Titans' NCAA Sweet 16 Basketball Game To Be Played In Michigan
UW-Oshkosh begins its second straight and ninth overall trip to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship against nationally ranked Loras College (Iowa) on Friday (March 13) in Holland, Mich. The opening tip for the second meeting between the teams this season is scheduled for 5 p.m. (EDT) in sectional host Hope College's DeVos Fieldhouse.
UW-Oshkosh (20-10), which has won at least 20 games each of the past eight seasons, reached the third round of the NCAA postseason by defeating Edgewood College (25-3), 61-40, during the opening round Friday (March 6) and Bethany Lutheran College (Minn.) (24-4) by a 67-60 score Saturday (March 7) at the Arden Hills (Minn.) Regional.
Loras College (25-4), ranked 13th in the country by D3hoops.com, advanced to the third round of the Division III Championship for the first time by virtue of its 68-52 win over UW-La Crosse (19-8) in the first round Friday and 71-60 victory in the Greencastle (Ind.) Regional title game at host and fourth-ranked DePauw University (28-2) on Saturday.
UW-Oshkosh suffered an 88-83 setback in overtime at Loras College in the teams' most recent battle Nov. 16 in Dubuque, Iowa.
The winner between Loras College and UW-Oshkosh will play 7 p.m. (EDT) Saturday (March 14) in the Holland Sectional championship game against the victor of Friday's other third round matchup that features top-ranked Hope College (29-0) hosting ninth-ranked Baldwin Wallace University (Ohio) (28-2) at 7 p.m. (EDT).
The 64-team NCAA Division III Championship continues with semifinal games March 20 before culminating with the national title game March 21. The 2020 Final Four will be held at the Capital Center Performance Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
Hope College kept its undefeated season intact with regional home wins of 69-18 over Grove City College (Pa.) (25-3) on Friday and 72-69 against Illinois Wesleyan University (20-9) on Saturday.
Baldwin Wallace University, which tied its season record for wins, won its own Berea Regional by scores of 67-42 Friday over Haverford College (Pa.) (23-5) and 60-58 against 18th-ranked University of Chicago (Ill.) (21-6) on Saturday.
UW-Oshkosh enters the Sweet 16 averaging a nation-best 11.9 turnovers per game. The Titans, winners of five consecutive games and nine of their last 10, have been victorious in each of the last 26 games in which they have held opponents under 60 points.
Loras College, which had never won an NCAA postseason game in four prior trips before this year, ranks second in the nation with 504 made free throws on the year while listing eighth in both scoring offense (79.1) and steals (411).
Hope College, which has won 20 straight home games, leads the division by averaging well over 1,000 fans per home contest. The Flying Dutch, who drew 2,007 fans for their regional title game and 1,915 attendees during the opening round in DeVos Fieldhouse, also pace the country 42.3 points allowed per game and a 33.4-point average margin of victory.
Baldwin Wallace University, which is riding a 14-game winning streak, is back in the third round of the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2014. The Yellow Jackets' .771 free throw percentage ranks sixth in the nation.
This weekend's three other sectional hosts are second-ranked Tufts University (Mass.) (28-1), third-ranked Bowdoin College (Maine) (27-2) and seventh-ranked Amherst College (Mass.) (24-4).
NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Holland Sectional Website
NCAA Division III Women's Basketball • NCAA.com Website
NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship Interactive Bracket
2020 NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship Digital Program