The 2020 DII men's basketball championship tournament begins play around the nation on Saturday, March 14. Before the selection committee announces the 64-team field, here's a look at the 2020 NCAA DII bracket as well as the important dates you need to know and how the tournament works. You can tap or click right here to get your printable version of the blank bracket.
RANKINGS: Bellarmine still on top, for now | NABC rankings
Here's what you need to know about the 2020 NCA DII men's tournament.
2020 DII men's basketball championship: The bracket
On Sunday, March 8 the DII men's basketball national committee will select the 64 schools that will play for a national championship on Sunday, April 5 in Atlanta, Georgia. Here's what the bracket will look like:
Tap or click HERE to expand.
The 2020 NCAA DII tournament: Important dates to know
The bracket will begin to take shape on Feb. 18 when the first regional rankings are released. The committee will release the top 10 teams in each of the eight regions, giving us insight to who the final 64 teams to advance will be.
DII UPSETS: UIndy over Bellarmine | Central Missouri over NW Missouri St.| Rollins over Nova Southeastern
You'll also notice that the championship game is not part of the Elite Eight in Evansville, Indiana this year. That is because it will be played in Atlanta, Georiga during Final Four weekend when the Division I, DII and DIII men's basketball championships will be decided in a two-day span.
| EVENT | DATE | TIME | How to view |
|---|---|---|---|
| First regional rankings released | Wed., Feb. 19 | TBD | On krikya18.com |
| Selection show | Sun., March 8 | 10:30 p.m. ET | On krikya18.com |
| Regional rounds (Rounds 1-3) | March 14, 15, 17 | TBD | TBD |
| Elite Eight | Thurs., March 26 | TBD | TBD |
| National semifinals | Sat. March 28 | TBD | TBD |
| Championship game | Sun., April 5 | TBD | TBD |
2020 DII men's basketball championship: How it works
In the simplest terms, the DII men's basketball championship bracket is made up of 64 teams. Twenty-three of those teams earn an automatic bid from winning their respective conference.
Now, those 64 teams are made up of the eight top teams from each of the eight regions and play a three-day regional tournament. That gives us eight regional winners, who advance to DII Men's Elite Eight where a champion is crowned. Here's what the regional breakdown looks like.
| REGION | CONFERENCES |
|---|---|
| Atlantic | CIAA, MEC, PSAC, Independent (2) |
| Central | GAC, MIAA, NSIC |
| East | CACC, ECC, NE10 |
| Midwest | GLIAC, GLVC, G-MAC, Independent (1) |
| South | GSC, SIAC, SSC, Independent (3) |
| South Central | LSC, RMAC |
| Southeast | CC, PBC, SAC |
| West | CCAA, GNAC, PacWest |
(* = Independents do not receive automatic bids)
So, how about those other 41 teams? Well, we dug deep into the history of the DII men's basketball championship tournament and created the ultimate reader for everything you need to know about how the tournament works. You can give it a read by tapping below:
The essential guide to the DII men's basketball tournament
The DII men's basketball championship: A complete history
Northwest Missouri State ran the table in 2019, defeating Point Loma for its second national championship in three years. It was the first time a team finished the season undefeated since the 2009 Findlay Oilers went 36-0.
HISTORY: Bearcats perfect season | Here's how Findlay ran the table | Most DII titles
Here's a look at every championship game in DII men's basketball history.
| YEAR | CHAMPION (RECORD) | COACH | SCORE | RUNNER-UP | SITE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Northwest Missouri State (38-0) | Ben McCollum | 64-58 | Point Loma | Evansville, Ind. |
| 2018 | Ferris State (38-1) | Andy Bronkema | 71-69 | Northern State | Sioux Falls, S.D. |
| 2017 | Northwest Missouri St. (35-1) | Ben McCollum | 71-61 | Fairmont State | Sioux Falls, S.D. |
| 2016 | Augustana [S.D.] (34-2) | Tom Billeter | 90-81 | Lincoln Memorial | Frisco, Tex. |
| 2015 | Florida Southern (36-1) | Linc Darner | 77-62 | Indiana (Pa.) | Evansville, Ind. |
| 2014 | Central Missouri (30-5) | Kim Anderson | 84-77 | West Liberty | Evansville, Ind. |
| 2013 | Drury (31-4) | Steve Hesser | 74-73 | Metro State | Atlanta, Ga. |
| 2012 | Western Washington (31-5) | Brad Jackson | 72-65 | Montevallo | Highland Heights, Ky. |
| 2011 | Bellarmine (33-2) | Scott Davenport | 71-68 | BYU-Hawaii | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2010 | Cal Poly Pomona (28-6) | Greg kamansky | 65-53 | Indiana (Pa.) | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2009 | Findlay (36-0) | Ron Niekamp | 56-53 (ot) | Cal Poly Pomona | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2008 | Winona State (38-1) | Mike Leaf | 87-76 | Augusta State | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2007 | Barton (31-5) | Ron Lievense | 77-75 | Winona State | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2006 | Winona State (32-4) | Mike Leaf | 73-61 | Virginia Union | Springfield, Mass. |
| 2005 | Virginia Union (30-4) | Dave Robbins | 63-58 | Bryant | Grand Forks, N.D. |
| 2004 | Kennesaw State (35-4) | Tony Ingle | 84-59 | Southern Indiana | Bakersfield, Calif. |
| 2003 | Northeastern State (32-3) | Larry Gipson | 75-64 | **Kentucky Wesleyan | Lakeland, Fla. |
| 2002 | Metro State (29-6) | Mike Dunlap | 80-72 | Kentucky Wesleyan | Evansville, Ind. |
| 2001 | Kentucky Wesleyan (31-3) | Ray Harper | 72-63 | Washburn | Bakersfield, Calif. |
| 2000 | Metro State (33-4) | Mike Dunlap | 97-79 | Kentucky Wesleyan | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1999 | Kentucky Wesleyan (35-2) | Ray Harper | 75-60 | Metro State | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1998 | UC Davis (31-2) | Bob Williams | 83-77 | Kentucky Wesleyan | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1997 | Cal State Bakersfield (29-4) | Pat Douglass | 57-56 | Northern Kentucky | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1996 | Fort Hays State (34-0) | Gary Garner | 70-63 | Northern Kentucky | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1995 | Southern Indiana (29-4) | Bruce Pearl | 71-63 | UC Riverside | Louisville, Ky. |
| 1994 | Cal State Bakersfield (27-6) | Pat Douglass | 92-86 | Southern Indiana | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1993 | Cal State Bakersfield (33-0) | Pat Douglass | 85-72 | Troy | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1992 | Virginia Union (30-3) | Dave Robbins | 100-75 | Bridgeport | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1991 | North Alabama (29-4) | Gary Elliot | 79-72 | Bridgeport | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1990 | Kentucky Wesleyan (31-2) | Wayne Chapman | 93-79 | Cal State Bakersfield | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1989 | North Carolina Central (28-4) | Michael Bernard | 73-46 | Southeast Missouri State | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1988 | Massachusetts-Lowell (27-7) | Don Doucette | 75-72 | Alaska Anchorage | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1987 | Kentucky Wesleyan (28-5) | Wayne Chapman | 92-74 | Gannon | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1986 | Sacred Heart (30-4) | Dave Bike | 93-87 | Southeast Missouri State | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1985 | Jacksonville State (31-1) | Bill Jones | 74-73 | South Dakota State | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1984 | Central Missouri (29-3) | Lynn Nance | 81-77 | Saint Augustine's | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1983 | Wright State (18-4) | Ralph Underhill | 92-73 | District of Columbia | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1982 | District of Columbia (25-5) | Wil Jones | 73-63 | Florida Southern | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1981 | Florida Southern (24-8) | Hal Wissel | 73-68 | Mount Saint Mary's | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1980 | Virginia Union (26-4) | Dave Robbins | 80-74 | SUNYIT | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1979 | North Alabama (22-9) | Bill Jones | 64-50 | Green Bay | Springfield, Mo. |
| 1978 | Cheyney (26-2) | John Chaney | 47-40 | Green Bay | Springfield, Mo. |
| 1977 | Chattanooga (27-5) | Ron shumate | 71-62 | Randolph-Macon | Springfield, Mass. |
| 1976 | Puget Sound (27-7) | Don Zech | 83-74 | Chattanooga | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1975 | Old Dominion (25-6) | Sonny Allen | 76-74 | New Orleans | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1974 | Morgan State (28-5) | Nathaniel Frazier | 67-52 | Missouri State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1973 | Kentucky Wesleyan (24-6) | Bob Jones | 78-76 (ot) | Tennessee State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1972 | Roanoke (28-4) | Charles Moir | 84-72 | Akron | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1971 | Evansville (22-8) | Arad McCutchan | 97-82 | Old Dominion | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1970 | Philadelphia University (29-2) | Herb Magee | 76-65 | Tennessee State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1969 | Kentucky Wesleyan (25-5) | Bob Daniels | 75-71 | Missouri State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1968 | Kentucky Wesleyan (28-3) | Bob Daniels | 63-52 | Indiana State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1967 | Winston-Salem (30-2) | C.E. Gaines | 77-74 | Missouri State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1966 | Kentucky Wesleyan (24-6) | Guy Strong | 54-51 | Southern Illinois | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1965 | Evansville (29-0) | Arad McCutchan | 85-82 (ot) | Southern Illinois | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1964 | Evansville (26-3) | Arad McCutchan | 72-59 | Akron | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1963 | South Dakota State (22-5) | Jim Iverson | 44-42 | Wittenberg | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1962 | Mount Saint Mary's (24-6) | James Phelan | 58-57 (ot) | Sacramento State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1961 | Wittenberg (25-4) | Ray Mears | 42-38 | Southeast Missouri State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1960 | Evansville (25-4) | Arad McCutchan | 90-69 | Chapman | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1959 | Evansville (21-6) | Arad McCutchan | 83-67 | Missouri State | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1958 | South Dakota (22-5) | Duane Clodfelter | 75-53 | Saint Michael's | Evansville, Ind. |
| 1957 | Wheaton (Ill.) (28-1) | Lee Pfund | 89-65 | Kentucky Wesleyan | Evansville, Ind. |
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