NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship Tournament – First Round
Penn State Harrisburg vs. No. 9 St. Joseph (Conn.)
Friday, March 4 | 3:50 p.m. | Worcester, Mass. | Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) | Harrington Auditorium
Tournament Bracket | Printable Bracket | Virtual Program
Penn State Harrisburg will compete in the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship Tournament for the second consecutive season after winning the 2022 United East Championship. The Lions will face No. 9 St. Joseph (Conn.) on the campus of Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in Worcester, Mass. on Friday afternoon, March 4.
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GOING TO THE GAME
(DIRECTIONS) Ticket prices are $15 per day for adults and $10 for students and seniors. Tickets will go on sale on game day at the entrance of Harrington Auditorium. All spectators must show proof of vaccination, or proof of a negative COVID test prior to attending: either a negative PCR test within 72 hours or a negative rapid antigen test within 24 hours, as per the WPI Spectator Policy.
LAST TIME OUT
Penn State Harrisburg (23-3) avenged its regular-season finale loss to Lancaster Bible (20-7) by trouncing the Chargers 85-52 at LBC's Horst Athletic Center on Saturday night in the 2022 United East Championship Game to secure the program's second consecutive conference title and clinch a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season. Nate Curry was named the United East Tournament most valuable player (MVP) after scoring a game-high 25 points on 11-of-13 shooting in the title game, while Donyae Baylor-Carroll poured in 23 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. Pedro Rodriguez was the third Penn State Harrisburg player to reach double figures with 11 points.
BACK2BACK
The 2022 United East Conference Championship is the second in program history and second in a row for Penn State Harrisburg after achieving the same feat in 2019-20. The Lions defeated Lancaster Bible in the conference title game each time, coming from behind to squeak past LBC in overtime in an instant classic at the Capital Union Building in 2020 before leaving no doubt in a 33-point drubbing of the top-seeded and host Chargers on Saturday night.
WORTH THE WAIT
Penn State Harrisburg's destination and first-round opponent was revealed during the NCAA selection show on Monday afternoon. The players and coaches were joined by campus faculty and staff, as well as alumni and friends from the local community at a special watch party at the Capital Union Building. Those in attendance had to wait nearly a half hour to hear Penn State Harrisburg's name called, as the Lions were number 64 of 64 - the final team announced during the selection show. Judging by the celebratory reaction from the Blue & White and their supporters, it was worth the wait.
PENN STATE HARRISBURG IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Lions are making their second trip to the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament and second in a row, having also accomplished the feat in 2020. Penn State Harrisburg knocked off No. 6 Johns Hopkins in double overtime in the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament contest behind a program-record 45 points from Donyae Baylor-Carroll. The Blue & White eventually fell to No. 13 Yeshiva in second-round action just days before the remainder of the tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
COACH FRIDAY IN THE BIG DANCE
Penn State Harrisburg's Don Friday is no stranger to the NCAA Tournament, as this will be his third trip to the big dance as a head coach. Prior to guiding the Lions to a 1-1 record in the tourney in 2020, he led Lycoming to the big dance in 2004. Under his leadership, the Warriors went 1-1 in the tournament that spring. As an assistant under legendary head coach Pat Flannery, he helped guide Lebanon Valley to an unforgettable run in the 1994 NCAA Tournament that culminated with a thrilling national championship victory over New York University (NYU) in overtime.
MAKING HISTORY
In addition to making its second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament, Penn State Harrisburg also set the single-season program record for wins with 23 victories on the year, besting the previous mark of 21 wins racked up by the 2019-20 squad that also made a trip to the big dance. Earlier this season, the Lions also set the program record for consecutive victories when they strung together a 13-game win streak.
HONORS AND ACCOLADES
Along with Penn State Harrisburg's team success, numerous individuals earned recognition for their efforts this season as well. Donyae Baylor-Carroll was named to the Bevo Francis Award Top 100 Watch List earlier this season before earning United East All-Conference First-Team recognition for the second consecutive season. He also earned a pair of United East Player of the Week accolades this winter. Dylan Daniels was named to the all-conference first team after garnering conference player of the week honors in mid-December. Brandon Coleman also secured first-team all-conference accolades, while Nate Curry was named to the all-conference second team. Zegary Scott III picked up the conference's player of the week award in mid-January, while Don Friday was named the HoopDirt.com Division III National Coach of the Week last month.
AMONG THE NATION'S BEST
As a team, the Blue & White currently rank fourth in the nation in scoring margin (19.1) and ninth in the nation in both steals per contest (11.3) and assists per game (18.8). The Lions rank top-20 in Division III in blocks per game (5.0), scoring defense (62.0), field-goal percentage defense (38.6), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.41), and turnover margin (4.8).
HOW THEY GOT HERE
Penn State Harrisburg earned an automatic bid to its second NCAA Tournament thanks to capturing the United East Championship. The Lions are looking for their second NCAA Tournament victory this weekend. The hosts from No. 13 WPI (24-2) are making their 14th NCAA Tournament appearance and 12th in the last 18 seasons after winning the New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Championship. No. 9 St. Joseph (26-1) started the year 22-0 and racked up 24 straight victories dating back to last season before suffering the team's lone loss of the year at No. 24 Yeshiva on Feb. 17. The Blue Jays will make their second NCAA Tournament appearance after winning their second consecutive Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Title to earn the league's automatic bid. Vassar (18-8) is making its first trip to the NCAA Tournament thanks to winning its first-ever Liberty League Championship.
WHAT A GROUP
The four teams competing at WPI this weekend have a combined overall record of 91-14, tying the Mary Hardin-Baylor pod for the most wins among the four participating teams and boasting the fewest losses of the 16 four-team regionals in this year's tournament. Penn State Harrisburg is the lone team in the Worcester, Mass. pod to win an NCAA Tournament game in 2020. The Lions knocked off Johns Hopkins in round one, while WPI fell to Yeshiva and St. Joseph was defeated by Hobart in first-round action. Vassar did not make the tourney in 2020.
WHAT'S NEXT?
If the Lions are victorious over St. Joseph in the first round on Friday, they'll take on the winner of the WPI/Vassar matchup in second-round action on Saturday night.
STAY CONNECTED
Fans can keep up with Penn State Harrisburg Athletics all season long on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook using the handle @pshbgathletics.