KANSAS CITY, Mo. – [First/Second Round Schedule | Bracket Reveal | Official Bracket] The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has officially announced the 64-team field and pairings for the 2024 NAIA Men’s Basketball National Championship. The tournament will begin with the 2024 NAIA Men’s Basketball National Championship First & Second Rounds, presented by Ballogy, on March 15 at host sites throughout the country.
The Cascade Collegiate Conference saw three teams earn spots in the national tournament. No. 3-ranked College of Idaho picked up the CCC’s first automatic bid by winning the regular-season title while No. 16-ranked Oregon Tech grabbed the second automatic qualifier after earning the CCC Men’s Basketball Tournament Championship. Lewis-Clark State College grabbed an at-large bid to round out the conference qualifiers.
In the first round, College of Idaho will host Jessup University. Oregon Tech will head to Orange City, Iowa to face Keiser University while Lewis-Clark State will play Hope International in Butte, Montana. All first round games will take place on March 15.
The 16 winners at each of these sites will advance to the 2024 NAIA National Championship Final Site in Kansas City, Mo., at the 86th annual NAIA Men’s Basketball National Championship, March 21-26. For more information on the national championship, click here.
The field consists of 36 automatic qualifiers – given to conference regular season champions, regular season runners-up, tournament champions, or tournament runners-up, depending on the league. The number of teams in each league determines the number of automatic bids in each conference. Leagues with 10 or more schools receive two automatic berths, while conferences with less than 10 institutions receive one.
At-large teams were determined by the NAIA Men’s Basketball National Selection Committee (NSC). The NSC consists of one representative from each geographic area, a representative from the National Administrative Council, the past president of the NAIA-Men’s Basketball Coaches Association and four at-large members. The committee evaluated teams throughout the year on various criteria.
For more information on NAIA Men’s Basketball, click here.