Men's Basketball Southern Conference

Mountaineers Earn Postseason Bid

BOONE, N.C. - On the heels of 22 wins and an appearance in Monday's Southern Conference Tournament championship game, Appalachian State University men's basketball earned a bid to play in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament. The Mountaineers will host a first-round game on Wednesday, March 17 at 7 p.m. in the Holmes Center.

It is the fourth postseason appearance for Appalachian (22-12, 13-5 SoCon), as the squad played in the NCAA Tournament in 1979 and 2000, and most recently, the 2006 National Invitational Tournament. The Apps still seek the program's first postseason win.
The 16-team CIT is in its second year, as Old Dominion defeated Bradley to win the inagural title in 2009. The Citadel represented the SoCon in the event last season.

The Mountaineers claimed wins over three league champions in 2009-10, including Robert Morris, Winthrop and Wofford, as well as a close call against Atlantic Sun champion East Tennessee State.

ASU has won 10 of its final 12 games on the season and will learn its opponent on Sunday evening, when the complete tournament bracket is unveiled. Creighton and George Mason have also announced first round home games for the CIT.

Following the first round games on March 16-18, before the quarterfinals are played on March 22. The semifinals are March 24-25 and the final is on March 30. The format for all rounds is single-elimination and all games will be on campus sites.

The full field will be announced in the coming days. In addition to The Citadel, last year's field featured two teams from the CAA, three from the Missouri Valley Conference, and teams from the Atlantic Sun, Big South, Big West, MAAC, Mid-American, Northeast, Ohio Valley, The Summit, Western Athletic and West Coast.