesleyan at 16-2.
[EIGHT] The GLVC returns to a familiar town and venue as the conference tournament was contested at the Ford Center in 2013 and 2014, after the league’s postseason event was held at the now-demolished Roberts Stadium from 1999-2007. Southern Indiana returns for the second straight season as host of the event, which it also co-hosted with the GLVC when the Elite Eight was at Roberts Stadium in 2002 -- a venue that was home to the NCAA Division II Championship from 1957-76. The GLVC also paired with Bellarmine for hosting responsibilities when the Elite Eight was in Louisville, Ky., from 1995-2000.
Bellarmine’s Thelen Named Consensus All-American
Bellarmine senior forward Jake Thelen, the GLVC Player of the Year, has been named a consensus All-American following national recognition by the NABC, Daktronics, and Basketball Times. Thelen was named to the 16-member NABC All-America squad on Tuesday after being honored as a third-team All-American by Daktronics and a first-team All-American by Basketball Times. In addition, UW-Parkside’s Zygimantas Riauka was selected to the third team by Basketball Times.
Two Standouts Named to Reese’s Division II All-Star Game
Indianapolis senior forward/center Joe Lawson and UW-Parkside senior forward Zygimantas Riauka have been selected to play in the 2015 Reese’s Division II College All-Star game, which will be played as part of the 2015 NCAA® Division II Men’s Elite Eight. The Reese’s Division III College All-Star game will be played on Friday, March 27, at 7 p.m. (CDT) at the Ford Center in Evansville, Ind. The teams are composed of two senior student-athletes from each of the eight regions in Division II and four as at-large selections. All players have earned NABC All-District honors. Lawson will represent the East team while Riauka will play for the West.
Bellarmine Wins Midwest Regional; GLVC Earns 5 of 8 Bids
For the third time in program history, Bellarmine captured the NCAA Midwest Regional title after an 81-72 victory over conference rival Indianapolis on March 16. It marked the third win in four games against the Greyhounds this season and the Knights almost matched the score of the previous contest between the two squads when BU topped UIndy 81-73 in the semifinals of the GLVC Championship Tournament on March 7. For the 10th straight season, the GLVC put five or more teams in the Midwest Regional. This year’s contingent included No. 1 Bellarmine, No. 2 UW-Parkside, No. 3 Indianapolis, No. 7 Lewis and No. 8 Drury.
Easy as 1-2-3?
For the third straight season, the GLVC has earned the top three seeds in the NCAA Midwest Regional, a feat that happened only once before (2010) since the eight-team field expanded in 2003. Here is a breakdown of those four years: 2015 (#1 BU, #2 UWP, #3 UINDY), 2014 (#1 DU, #2 UINDY, #3 USI), 2013 (#1 DU, #2 USI, #3 BU), 2010 (#1 KWC, #2 BU, #3 DU).
Two Regional Firsts
For the first time in conference history, an NCAA Midwest Regional quarterfinal matchup was an instant rematch of the GLVC Championship final. Drury defeated Bellarmine 77-70 in the GLVC Championship game on March 8 and then had to turn around and play the Knights in the first game of the regional on March 14, which the Panthers lost 84-60. It also marked the first time ever that the GLVC Champion was seeded No. 8 in the regional. Drury entered the GLVC Championship ranked 10th in the final regional rankings and had to win the conference tournament to extend its season to NCAA regional play.
Three GLVC Teams Ranked in National Top 25 Poll
Three GLVC teams finished the season ranked in the final NABC/Division II rankings. Bellarmine ranked No. 3 overall, having spent all of February and March in the top five. UW-Parkside maintained its position at No. 8 for the third straight poll, which is the school’s highest ranking ever in the national poll. After spending two weeks at No. 1 earlier in the year, Indianapolis finished 2015 ranked 15th. GLVC Champion Drury received votes outside the final poll.