Eastern Washington Earns No. 14 Seed; Draws Kansas For NCAA Tournament Opener
NCAA Tournament Bracket (PDF)
FARMINGTON, Utah (March 14, 2021) – The Eastern Washington Eagles clinched their ticket to the Big Dance for the third time in program history after claiming the 2021 Big Sky Conference Men’s Basketball Championship Saturday night in Boise, Idaho.
Eastern Washington earned the No. 14 seed in the West Region during the NCAA Selection Show on Sunday afternoon, and will get ready to take on the third-seeded Kansas Jayhawks (20-8) in the first round on Saturday, March 20. The Eagles and Jayhawks will meet at Farmers Coliseum in Indianapolis, Ind. at 11:15 a.m. MT on TBS with Brad Nessler, Steve Lavin, and Avery Johnson on the call with reporter Evan Washburn.
The winner of the first-round matchup will move on to face either No. 6 USC (22-7) or No. 11 Wichita State (16-5)/Drake (25-4) on Monday, March 22. Wichita State and Drake will tip-off in the First Four on Thursday, March 18 at 4:27 p.m. MT at Mackey Arena on TBS, and then the winner will play USC on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. MT at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on TNT.
The Eagles claimed the Big Sky’s automatic bid into the tournament with a 65-55 victory over No. 5 seeded Montana State in the Big Sky final. EWU advances to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2015 under Shantay Legans, the 2019-20 Big Sky Coach of the Year.
A Big Sky team was tabbed the No. 14 seed for the ninth time in conference history, with the most recent being the Montana Grizzlies in 2018.
Eastern Washington enters the NCAA tournament with a 16-7 overall record after finishing 12-3 in conference play and have won 13 of its last 14 games.
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