First Four: The 8 teams playing in Dayton this week

Yahoo

17-03-2025

DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — The field of 68 has been unveiled; these are the teams set to play in Dayton later this week.
The men's bracket is nearly set, as the following 8 teams will vie to advance in the Big Tournament. Below is a brief summary for all of the teams, as well as a bit of trivia for each of them.
The Alabama State Hornets will play the Saint Francis Red Flash for the South region's 16 seed.
This is their fifth appearance in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, last appearing during the 2011 season.
The Hornets went 19-15 this season, including 12-6 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. They finished 5th in the SWAC regular season, but won the tournament to claim the NCAA bid.
The school was home to rapper 2 Chainz, who also played basketball at the university for two seasons.
The Saint Francis Red Flash will play the Alabama State Hornets for the South region's 16 seed.
The Red Flash have appeared in the Big Tournament once before, back in 1991, when they were defeated in the first round.
The Red Flash went 16-17 this season and were an even 8-8 in their conference. Finishing fourth in the Northeast Conference standings, the team ultimately won the conference title, thus also winning a First Four bid.
Saint Francis University is known to be one of the first Catholic co-ed colleges in the U.S.
Wayne's Juan Cranford Jr. returns to Dayton with St. Francis (PA) for First Four
The San Diego State Aztecs finished 21-8 this season and 14-6 in Mountain West Conference (MWC) play.
The Aztecs have appeared in the Big Tournament 16 times prior, last competing in the 2024 tournament, losing to the eventual champs, the UCONN Huskies, in the Sweet Sixteen.
San Diego State was fourth in the MWC, and lost in the MWC Tournament quarterfinal to Boise State.
The Aztecs will play the Tar Heels for a chance to advance and claim the eleventh seed in the South region.
NBA All-Star and champion, Kawhi Leonard, played his college basketball at San Diego State (2009-2011), where he helped the team to two Big Tournament appearances.
Leonard's jersey (15) was also retired by the university, as he was the first player in school history to receive the honor.
The North Carolina Tar Heels will vie for the South region's 11-seed, against San Diego State.
The Tar Heels finished 22-13 this season and 13-7 in conference play. The Tar Heels lost a close one against the Cooper Flagg-less Duke Blue Devils on Friday in the ACC Tournament semifinal.
North Carolina finished fifth in the ACC, a conference that will see an additional three ranked teams (Duke, Louisville and Clemson) in the Big Tournament this year. The school's last appearance in the tournament was last season.
The legend of Michael Jordan may or may not have begun during his time at North Carolina, where he helped the 1982 team win the national championship. He played alongside James Worthy and Sam Perkins during that championship season.
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The American Eagles will play the Mount Saint Mary's Mountaineers for a 16-seed in the East Region.
On the court, the Eagles finished tied for first in the Patriot League with a 22-12 overall record and a 13-5 conference record. The Eagles, like their NFL counterparts, were champions, ultimately winning the Patriot League Tournament title against Navy.
The Eagles will be playing in their fourth Big Tournament, last appearing in 2014, when they lost a first round matchup against Wisconsin.
The school is an alma mater to several U.S. politicians and government officials including Muriel Bowser, David Brat, Nicole Nason, Haley Stevens and Robert Byrd, to name a few.
The Mount Saint Mary's Mountaineers will play the Eagles for a chance at the East Region's 16-seed.
The Mountaineers will enter the matchup with the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) title to their name, following a victory against Iona on Saturday.
The Mountaineer's were 22-12 overall and 12-8 in conference play. The school has appeared in the Big Tournament six times prior, last appearing in 2021, where they lost to Texas Southern in a First Four matchup.
The school was home to Susan O'Malley, the first woman to be named president of an NBA franchise. O'Malley was president of the Washington Bullets (now known as the Washington Wizards) from 1991 until 2007. She was twenty-nine years old when she took on the role.
The Texas Longhorns will play Xavier for the Midwest Region's 11-seed.
The Longhorns were 19-15 overall, with a conference record of 6-12. The SEC is a vaunted conference, hosting 7 additionally seeded teams (Auburn, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Kentucky and Missouri) set to compete in the Big Tournament this year.
The Longhorns finished 13th in the conference standings, losing to Tennessee in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals on Friday. Prior to 2025's Big Tournament, the Longhorns have appeared 38 times.
Future NBA Hall-of-Famer Kevin Durant played college basketball for a season for the Texas Longhorns. Durant was drafted 2nd in the 2007 NBA Draft after The Ohio State Buckeyes' center Greg Oden was taken number one.
Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star center, Jarett Allen, also played for the Longhorns.
The Xavier Musketeers will play the Longhorns for the 11-seed in the Midwest Region.
The Musketeers were 21 and 11 this season overall, and 13 and 7 in Big East conference play. The Musketeers were fourth in conference standings, and lost to Marquette (a 7-seed in this year's Big Tournament) in the Big East Tournament quarterfinal by 2 on Thursday.
The Musketeers have appeared in 29 prior Big Tournaments, last appearing in 2023.
The university was home to Julianne Smith, the most recent U.S. ambassador to NATO, a title which she held from 2021 to 2024. Smith continued her education at American University.
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