BATON ROUGE -- The LSU Men's Basketball team, SEC Tournament runner-up, earned the No. 8 seed in the East Region of the 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament and will face No. 9-seed St. Bonaventure (16-4) on Saturday, March 20, at 12:45 p.m. CT in Bloomington, Ind.
The game will be televised by TNT and broadcast on the LSU Sports Radio Network and at www.LSUsports.net/live.
"It's always good to see your name on the screen," said LSU Head Coach Will Wade on a post-selection show Zoom. "We have a huge challenge in front of us. They got a very good team. Coach (Mark) Schmidt - I'm familiar with him from the Atlantic 10 - is as good of a ball coach as there is out there in the country."
LSU (18-9), the No. 3 in the SEC Tournament, advanced to Sunday's final before falling to top-seed and No. 6-ranked Alabama, 80-79. The Tigers advanced to play in the NCAA Tournament for the 23rd time in program history and the second-straight tournament. The 2020 Tigers squad was poised to enter the tournament as well before the postseason was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The meeting will be the first between the Tigers and Bonnies.
Though the Tigers were ranked higher in the NET ratings (No. 28) than each of the No. 7 seeds in the tournament, the Tigers received a No. 8 seed.
"I was surprised," Wade said of the Tigers' seed. "I thought we'd be a little bit better than that. But, at the end of the day, we lost to Saint Louis and we lost to Texas Tech in the non-conference. We didn't have the non-conference profile that we needed. We were the top eight seed, right there to get a seven (seed). But, I've said this: conference tournaments don't matter (for NCAA Tournament seeding). Our seed was set on, probably Friday night. We're in the deal. That's the number one thing."
The winner of the first-round game will face the winner of No. 1 seed Michigan and a First Four participant - either No. 16 seed Mount St. Mary's or Texas Southern.
"I couldn't be prouder of the team for the way they competed at the SEC Tournament this week," said LSU Athletics Director Scott Woodward. "Their hard work and determination helped them make history and made Tiger fans everywhere proud. I'm looking forward to their continued success heading into the NCAA Tournament."
First-round games will be televised on TBS, CBS, TNT and truTV from these venues in Indiana:
- Mackey Arena (West Lafayette, Ind./Purdue University)
- Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (Bloomington, Ind./Indiana University)
- Bankers Life Fieldhouse (Indianapolis, Ind./Indiana Pacers)
- Hinkle Fieldhouse (Indianapolis, Ind./Butler University)
- Indiana Farmers Coliseum (Indianapolis, Ind./IUPUI)
- Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis, Ind./Indianapolis Colts)
2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament PairingsAll Games Played in IndianaGame times and locations TBD
First Four
March 1816 Norfolk St. vs. 16 Appalachian St.11 Wichita St./11 Drake16 Mount St. Mary's/16 Texas Southern11 Michigan St./11 UCLA
West Region
Saturday, March 201 Gonzaga vs. 16 Norfolk St./16 Appalachian St.8 Oklahoma vs. 9 Missouri5 Creighton vs. 12 UC Santa Barbara4 Virginia vs. 13 Ohio6 USC vs. 11 Wichita St./11 Drake3 Kansas vs. 14 Eastern Washington7 Oregon vs. 10 VCU2 Iowa vs. 15 Grand Canyon
South Region
Friday, March 191 Baylor vs. 16 Harvard8 North Carolina vs. 9 Wisconsin5 Villanova vs. 12 Winthrop4 Purdue vs. 13 North Texas6 Texas Tech vs. 11 Utah St.3 Arkansas vs. 14 Colgate7 Florida vs. 10 Virginia Tech2 Ohio St. vs. 15 Oral Roberts
Midwest Region
Friday, March 191 Illinois vs. 16 Drexel8 Loyola Chicago vs. 9 Georgia Tech5 Tennessee vs. 12 Oregon St.4 Oklahoma St. vs. 13 Liberty6 San Diego St. vs. 11 Syracuse3 West Virginia vs. 14 Morehead St.7 Clemson vs. 10 Rutgers2 Houston vs. 15 Cleveland St.
East Region
Saturday, March 201 Michigan vs. 16 Mount St. Mary's/16 Texas Southern8 LSU vs. 9 St. Bonaventure5 Colorado vs. 12 Georgetown4 Florida St. vs. 13 UNC Greensboro6 BYU vs. 11 Michigan St./11 UCLA3 Texas vs. 14 Abilene Christian7 UConn vs. 10 Maryland2 Alabama vs. 15 Iona
2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Schedule
Sunday, March 14 (5 p.m. CT)Selection SundayTV: CBS
Thursday, March 18 (starting at 3 p.m. CT)First FourLocations: Mackey Arena, Simon Skjodt Assembly HallTV: truTV, TBS
Friday, March 19 and Saturday, March 20 (starting at 11 a.m. CT)First RoundLocations: Mackey Arena, Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Hinkle Fieldhouse, Indiana Farmers Coliseum, Lucas Oil StadiumTV: TBS, CBS, TNT, truTV
Sunday, March 21 and Monday, March 22 (starting at 11 a.m. CT)Second RoundLocations: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Hinkle Fieldhouse, Indiana Farmers Coliseum, Lucas Oil StadiumTV: TBS, CBS, TNT, truTV
Saturday, March 27 (1 p.m./6 p.m. CT) and Sunday, March 28 (12 p.m./6 p.m.)Sweet 16Locations: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Hinkle FieldhouseTV: CBS (afternoon games), TBS (primetime games)
Monday, March 29 (6 p.m. CT) and Tuesday, March 30 (5 p.m. CT)Elite EightLocation: Lucas Oil StadiumTV: CBS (Monday) and TBS (Tuesday)
Saturday, April 3 (starting at 4 p.m. CT) and Monday, April 5 (8 p.m. CT)Final FourLocation: Lucas Oil StadiumTV: CBS
------------------------------------------------------------
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.
To reach the newsroom or report a typo/correction, click HERE.
Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox. Select from these options: Breaking News, Evening News Headlines, Latest COVID-19 Headlines, Morning News Headlines, Special Offers