King College enters the tournament as the number five seed and is under the direction of Conference Carolinas Coach of the Year George Pitts. The Tornado boasts a record of 23-6 and were the Conference Carolinas regular season Champions. This is King’s first-ever NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Tournament appearance and the College’s second national postseason tournament since making the transition from NAIA. Earlier this season, King was tabbed No. 2 in the Southeast region and made an appearance in the Top-25 Coaches’ Poll. King ended the season advancing to the Conference Carolinas semi-final game after earning a regular season championship with a 14-2 conference record. KC is led by First Team All-CC selection Brian Hewitt who is averaging 16.4 points per game. Second Team selection Eddie Piccinini averages 15.9 points per game. The Tornado out-scores its opponents by 5.4 points per game.

Columbus State University is the sixth seed in the tournament and is under the direction of head coach Robert Moore. This marks the Cougars first appearance in the national tournament since the 2006 season. That season, they defeated USC Upstate 90-88 in overtime before falling to eventual national runner-up Virginia Union in the second round 75-69. CSU enters the tournament with an 18-11 record on the year after reaching the Peach Belt Conference Tournament Championship game where they fell to the No. 1 seed in the region, Montevallo. CSU is led by Second Team All-PBC selection Steve Peterson who is averaging 15.0 points per game and 5.4 rebounds. Jarmarquis Steverson and Idell Bell both average just over 10.0 points per game. The Cougars are out-scoring their opponents by 2.6 points per game and are out-rebounding their opponents by 2.6 rebounds per game.

Wingate University enters the tournament as the number seven seed and is under the direction of head coach Brian Good. The Bulldogs won the SAC Tournament title for the fourth time in school history last weekend, while notching their first championship since the 2007 season. Wingate makes the NCAA Tournament for the eighth time in school history, making its first appearance since the 2008 season. In seven previous trips, Wingate is 5-7 overall with an Elite Eight finish in 2007. Wingate defeated both Lincoln Memorial and Anderson en route to their 2012 SAC Tournament Championship. WU is led by First Team All-SAC selection Jaime Vaughn who is averaging 15.0 points per game. Odell Turner sits in second on the team with 11.2 points per game. The Bulldogs own a 20-11 record and are out-scoring their opponents by 6.9 points per game. They also out-rebound their opponents by 4.1 per game.

Barton College comes into the tournament as the number eight seed and the 2012 Conference Carolinas Tournament Champions. Barton is making its sixth trip to the NCAA Division II National Tournament (1997, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012) and has one National Championship to their credit in 2007. BC is led by head coach Ron Lievense. Second Team All-Region selection Gerald Boston leads the Bulldogs on the court. Boston is a three-time All-Conference Carolinas performer (1st Team in 2012, 2nd Team in 2011 and 3rd Team in 2010) and was the 2010 Conference Carolinas Freshman of the Year. Boston earned a Conference Carolinas Player of the Week award earlier this season and was named the Conference Carolinas Tournament MVP. He averages 18.6 points per game and 4.9 assists. Jaren Haley is second on the Bulldog squad with 14.5 points per game. The Bulldogs are out-scoring their opponents by 6.6 points per game and out-rebound them by 3.4.

Anderson and Columbus State kick off the tournament on Saturday, March 10 at noon. USC Aiken and Wingate follow at 2:30 p.m. Host Montevallo takes on Barton at 6 p.m. while Lincoln Memorial and King take the floor at 8:30 p.m. All of the action will take place inside BankTrust Arena on the Montevallo campus.

For tickets, visit MontevalloFalcons.com and click on the NCAA Southeast Regional championship site.