SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – Heading to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1998, the University of San Francisco men's basketball team was officially selected as a ten seed in the East region of the 2022 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament.
As a 10 seed, the Dons are set to take on 7 seed Murray State in the first round of the East region.
Led by First Team All-WCC Selections
Jamaree Bouyea and
Yauhen Massalski and Second Team All-WCC guard
Khalil Shabazz, USF will return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 1997-98 season, when USF finished 19-10 overall (7-7 in WCC play) under head coach Phil Mathews to earn a 14 seed. That year, the Dons fell to third seed Utah, 85-68, in the West Regional in Anaheim, Calif.
This season, USF's No. 10 seed is the highest seed for the Dons since entering the tournament as a No. 9 seed in 1981-82.
Notably, third year head coach
Todd Golden has guided the 2021-22 Dons to a 24-9 overall record (10-6 in WCC play), including a 13-4 mark at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center and a 7-2 record in true road games. Overall, USF's seven true road wins were the most in the West Coast Conference this season.
Making history, USF also became the first WCC team since Pepperdine in 2002 to earn an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament. Additionally, no other WCC team other than Gonzaga, Saint Mary's and BYU has gone to the tournament since San Diego in 2008, which is the last time the WCC was a three-bid league.
USF's first round matchup with the Racers will air live on CBS on Thursday, Mar. 17 at 6:30 pm PT/9:30 pm ET. On the radio,
Pat Olson and Jim Brovelli will have the call on KNBR 1050 from Indianapolis.
INTERVIEWS:
For updates and more information on the USF men's basketball program, follow the Dons @USFDonsMBB on Twitter, @USFDonsMBB on Instagram and @USFDonsMBB on Facebook.
