Reaching the NCAA Tournament seemed like a realistic goal for the St. Bonaventure men's basketball team this season. Sunday, that dream came true.
The Bonnies earned an at-large bid to the Tournament and is an 11 seed. St. Bonaventure will play UCLA in the First Four on Tuesday, March 13, at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio. The game is scheduled for a 9:10 ET tipoff and will air on truTV.
The winner will advance to face 6th-seeded Florida on Thursday in Dallas.
St. Bonaventure, which is 25-7 on the season, will make the seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in the program's history and second under coach Mark Schmidt. The Bonnies' last NCAA berth was in 2012, when they won the Atlantic 10 Conference Championship to earn an automatic berth. The last time St. Bonaventure received an at-large NCAA bid was 2000.
St. Bonaventure's remarkable 2017-18 season has been highlighted by its 25 wins, which tied the school record set by the 1969-70 Final Four team. The Bonnies finished second in the Atlantic 10 with a mark of 14-4, tying the school record for conference wins. Twice during the season, the Bonnies had win streaks of eight games or more, most recently a 13-game winning streak that was snapped on Saturday in the A-10 Tournament semifinals. Each of the past two weeks, the Bonnies received votes in the national polls.
St. Bonaventure has nine wins in the first two quadrants in the NCAA's new evaluation system with records of 3-3 in Quadrant One and 6-1 in Quadrant Two.
The Bonnies are led by Schmidt, now in his 11th season. He has helped the program to three consecutive 20-win seasons.
St. Bonaventure is also fueled by its All-Conference backcourt of seniors Jaylen Adams and Matt Mobley, who combine to average 38 points per game. Both were named to the first team All-Conference this season with Adams sharing the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year honors with Davidson's Peyton Aldridge. An All-America candidate, Adams averages 19.8 points and five assists per game while shooting 45 percent from three-point range. Mobley averages 18.5 points per game and has set a school record with his 102 three-pointers.
UCLA is 21-11. The Bruins lost to Arizona in overtime in the semifinals of the Pac-12 tournament last weekend.
Swingman Idris Taqqee (5.4 ppg) is the third senior in the starting lineup; he leads the Bonnies' improved defense. Junior forwards Courtney Stockard (12.9 points, 6.4 rebounds) and LaDarien Griffin (8.7 points, 6.5 rebounds) anchor the front line along with sophomore center Amadi Ikpeze (4.7 points, 3.1 rebounds).
Ticket Information: St. Bonaventure will not have tickets for sale to the general public. Fans should contact the host arena or visit secondary ticketing web sites.
For a one-stop NCAA Tournament information guide for Bonnies fans, visit: GoBonnies.com/BonniesDance.
