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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State men's basketball team will compete in the 2013 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship. The RiverHawks (19-8, 12-6 MIAA) have earned the No. 7 seed in the NCAA Central Regional, and they will face No. 2 seed Winona State University (24-7, 17-5 NSIC) at 2:30 p.m. March 16 inside the Taylor Center (4,800) in Mankato, Minn.
 
This will be the first meeting between the two schools since NSU joined the NCAA in 1996-97. Northeastern State will be making its fifth appearance in the national tournament and its first since winning the championship in 2003. NSU's other four tournament appearances came from 2000-03.
 

Northeastern State's Probable Starters
F	10	Landon DeMasters	6-4, 200	So-RS	7.8 ppg, 2.6 rpg	Van Alstyne, Texas
F	15	Marcus Sheppard	6-4, 205	Jr-TR	5.9 ppg, 3.2 rpg	Vivian, La.
F	21	Jermaine Bransford	6-7, 225	Sr-1L	15.7 ppg, 9.5 rpg	Sand Springs, Okla.
G	3	Bryton Hobbs	6-0, 170	Jr-TR	18.3 ppg, 5.0 apg	St. Louis, Mo.
G	20	Ethan Anderson	6-3, 205	Sr-3L	10.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg	Cleburne, Texas
(RV) Winona State's Probable Starters
F	30	Taylor Cameron	6-5, 200	Jr.	9.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg	Oshkosh, Wisc.
C	44	Clayton Vette	6-9, 240	Sr.	20.8 ppg, 8.2 rpg	Waverly, Iowa
G	1	Kellen Taylor	6-7, 215	Jr.	6.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg	Plymouth, Minn.
G	2	Grant Johnson	6-5, 192	Sr.	10.6 ppg, 4.4 rpg	Kenosha, Wisc.
G	5	Xavier Humphrey	6-2, 195	Sr.	11.3 ppg, 2.5 apg	Oak Park, Ill.

SCOUTING THE WARRIORS
Winona State is currently 24-7 overall and finished in second place with a 17-5 mark in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. The Warriors are receiving votes in the most recent NABC/Division II national coaches poll. WSU went on a 14-game win streak late in the season, but the team has gone 4-4 since the streak was snapped. In their most recent action, the Warriors fell 74-72 to Bemidji State University in the quarterfinals of the 2013 NSIC/Sanford Health Championship. Winona State is led in scoring and rebounding by NSIC Player of the Year Clayton Vette, who is averaging 20.8 points per game and 8.2 rebounds per game. Xavier Humphrey is second on the team in scoring (11.3 ppg) and Grant Johnson is third at 10.6 ppg. Taylor Cameron averages 9.7 ppg and is second on the team in rebounding (5.2 rpg).
 
HOBBS, BRANSFORD COLLECT POSTSEASON HONORS
Bryton Hobbs and Jermaine Bransford were both selected to MIAA All-Conference Teams. In his first year as a member of the RiverHawks, Hobbs, a junior guard, averaged 18.2 points per game and was named to the All-MIAA First Team. Bransford, a senior forward, led the league in rebounding and was named to the All-MIAA Second Team. Hobbs is third in the league in scoring and fifth in assists (5.0 apg), while leading the conference in minutes played (34.3 mpg). He has scored in double figures in all but two games this season. He recorded 22 points, nine rebounds and eight assists in NSU's 83-71 overtime victory over Central Oklahoma. He outscored the Bronchos 8-3 in the extra session and played all 45 minutes. Bransford is eighth in the league in scoring (16.0 ppg) and 16th in the nation with 9.7 rebounds per contest (10.8 in conference games). He also leads the MIAA and is 11th in the NCAA in double-doubles (13). In NSU's 67-62 win at Emporia State Feb. 27, Bransford dropped 23 points and recorded career highs with 20 rebounds and five steals. The 20 rebounds were the most by any player in the MIAA this season and were two shy of tying the most by anyone in the country.
 
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP TICKETS ON SALE
Tickets for the NCAA Central Regional are $15 for reserved seats, $10 for adults and $5 for senior citizens, children (ages 5-17) and college students with valid student IDs. Tickets can be purchased online at msumavericktickets.com. Tickets will not be mailed but fans have the option of printing their own tickets online or they will be available for pick-up at the MSU Athletics Office between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Tickets that are not picked up can be claimed at Taylor Center Will Call on the day of the game. Online ticket availability closes at 9 p.m., the day prior to each session.
 
AT THE MIAA CHAMPIONSHIP
Northeastern State tied for third place in its inaugural season in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association and earned the No. 4 seed and a bye into the 2013 MIAA Championship quarterfinals. The RiverHawks bowed out of the tournament early after being upset by No. 5 seed Northwest Missouri State 69-65. The Bearcats used their momentum to advance all the way to overtime of the conference championship game before falling to Central Missouri in the final five minutes of play.
 
WHERE THEY FINISHED
Northeastern State finished with a 12-6 record in its first season in the MIAA. The RiverHawks tied for third place with Lindenwood and Washburn. Fort Hays State and Central Missouri (13-5) split the regular-season crown. NSU was selected to finish 14th in the conference this season by both the media and the league coaches.
 
20 AND 20
Jermaine Bransford scored a game-high 23 points and recorded career highs in rebounds (20) and steals (five) in leading NSU to a 67-62 road victory over Emporia State Feb. 23. Bransford's 20 rebounds were the most by anyone in the MIAA this season and were two shy of tying the most by any in the nation this year.
 
THE DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE
Senior forward Jermaine Bransford entered 2012-13 with just one double-digit rebounding effort and no career double doubles. He recorded his first double-double with 22 points and 11 rebounds Dec. 5 against Emporia State, and he now has reached at least 10 points and 10 rebounds in 13 of his last 21 games. He also has near double-doubles against Arkansas Tech (eight points, 12 boards), Northwestern Oklahoma State (31 points, nine boards), Harding (12 points, eight rebounds), and Central Oklahoma (22 points, nine rebounds). Over his last 20 games, Bransford is averaging 16.9 ppg (337 total points) and 10.3 rpg (206 total rebounds). He leads the MIAA in rebounding this season with 9.5 rpg.
 
BRILLIANT BRYTON
Northeastern State received a welcomed addition in the offseason in junior transfer Bryton Hobbs. The guard from St. Louis, Mo., has come to Tahlequah via both Pratt Community College and Cowley College. He has taken the MIAA by storm in his first season with the RiverHawks, as he is currently the league's third-leading scorer at 18.3 ppg, and he is fifth in assists with 5.0 dimes a night.
 
IN THE LEAGUE
Northeastern State leads the MIAA in both free-throw percentage (.775) and three point field-goal percentage defense (.325). The team is also second in field goal percentage (.476) and third in four other categories.
 
NSU's GIPSON IN 16TH SEASON
NSU's Larry Gipson (Heidelberg College, '74) is in his 16th season as the RiverHawks head coach. The long-time leader of the men's basketball program enters the year with a 264-187 record over his illustrious career at NSU. He is returning to the bench after having missed most of the 2011-12 season with an illness. Gipson is second all-time in school history behind only Jack Dobbins (314 wins) in career wins, and his .578 winning percentage is the best in school history. He reached the 100- and 200-win milestones faster than any other coach in school history. Gipson has posted eight winning seasons in his time at NSU, and those include five 20-win campaigns and a national championship in 2002-03 (32-3 record).
            Gipson was inducted into the NSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004. He and Nolan Richardson are the only two head coaches ever to lead teams to a national championship at both the NCAA and NJCAA level. Gipson, Richardson and Ray Harper (NCAA D-II, NAIA) are the only three coaches in college basketball history to win national titles at two different levels. Gipson began his college coaching career as a graduate assistant at the University of Tulsa under Richardson. Gipson has won three national coach of the year honors throughout his career. He was named the 2003 Division II Coach of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), he earned the 2003 Molten/Division II Bulletin Coach of the Year award and he was also the 1989 NABC national junior college coach of the year. He was appointed by his peers as the President of the Board of the Directors for the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) in April 2012.
 
NORTHEASTERN STATE CELEBRATING 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
The RiverHawks are celebrating the 10-year anniversary of their historic national championship run from the 2002-03 campaign. The team posted a school-record 32 wins to just three losses that season and defeated Kentucky Wesleyan 75-64 on March 29 in Lakeland, Fla., to earn the first and only men's basketball national championship in Northeastern State history. Four different RiverHawks averaged 10 points per game that season, led by Jon Shepherd's 14.6 ppg average. Reggie Battee was the top rebounder at 6.2 rpg, and Darnell Hinson led NSU at 4.1 assists per game.
 
ONE FINAL YEAR
The 2012-13 campaign marks the last in Jack Dobbins Field House. The field house has served as the home of NSU basketball since the 1954-55 season, and Northeastern State will move into its new home beginning in 2013-14. The $14.4 million event center has yet to be named and is currently under construction. The new home of RiverHawks basketball will seat 3,000 and will be located adjacent to Doc Wadley Stadium on the north side of the NSU campus.
 
NSU SELECTED 14TH IN MIAA PRESEASON POLLS
The Northeastern State men's basketball team was selected to finish 14th in the 2012-13 MIAA Preseason Coaches and Media Polls. “I think the ranking is what we deserve based on last year,” NSU head men's basketball coach Larry Gipson said. “I don't see how we could be picked very highly, but it's up to us to prove that we're not a bottom-end team in the MIAA. Washburn, who won last season's conference tournament, has been picked by both the media and coaches to finish first again this year. The Ichabods represented the MIAA in the NCAA Tournament along with Northwest Missouri and Missouri Southern. Central Missouri, who finished tied for the conference regular season crown, has been picked second in both polls picking up three first place votes from the coaches. Northwest Missouri, who also took home a piece of the regular season crown, has been picked to finish third this season in both polls, picking up a first place vote from the coaches.
 
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