MANKATO, Minn. – The Bethany Lutheran men's basketball team (23-4 overall) will face off with the Hope College Flying Dutchmen (19-9) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at 4:35 p.m. on Friday with No. 11 UW-Oshkosh serving as the host. The other game on Friday will feature UW-Oshkosh (21-6) and Fontbonne (16-11).

The Vikings won the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Tournament Championship to earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. This marks the third trip for the program and first since 2019-20. The team's other appearance came in 2017-18, where they won their opening round game for their only Tournament win.  

Live Stats | Watch Live

Tickets - Will be sold at the venue and cash is the only accepted form of payment
All-Session Tickets for Friday (ticket will be good for both games)
$15 - adults
$10 - senior citizens, Non-UWO students, children
Children under two years old get in free. 

All-Session Tickets for Saturday 
$15 - adults
$10 - senior citizens, Non-UWO students, children
Children under two years old get in free. 

Bethany Lutheran
The Vikings enter the contest winners of five straight games and 10 of their last 11. Featuring one of the top offensive attacks in the country, Bethany comes into the tournament fifth in NCAA Division III, averaging 91.3 points per game. They're led by UMAC Tournament MVP Drew Sagedahl, who has averaged 17.1 points per game this year, shooting 46.9 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from beyond the arc.

Jax Madson has been a steady contributor as well pouring in 14.4 points per game, while Hunter Nielsen has been a major presence inside averaging 13.2 points on 62.5 percent shooting, to go along with a team-high 7.5 rebounds. Xavier Patterson and Mason Ackley round out the Viking starting five, averaging 12.4 and 11.6 points per game, respectively. Patterson distributes out a team-best 4.4 assists per game, while Ackley chips in 7.3 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.5 steals.

Hope College
After starting the season 7-7 the Flying Dutchmen have righted the ship, winning 12 of their last 14 games including all three in the conference Tournament contest to gain the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association's (MIAA) automatic bid to the big dance. They will be led by 2021-22 NABC All-American Evan Thomas, who has averaged 15.9 points per game this year to go along with 6.8 rebounds.

They've been anchored down low by big man Gabe Quillan, who averages 14.3 points on 57.0 percent shooting to go along with a team-high 7.6 rebounds per contest. Clayton Dykhouse rounds out the scorers in double-digits for Hope, as he averages 12.8 points per game and dishes out a team-most 3.4 assists.

Milestones to Watch
Hunter Nielsen is closing in on 1,000 points for his career, as he has 967 entering the NCAA Tournament. Nielsen also tied his own school record for blocks in a season with 56 on Sunday, and can break his mark from last year with one block in the Tournament.

The Series
This will be the first ever meeting between Hope and Bethany.

UWO/Fontbonne
UW-Oshkosh and Fontbonne will square off in the other matchup at 7:05 p.m. The second round of this bracket has the potential to be a rematch in two different ways, as Bethany defeated Fontbonne 95-81 earlier this season while UW-Oshkosh beat Hope 67-56.