R-MC Joined by VWC, H-SC and Randolph

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. --- Randolph-Macon College was a certainty to enter the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament after winning the ODAC title and earning the conference's automatic entry.  But for others to be a part of the 62-team field, they'd have to be chosen as one of  at-large selections.  The ODAC was rewarded with three of those choices as Hampden-Sydney College, Randolph College and Virginia Wesleyan College join R-MC on the national stage.

NCAA Brackets:   Interactive     Printable 

The men's basketball tournament schedule is different from past years.  The championship will not be played in Salem for the first time since 1995.  Instead, all three NCAA divisions will hold their championships in Atlanta, Ga., on Sunday, April 7 and Monday, April 8.  NCAA Division II and III will play in Phillips Arena on Sunday, while NCAA Division I will play the Final Four and national championship game in the Georgia Dome on Saturday, April 6 and Monday, respectively.

Hampden-Sydney and Virginia Wesleyan will both play host to first round contests, while Randolph and Randolph-Macon will travel for their opening games on Saturday, March 2.  Second round games are slated for Saturday, March 9, while sectional play will commence on Saturday, March 16.  The quarterfinals and semifinals return to the Salem Civic Center in Salem, Va., on Friday and Saturday, March 22-23.  The two teams that emerge from the Roanoke Valley head to Atlanta two weeks later.

Randolph-Macon (19-9) is in the field of 62 for the fourth time in as many years under head coach Nathan Davis.  The Yellow Jackets have won five overall conference titles and two of the past three.  R-MC travels to Stevens Institute of Technology (22-5) for its first round contest.  A R-MC victory means a matchup with either WPI (25-2) or SUNY-Purchase (22-5) in the second round.

Virginia Wesleyan (21-7) was ranked #1 in the south region heading into the ODAC Tournament.  The Marlins, in the NCAA tourney for the ninth consecutive year, were selected to host Delaware Valley College (19-8) next Saturday.  A win pits VWC against either Christopher Newport University (21-5) or Rutgers-Newark (20-7) on March 9.

Hampden-Sydney (23-4), rated #2 in the region entering the ODAC postseason, is a member of the NCAA field for the first time since 2007.  The Tigers welcome 2012 national finalist Cabrini College (22-5) to campus.  A Tigers victory means a date with either Ohio Wesleyan University (22-5) or Saint Vincent College (23-5) in the second round.

Randolph (21-6) makes its inaugural national tournament appearance in a season of firsts for the WildCats.  Ranked eighth in the region heading into this past weekend, Randolph had also earned its first national ranking by D3hoops.com earlier in the season.  The WildCats travel to Emory University (19-6) in the first round, with possible second round matchups against either Whitworth University (24-3) or the University of Redlands (22-5).

For more information on the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament, go to www.ncaa.com.  For more on ODAC men's hoops, visit the websites of any of the participating schools, or go to the ODAC's home on the Internet at www.odaconline.com.  Don't forget to become a fan of the ODAC on Facebook and follow the ODAC on Twitter at @odacathletics.