FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 26, 2007

Rhode Island College Men’s Basketball
To Host NCAA Div. III First and Second Round Games

Providence, RI—The NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Committee selected Rhode Island College as one of the 11 national sites to host four teams in first and second-round competition of the 2007 NCAA Tournament on March 2-3. Joining the Anchormen at The Murray Center will be Brandeis University, Coast Guard, and Trinity College (Conn.).

The Brandeis University Judges (19-6) will face the Trinity College Bantams (21-4) in the first game at 6 p.m., while Rhode Island College (24-3) will host the Coast Guard Bears (14-13) in the nightcap at 8 p.m. on March 2. The winners will advance to the second round contest the following evening at 7 p.m. 

Ticket prices will be $6 for general admission and $3 for students.

Rhode Island College won the program’s first Little East Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament Championship on Feb. 24, earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. The top-seeded Anchormen defeated second-seeded Keene State College, 87-75, booking their first tournament appearance in 28 years (1979). 

Head Coach Bob Walsh has led his charges to an overall record of 24-3, matching the program’s single-season record for most wins. The Anchormen won the Little East Conference Regular Season Championship outright for the first time with a 12-2 mark in the conference circuit.

Rhode Island College features a well-balanced scoring attack with two-student athletes averaging double figures in scoring, paced by senior guard Kinsey Durgin (Greenwood, ME) (13.7 ppg). The 2007 Little East Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player also leads the team in assists (79) and 3-pointers made (61), while ranking second in rebounding (5.1 rpg). Sophomore forward Kaseem Johnson (New Haven, CT) has collected a team-high 174 caroms (6.7 rpg), while classmate Bobby Bailey (Fall River, MA) has posted a team-best 60 steals. Sophomore guard Tirrell Hill (Bronx, NY), a member of the 2007 Little East Conference All-Tournament team, is second in scoring (11.4 ppg), while ranking fourth in assists (52).  

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