Men's Hoops To Compete In Inaugural 2022 SCB Champions Classic
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's basketball team has been selected to participate in the inaugural Small College Basketball Champions Classic in the 2022-23 season, a tournament set to host some of the best college basketball teams at the NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, and NAIA levels. Small College Basketball (SCB) announced the participating teams and schedule for the 2022 SCB Champions Classic on Thursday via a press release and on its website www.smallcollegebasketball.com.
OFFICIAL SMALL COLLEGE BASKETBALL RELEASE
The event, which will be hosted by Division II's Northern State University (NSU) in Aberdeen, S.D., will take place November 18-19, 2022 and will include six games on both Friday and Saturday. USJ is one of only 12 teams in the nation selected to play in the event and one of just four Division III teams. The other Division III programs include Illinois Wesleyan, UW-Oshkosh, and Nebraska Wesleyan.
"It's such a thrill to bring the SCB Champions Classic to life, and I am very grateful for the partnership with Northern State University," Small College Basketball Founder John McCarthy said. "NSU has led small college basketball in attendance for 13 consecutive years, and the Aberdeen community has a passionate fan base. Wachs Arena will be a great venue for this event, and we're so excited to bring some of the very best teams in NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, and the NAIA to one site for a national showcase for college basketball."
Northern State University's Barnett Center and Wachs Arena is one of the premier NCAA Division II facilities in the nation. The 8,000-seat venue includes an in-ground wood floor installed in 2019, a center-hung digital video board, and digital score table displays. The scoreboard, installed by Daktronics, is the largest collegiate center-hung video display system in the state of South Dakota.
"We are honored to be participating in the inaugural Small College Basketball Champions Classic," said Head Men's Basketball Coach Glen Miller. "Four years ago, Coach Calhoun and I began building a program that we hoped could compete for a National Championship someday. We have made a lot of progress in a short amount of time, and this will give us an early-season opportunity to play against two of the best teams in all of Division III men's basketball. Our players want to play against the best and they were incredibly excited when they heard the news."
Entering today, the Illinois Wesleyan University Titans are currently 15-3 overall on the 2021-22 season and ranked No. 2 in nation in the most recent D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll. The Titans, members of the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW), won the 1997 NCAA Division III National Championship, have reached the Final Four an additional six times, and are considered one of the top programs in the history of NCAA Division III men's basketball. Nebraska Wesleyan University, out of the American Rivers Conference, currently sits at 11-7 overall this season. The Prarie Wolves won the National Championship back in 2018 and won 31 straight games spanning the end of the 2017-18 season and beginning of the 2018-19 season. The University of Wisconsin-Oskosh Titans are the reigning National Champions, claiming the crown in 2019 prior to the 2020 NCAA Tournament not being played to completion and the 2021 NCAA Tournament being cancelled. Wisconsin-Oshkosh, members of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athetic Confernce (WIAC), currently rank No. 4 in the nation and have an overall record of 15-3.
The Blue Jays, members of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC), currently sport a perfect 14-0 record and remain the only unbeaten team in Division III. They lead the NCAA in several statistical categories and currently hold the longest win streak in D-III with 16 straight victories. USJ also holds the second-longest conference win streak with 23-straight GNAC wins, second to only Yeshiva University (YU) who boats 30-straight Skyline Conference wins. USJ is scheduled to play nationally-ranked No. 7 YU later this season in a non-conference showdown in New York City on February 17. USJ is nationally-ranked No. 9 in the land and has held a top-10 ranking since the start of the season, and was ranked as high as No. 5 earlier this year.
The Blue Jays will kick off the two-day extravaganza with a 12:00 p.m. (CST) game against Wisconsin-Oshkosh on Friday, November 18, before taking on Illinois Wesleyan Saturday, November, also at 12:00 p.m. (CST).
Friday, November 18
10 a.m. Illinois Wesleyan vs. Nebraska Wesleyan
12 p.m. Saint Joseph vs. Wisconsin-Oshkosh
2 p.m. Carroll vs. Morningside
4 p.m. Indiana Wesleyan vs. Dakota Wesleyan
6 p.m. Queens vs. Point Loma Nazarene
8 p.m. Northern State vs. Ferris State
Saturday, November 19
10 a.m. Wisconsin-Oshkosh vs. Nebraska Wesleyan
12 p.m. Saint Joseph vs. Illinois Wesleyan
2 p.m. Indiana Wesleyan vs. Morningside
4 p.m. Carroll vs. Dakota Wesleyan
6 p.m. Queens vs. Ferris State
8 p.m. Northern State vs. Point Loma Nazarene
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