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Southeast Regional Tournament Central

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The seventh-ranked Queens University of Charlotte men's basketball team will face Lees-McRae College in the opening round of the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championships on Saturday afternoon. Opening tipoff from Tex Turner Arena on the campus of Lincoln Memorial University is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.

The Royals earned the No. 2 seed in the Southeast Region after receiving an at-large selection to the tournament. Queens most recently lost to top-seeded Lincoln Memorial, 77-75, in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament Championship Game on Sunday, March 4. This marks the Royals third-straight NCAA tournament appearance and the 11^th total in the program's 30-year history. Queens has won its first-round game in each of its last two trips.

Lees-McRae earned the seven seed in the region as an automatic-qualifier after winning its first-ever Conference Carolinas Championship. The Bobcats beat Belmont-Abbey College, 75-72, in the conference title game after finishing second to King University in the regular-season standings. This year is Lees-McRae's first-ever NCAA Tournament berth.

The Royals lead the all-time series with the Bobcats, 32-2, most recently winning last season's meeting 84-69. This marks just the second meeting between the former conference foes since Queens left Conference Carolinas for the SAC prior to the 2013-2014 season.

The winner will advance to face the winner Saturday's first regional quarterfinal between third-seeded UNC-Pembroke and sixth-seeded Francis Marion University on Sunday.

Live play-by-play coverage will be available on the Queens Sports Network with Phil Constantino.
 
Quick Facts

No. 7/5 Queens Royals (28-3, 18-2 SAC)
(Game Notes)

-Queens has won 24 straight non-conference games including the postseason, most recently defeating Tarleton State University, 64-51, on the road on Dec. 30. Queens has completed its non-conference regular-season schedule unbeaten for three straight years. The Royals last non-conference loss came versus Livingstone, 73-71, on Dec. 3, 2014.

-Queens has not lost back-to-back games since losing three-straight games Feb. 20-27, 2016, to end the 2015-2016 regular season.

-SAC teams have not lost a postseason game in the regional to a non-conference opponent in two years. SAC teams in total are 12-5 in that span, 7-0 in non-conference games.

-Queens placed two players, Todd Withers and Shaun Willett, on the SAC All-Tournament team after making the conference's title game for the second year in a row.

-Four Royals received individual postseason accolades, the league announced on March 1. Todd Withers was named a first-team all-conference selection, while Ike Agusi and Mike Davis were named to the league's second team, and Jalin Alexander received honorable mention recognition.

-Queens features one of the most efficient offenses in the country, with a shooting percentage of 50.0 percent, which is ranked No. 10 nationally and No. 3 in the SAC, and an average of 17 assists per game which is the 22nd-best mark in the nation, and the second-best in the league. The Royals score 83.7 points per game on average which is ranked No. 34 in the country and No. 4 in the conference.

-The Royals are ranked No. 2 in the SAC, and No. 45 in Division II, in scoring defense, allowing 69.1 points per game. Queens has held 26 of its 31 opponents under their season scoring average.

-Queens has held its opponent to 70 points or less 16 times in 31 games, and 60 points or less six times. Only four opponents all season have scored more than 80 points in a game against Queens (Carson-Newman, Catawba, Newberry, Lincoln Memorial).

-The Royals are holding opponents to 41.3-percent shooting (No. 24 NCAA, No. 2 SAC), and are out-rebounding opponents by 7.7 rebounds per game (No. 16 NCAA, No. 2 SAC).

-Queens is led by Withers who is averaging a team-high 13.8 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game. Withers is 19^th in the SAC in scoring, third in rebounding, and third in blocked shots.

-On Feb. 15, Withers was named to the Bevo Francis Award Top 50 Watch List. The Bevo Francis Award is presented annually to the player who had the finest overall season in Small College Basketball (NCAA Divisions II and III, NAIA, USCAA, and NCCAA).

-With nine rebounds versus Lenoir-Rhyne on Jan. 21, Withers moved into fourth all-time at Queens in career rebounds, passing DeWayne Ansley, who secured 700 rebounds in his career from 1991-1993 and 1994-1996. Withers currently has recorded 730 career boards and is 31 rebounds away from tying for third all-time (Carlos Andrade, 761, 1999-2003).

-With 1,293 career points, Withers is seven points away from eclipsing the 1,300-point barrier for his career. Withers is currently ninth on the career scoring list at Queens and is 52 points away from tying for eighth (1,345, Yogi Leo, 1993-1996).

-With 19 points versus Mars Hill on Jan. 17, Davis reached the 1,600-point mark for his career. He has currently scored 1,657 career points, the first 811 came in his first two collegiate seasons at Francis Marion University, with the following 846 coming since transferring to Queens prior to his junior year.

-As one of the most efficient offensive teams in the country, Queens features two of the league's top six in shooting percentage. Lewis Diankulu ranks fourth at 67.1-percent shooting, and Shaun Willett ranks sixth at 60.4 percent.

-The Royals feature a balanced attack with four of five starters averaging double figures (Withers 13.8 PPG, Davis 12.6 PPG, Agusi 11.5 PPG, and Alexander 11.2 PPG). Queens has featured seven different leading scorers in a game this season (Withers, Davis, Alexander, Diankulu, Agusi, Willett, Josh Van Weezep).

-Despite falling short of the SAC regular-season championship in the final game, the 2017-2018 team posted the best regular-season record in program history going 26-2 (.928 win pct.). The previous best mark was set by the 2002-2003 team that finished with a 29-4 overall record, and a 24-2 record in the regular season (.923 win pct.).

-The Royals only three losses this season came versus the current No. 1-ranked team Lincoln Memorial. In the first meeting on Jan. 13, then-No. 1 Queens fell 73-72, in front of a crowd of nearly 1,400 fans at the Levine Center. The Royals squandered a 14-point first half lead, as the loss put an end to a 16-game winning streak that tied program records for both winning streak, and best start to a season.

-On Jan. 9, Queens reached No. 1 in the NABC/Division II National Rankings for the first time in program history and received 13 of a possible 16 first-place votes. Queens is currently ranked No. 5 in the coaches' poll, its lowest ranking of the season, and No. 5 in the D2SIDA media poll. The Royals are also ranked No. 2 in the Southeast Region behind only LMU.

-Queens was the first ever Charlotte-area men's college basketball program to receive a No. 1 national ranking in its classification.

-Queens is ranked in the coaches' poll for the 45th consecutive week, a streak which began on Nov. 24, 2015, with the first poll of the 2015-2016 season. Queens has cracked the top 10 of the rankings during each of the last three seasons.

-With a win over Anderson University on Jan. 27, Queens won its 20^th game of the season, giving the Royals a 20-win campaign for the third consecutive year, and the 14^th time in the program's 30-year history. For Bart Lundy, 2017-2018 is his seventh 20-win season as a collegiate head coach in 16 years, and his sixth in 10 years at Queens.

-Over the last three seasons, Queens has opened a combined 44-0 before losing, opening the 2015-2016 season 12-0, and opening the 2016-2017 season 16-0, prior to this season's 16-0 start.

-Queens is the only program in the nation, in all levels of NCAA competition, to have started each of the last three seasons 10-0 or better (More than 1,200 schools).

 
Lees-McRae Bobcats (23-8, 13-5 CC)

-Lees-McRae plays fast offensively, averaging 88.8 points per game which is ranked No. 7 in the country and No. 1 in its league.

-The Bobcats attempt 10.7 3-point field goals per game which is ranked No. 17 nationally and No. 2 in Conference Carolinas. They also shoot 3-pointers at a high clip, 40.5 percent, which is ranked No. 12 in the country and No. 1 in CC.

-Lees-McRae is led by Lepreece Lynch who is averaging 15.9 points per game (No. 6 CC), and 5.5 rebounds per game, (No. 15 CC). Lynch leads an offense that features five double-figure scorers (Jason Saintizaire 13.8 PPG, Kamil Williams 12.1 PPG, Jordan Turner 11.6 PPG, and Quay Kimble 10.3 PPG).

-Five Bobcats took home postseason accolades in Conference Carolinas. Lynch was a first-team all-conference selection, while Saintizaire and Turner were named to the league's third team. Kimble was named CC Freshman of the Year, and head coach Steve Hardin was named Coach of the Year.

-Hardin has guided Lees-McRae to 15 more wins than last season when the Bobcats finished 8-21 overall.

-LMC is a significantly better team at home than away from home. The Bobcats are 15-2 inside Williams Gym this year, but 8-6 combined in road games and neutral site games.