North Region Men's Basketball Tournament Preview
February 15, 2023 | by Taylor Pill
DUBUQUE, Iowa -- The Sabercats have been given the #9 seed for the 2023 NCCAA North Region Men's Basketball Tournament and will open play Wednesday, March 1, at 11:45 a.m. CST in the first round against the #8-seeded Wolfpack from Oak Hills Christian College.
The winner of the first-round game will face the top-seeded North Central University Rams in the quarterfinal, scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 2. The Sabercats face the tall task of having to win on four consecutive days if they want to earn the title of North Region champions.
The single-elimination tournament will be held March 1-4 at Emmaus Bible College in Dubuque, Iowa.
Besides the North Region title, the winner of the North Region Championship will earn a berth at the 2023 NCCAA DII National Tournament, held March 8-11 at Ozark Christian College in Joplin, Missouri.
SCHEDULE
| Date | Time | Matchup |
| Wednesday, 3/1 | 11:45 a.m. | First Round vs #8 Oak Hills |
| Thursday, 3/2 | 1:30 p.m. | Quarterfinal vs #1 North Central* |
| Friday, 3/3 | 3:00 p.m. | Semifinal* |
| Saturday, 3/4 | 5:00 p.m. | Championship* |
| *win to advance |
LINKS
BRACKET :: SCHEDULE :: LIVE VIDEO :: LIVE STATS :: NCCAA POWER RATING SYSTEM
FORMAT
The format is single-elimination with seedings determined exclusively by the modified NCCAA Power Rating System.
PARTICIPANTS
Below is a brief overview of the 11-team field, which is the largest-ever field for an NCCAA North Region Tournament:
| Team | Nickname | Location | Record | Power Rating |
| #1 North Central | Rams | Minneapolis, Minn. | 14-9 | 4.673 |
| #2 Crown | Polars | St. Bonifacious, Minn. | 14-9 | 4.213 |
| #3 Faith | Eagles | Ankeny, Iowa | 12-12 | 3.505 |
| #4 Providence | Pilots | Manitoba, Canada | 14-8 | 3.485 |
| #5 Trinity | Lions | Ellendale, N.D. | 15-10 | 3.425 |
| #6 Central | Saints | Moberly, Mo. | 9-16 | 2.977 |
| #7 Emmaus | Eagles | Dubuque, Iowa | 7-13 | 2.839 |
| #8 Oak Hills | Wolfpack | Bemidji, Minn. | 8-16 | 2.677 |
| #9 Maranatha | Sabercats | Watertown, Wis. | 4-18 | 1.981 |
| #10 Calvary | Warriors | Kansas City, Mo. | 3-20 | 1.904 |
| #11 Moody | Archers | Chicago, Ill. | 0-17 | 1.414 |
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To follow the games live, follow @MBUSabercats on Twitter and visit mbusabercats.com/schedule for live video and live stats links.
