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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State men's basketball team heads to Kansas City to embark on a journey through the 2013 MIAA Men's Basketball Championship. The RiverHawks (19-7, 12-6 MIAA) earned the tournament's No. 4 seed and were awarded a bye into the quarterfinals.
 
NSU will face No. 5 Northwest Missouri State (19-9, 11-7 MIAA) at 2:15 p.m. March 7 inside Municipal Auditorium (7,316). The Bearcats defeated No. 12 Missouri Western State 66-46 March 4 in the first round of the championship.
 
NWMSU owns a 2-1 mark over NSU since the RiverHawks joined the NCAA in 1996-97. Northeastern State earned a 60-56 win early in the 1999-00 campaign, and the Bearcats got their revenge a year later, picking up a 62-60 triumph early the following year. Both games were played on neutral grounds. The Bearcats defeated the RiverHawks 73-72 earlier this year (Jan. 31) in Maryville, Mo.
 

Northeastern State's Probable Starters
F	10	Landon DeMasters	6-4, 200	So-RS	7.6 ppg, 2.6 rpg	Van Alstyne, Texas
F	15	Marcus Sheppard	6-4, 205	Jr-TR	6.1 ppg, 3.3 rpg	Vivian, La.
F	21	Jermaine Bransford	6-7, 225	Sr-1L	16.0 ppg, 9.7 rpg	Sand Springs, Okla.
G	3	Bryton Hobbs	6-0, 170	Jr-TR	18.2 ppg, 5.0 apg	St. Louis, Mo.
G	20	Ethan Anderson	6-3, 205	Sr-3L	10.6 ppg, 4.0 rpg	Cleburne, Texas
Northwest Missouri State's Probable Starters
F	20	Tyler Funk	6-3, 170	Jr.	2.9 ppg, 2.5 rpg	Kearney, Mo.
C	51	Dillon Starzl	6-8, 250	Jr.	13.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg	Kearney, Mo.
G	1	Alex Sullivan	6-0, 185	Sr.	11.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg	Painesville, Ohio
G	30	Matt Wallace	5-11, 170	So.	4.0 ppg, 4.8 apg	Bellevue, Neb.
G	32	DeAngelo Hailey	6-3, 185	Sr.	14.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg	Detroit, Mich.

 
SCOUTING THE BEARCATS
Northwest Missouri State is currently 19-9 overall, and the Bearcats finished league play at 11-7. They took down Missouri Western State in the opening round of the MIAA Championship, and they have won four of their last five games. DeAngelo Hailey leads the team in scoring (14.2 ppg) and rebounding (5.0 rpg). Dillon Starzl also averages 5.0 rebounds per game, while scoring at a 13.0 clip. Alex Sullivan scores 11.0 points per game.
 
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.
 
HOBBS, BRANSFORD PICK UP 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 and is coming off arguably his best game as a RiverHawk. 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.
 
MIAA CHAMPIONSHIP IN KC
The 2013 MIAA Men's Basketball Championship is set to take place inside Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo. The top 12 teams in the regular season all qualify for postseason play, with the top four earning byes to Kansas City. The first round will be contested at host sites March 4, with the fifth seed hosting No. 12, the sixth seed hosting No. 11, etc. Those four winners will join the top four seeds in KC March 7-10.
 
MIAA CHAMPIONSHIP TICKETS ON SALE
Tickets for the MIAA Basketball Championships at Kansas City's Municipal Auditorium are now on sale at the NSU Ticket Office. Northeastern State has qualified for the MIAA Championship and is fighting to clinch one of the top four spots to earn a bye to KC. Tickets for first round games will be available through the host sites only. For the Kansas City portion of the tournament, all-session passes, which will allow access to all 14 games of the tournament, are just $50 if purchased through Northeastern State. Passes purchased at the Municipal Auditorium Box Office will be $65. Single-session passes are $20 and are good for any single session of the tournament. Both all-session and single-session passes can be purchased through Northeastern State. NSU students can purchase single-session passes for $5 (with valid NSU ID). Children six and under will be admitted free of charge. Visit Northeastern State's ticket office or call 918-444-3901 for more information. The Kansas City Downtown Marriott is the host hotel for the tournament. Special room rates are available by mentioning the MIAA fan rate or by booking online through www.themiaa.com.
 
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 20 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 19 games, Bransford is averaging 17.2 ppg (327 total points) and 10.6 rpg (202 total rebounds). He leads the MIAA in rebounding this season with 9.7 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 18.2 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.
 
MIAA NETWORK
The Northeastern State men's and women's basketball road games against Lincoln University were televised by the MIAA Network. The contests are one of just three league doubleheaders being aired by the network, which is available locally on Cox Oklahoma Channels 3 and 703, and on KSMO Channel 62 in Kansas City. Both contests were held in Jason Gym on Lincoln's campus. It was the first meeting for both programs as league rivals, as NSU is currently in its inaugural campaign in the MIAA. NSU kicked off the MIAA Network's basketball slate, which featured three doubleheaders and the men's and women's tournament championship games. In addition to NSU's Dec. 8 contests, the MIAA Network also broadcast the Feb. 23 doubleheader between Nebraska Kearney and Missouri Western and the March 2 doubleheader between Central Missouri and Washburn. The network will close out the regular season on March 10 with the MIAA Women's and Men's Basketball Championship games, which will be played at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.
 
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 264-186 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.
 
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