ANKENY, Iowa -- The 2021 NCCAA North Region basketball tournaments begin tomorrow morning, and the Sabercats have a wide-open tournament with all eight teams vying for the North Region crown and the trip to NCCAA Nationals.

Maranatha opens play at 9:15 a.m. CST tomorrow against #5 Central Christian College of the Bible.

PARTICIPANTS

Here's a brief overview of the field, with the seedings based on the NCCAA Power Rating system:

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SCOUTING REPORT

#1 Trinity Bible College Lions (17-7, 6-2 NCCAA, 4-1 North Region)

Trinity has a point to prove after they fell on their home floor in the championship to Faith last year. The Lions are the only team in the NCCAA North Region to hold a Top-10 spot, as they came in at #4 in this week's NCCAA Top 10 Ranking. Trinity comes into the tournament on a nine-game winning streak. 

Maranatha holds a 5-0 all-time record against Trinity Bible.

#2 Faith Baptist Bible College Eagles (14-12, 12-11 NCCAA, 9-4 North Region)

The hosts are always hard to beat. Especially when they are the defending champs. Faith has played most of this season against NCCAA competition and will look to repeat the postseason heroics of last year. Faith was known for their comebacks in 2019-20, and they'll look to repeat in 2020-21 if they need to.

Maranatha holds a 10-3 all-time record against Faith. The two teams split the series this season.

#3 Oak Hills Christian College Wolfpack (7-14, 2-6 NCCAA, 2-5 North Region)

The Wolfpack hasn't won a North Region game since December 5, when they beat Faith 87-71. Since coming back from Christmas break, the Wolfpack holds just a 3-8 record.

Maranatha holds a 3-0 all-time record against Oak Hills - one of the wins came in the 2018 NCCAA North Region Championship.

#4 Maranatha Baptist University Sabercats (7-7, 5-1 NCCAA, 5-1 NCCAA North Region)

The Sabercats hold the best North Region winning percentage, and so their extra motivation for this year is two-fold: first, they will be looking to debunk the idea they are the fourth-best team in the region. And two, they will be looking for revenge after Faith came from behind to eventually win in overtime in last year's regional semifinal.

Maranatha earned the regional title and the trip to Nationals in 2018 and 2019, so they will look to reclaim the title that they had started to own.

In the latest NCCAA DII Top 10, the Sabercats received seven votes, making them one of two North Region teams to appear in the Top 10 rankings.

#5 Central Christian College of the Bible Saints (8-15, 7-13 NCCAA, 5-3 North Region)

The Saints went out in the first round last year and they are a "dark horse" pick for this year's tournament. They are one of the four teams in the region with a winning record against North Region opponents this season, and they lost by just nine points to nationally-second-ranked Barclay College in January.

Maranatha holds a 1-0 record against Central. The only meeting was during the 1990-91 season - one year after the program's only NCCAA National Championship.

#6 Calvary University Warriors (4-18, 4-12 NCCAA, 3-7 North Region)

Calvary has posted three North Region wins this season, including two over Emmaus and one over Central. The Warriors have all their wins from NCCAA play, holding a 0-6 record outside of NCCAA DII competition.

Maranatha beat Calvary 101-92 in overtime earlier this season. Maranatha now holds a 3-1 all-time record over the Warriors.

#7 Emmaus Bible College Eagles (2-20, 1-18 NCCAA, 1-9 North Region)

The Eagles have persisted amidst losses, registering wins against NCCAA DI/NAIA Lincoln Christian University before beating Calvary 90-81 at the Midwest Christian College Conference Tournament. Emmaus has had nine games decided by nine points or fewer. So they may have a weak record, but they are tough to beat.

Maranatha beat Emmaus twice this season and holds a 34-4 advantage in the all-time series

#8 Moody Bible Institute Archers (0-0)

The Archers enter the tournament as an unknown factor, as they haven't played a game this season. 

Maranatha holds a 47-15 all-time record against Moody.

LINKS

SCHEDULE :: LIVE VIDEO :: LIVE STATS :: TICKETS :: SPECTATOR POLICY/COVID-19 :: DIRECTIONS

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To follow the games live, follow @MBUSabercats on Twitter and visit mbusabercats.com/schedule for live coverage links.