CSNPhilly.com's printable bracket.
Brackets: East | Midwest | South | West
No. 8 seed Saint Joseph's (27-7, 13-5 Atlantic 10) vs. No. 9 seed Cincinnati (22-10, 12-6 AAC)
Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, Spokane, Wash., 9:57 p.m., TV: TruTV
Last time out
St. Joe's topped VCU, 87-74, on Sunday to win the A-10 Tournament title and the conference's automatic bid.
Cincinnati lost a heartbreaker to UConn, 104-97, in four overtimes on Friday in the AAC Tournament quarterfinals.
Series history
This is the first meeting between the two programs since 1969 and will be the fifth overall. Saint Joseph's won the last meeting in 1969 after losing the first three matchups to the Bearcats.
Facts and figures
Senior Isaiah Miles was named the Most Outstanding Player of the A-10 Tournament, averaging 22.3 points and 8.3 rebounds in the Hawks' three wins. Junior DeAndre Bembry notched a season-high 30 points against VCU in the A-10 final and was the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year.
Senior Aaron Brown was third behind Miles (18.4 points) and Bembry (17.3 points) in scoring average with 10.3 points per contest. Sophomores James Demery and Shavar Newkirk each averaged 8.1 points a game.
The Hawks were 31st in the country in adjusted offensive efficiency and 74th in adjusted defensive efficiency. They finished the year with a 21 RPI, their highest of the season.
St. Joe's is 18-24 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, last making it in 2014. In that 2014 appearance, the Hawks lost to eventual national champion UConn in the Round of 64. Their last win in the Big Dance came in 2004, when the historic squad featuring Jameer Nelson and Delonte West beat Wake Forest to reach the Elite Eight.
This is the Hawks' 21st NCAA Tournament appearance. It is their seventh under coach Phil Martelli.
Cincinnati lost in the AAC Tournament in an unforgettable game. While some Bearcats celebrated what appeared to be the game-winning basket, UConn's Jalen Adams drained a 70-foot buzzer-beater to force a forth overtime. Junior guard Troy Caupain scored a career-high 37 points in the loss. Caupain leads the team in scoring, averaging 13.2 points per game.
Three other Bearcats average at least 10 points per game: senior Farad Cobb (10.7 points), sophomore Gary Clark (10.7) and senior Octavius Ellis (10.0). Cincinnati's biggest wins were an upset over SMU on March 6 and a pair of regular-season victories over UConn.
The Bearcats' Achilles' heel may just be overtime. They went 0-3 in OT, including a 67-65 loss to Temple on Jan. 16.
Cincinnati plays at a very slow pace, ranking 320th in the country, per Kenpom.com. The team relies on a strong defense that is eighth in adjusted efficiency. The Bearcats have not given up more than 60 points in regulation since Jan. 24 against Tulane.
This is the Bearcats' 30th NCAA Tournament apperance. They are 44-28 all-time and have earned a bid each of the last six years. Cincinnati won back-to-back national championships in 1961-62 and have made six Final Fours.
Last year, the Bearcats won their first game of the NCAA Tournament as a No. 8 seed, beating ninth-seeded Purdue in overtime before losing to No. 1 overall Kentucky in Louisville, Kentucky.
What’s next?
The winner advances to play the winner of 1-seed Oregon and 16-seed Holy Cross in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Holy Cross beat Southern on Wednesday in the First Four.
ICYMI
• St. Joe's has 'daunting' task vs. physical Cincy
• St. Joe's confidence at new high in Spokane return
• Martelli says Cincy treats "the basket like it's a club"
• St. Joe's gets votes in AP Top 25 poll