CALDWELL, N.J.-The Caldwell University men's basketball team earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II Championship as announced by the NCAA selection committee this evening.
The Cougars captured the fifth seed in the East Region and will face #4 Dominican College in the opening round on Saturday, March 13. Times for the tournament contests will be announced early in the week. The site host for the East Region is The College of Saint Rose and tournament games will be played at the Albany Capital Center in Albany, New York.
The Cougars, under the leadership of head coach
Mark A. Corino¸ will make their second trip to the NCAA DII Championship. In their previous appearance in 2007, the Cougars fell by three points to region top seed and then-unbeaten Bentley University in the opening round.
"I am so pleased and excited for our players and staff to have this opportunity to participate in the NCAA DII National Tournament during this difficult season," said Coach Corino. "With everything from COVID-19, testing protocols and many other challenging issues, I am proud of how our student-athletes handled everything. I am hoping that we can be prepared to play well against a very well coached and solid Dominican team."
East Coast Conference Champion St. Thomas Aquinas captured the top seed in the region and a first-round bye. Daemen College, the ECC runner-up, took the second spot and received a first-round bye.
The remaining four teams are from the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference. Bloomfield College, the CACC automatic bid, earned the #3 seed, followed by Dominican at the four spot. The Cougars came in at #5 with Nyack College securing the final spot in the East Region with the #6 seed.
CACC All-Conference selection junior
Anthony Cooper (Ashburn, Va.) leads the Cougars this season with 20.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.0 steals per game. He leads the CACC in scoring and is second in steals. Freshman
Daniel Dade Jr. (Springfield, Mass.) is second on the team in scoring with 14.7 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. Dade Jr. leads the Cougars with 16 three-pointers this season, tying for fourth in the conference.
2021 NCAA DIVISION II EAST REGIONAL
at Albany Capital Center, Albany, New York
Region Quarterfinals - Saturday, March 13
#4 Dominican (4-3) vs. #5 Caldwell (5-4)
#3 Bloomfield (6-3) vs. #6 Nyack (4-4)
Region Semifinals - Sunday, March 14
Dominican/Caldwell winner vs. #1 St. Thomas Aquinas (13-1)
Bloomfield/Nyack winner vs. #2 Daemen (8-5)
Region Finals - Tuesday, March 14
Winner advances to Elite Eight, Evansville, Indiana, Mar. 24-27
