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INDIANA, Pa. - The No. 2-ranked West Liberty University men's basketball team will open defense of its NCAA Division II Atlantic Region championship here Saturday when the 2022 NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Tournament tips off at the Kovalchick Convention and Athletic Center on the campus of Indiana (Pa.) University.
Game times and ticket information were released Monday night by the IUP administration. All tickets are general admission but 150 seats will be blocked off behind each team bench for fans of that school. These fans will be asked to move to other seating following their game to make room for fans of the next team.
Daily ticket prices for Saturday and Sunday are $20 for adults and $12 for youth (age 3-18), senior citizens (age 65-over) and students of participating institutions with proper ID. The single daily admission price covers all games on that day but no re-entry is permitted due to NCAA regulations. Tickets for Tuesday's championship game are priced at $16 for adults with the youth, senior citizen and student tickets staying at $12.
Tickets go on sale Wednesday at 10 a.m. at the KCAC box office during normal business hours through Friday and throughout the day on Saturday. Tickets will also be available online at IUPtix.com or by phone at (800) 514-3849. Additional fees may apply for online transactions.
Coach Ben Howlett's Hilltoppers (29-2) are the No. 2 seed after completing a sweep of the Mountain East Conference's regular-season and tournament titles on Sunday with a 70-59 victory against Charleston in the MEC Tournament final at Wheeling's WesBanco Arena.
The Black and Gold will play in Saturday's 2:30 p.m. quarterfinal against MEC regular-season runner-up West Virginia State (23-7), which survived an upset loss to Alderson Broaddus in the MEC quarterfinals to earn the No. 7 seed in this weekend's regional.
Action gets under way at noon when No. 6 seed Fairmont State (23-7), a 21-point loser to West Liberty in the MEC semifinals, goes up against No. 3 seed California, Pa. (21-9). The Vulcans are coached by former Wheeling Jesuit head coach Danny Sancomb.
Host Indiana, Pa. (29-2), which swept the PSAC West title and PSAC Tournament crown to edge out the Hilltoppers for the No. 1 seed, hits the Kovalchick Center court at 5 p.m. to take on CIAA Tournament champion Fayetteville State (21-8). No. 4 seed Mercyhurst (24-6) and No. 5 seed Millersville (25-6) close out the quarterfinal round with a 7:30 p.m. tipoff.
Regional semifinal action is set for 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Sunday. After an off day on Monday, Sunday's winners will play for the Atlantic Region title on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
The Atlantic Region champion advances to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight, which is scheduled for March 22-26 at The Ford Center in Evansville, Ind.