The game times and locations for the NCAA Tournament were announced late on Sunday night after the seedings and matchups were released. No. 13 seed Liberty will take on No. 4 seed Oklahoma State on Friday at 6:25 pm Eastern in IUPUI’s Indiana Farmers Coliseum. The game will air on TBS and Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, and Dana Jacobsen will be on the call.
The winner of Friday’s contest will advance to play the winner of No. 5 seed Tennessee and No. 12 seed Oregon State on Sunday. The winner of that second-round game will advance to the Sweet 16 the following weekend.
The NCAA has switched up its standard tournament schedule, eliminating the traditional Thursday first round start day. The revised schedule has the First Four all being played on Thursday, with a 4 pm start. The first round will take place on Friday and Saturday with the second round being played on Sunday and Monday.
The Flames are 23-5 (11-2 in the ASUN) while the Cowboys are 20-8 (11-7 in the Big 12). Oklahoma State is led by freshman Cade Cunningham who is expected to be the number one overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. The youthful Cowboys are coached by Mike Boynton who is in his fourth year in Stillwater.
While Oklahoma State will feature a lineup of NCAA Tournament newcomers, Liberty relies heavily on the veteran stability of Elijah Cuffee and Darius McGhee, the ASUN Defensive Player of the Year and Player of the Year, respectively.
Liberty has won 12 straight games, including three straight in Jacksonville, Florida to secure the program’s third straight ASUN Tournament Title. The Cowboys advanced to the Big 12 Tournament finals where they lost to Texas on Saturday night, 91-86.
Indiana Farmers Coliseum is a 6,500 seat multi-use arena located on the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. It is home to both the Indy Fuel of the ECHL and the IUPUI Jaguars.
The full Midwest region: 1) Illinois 2) Houston 3)West Virginia 4) Oklahoma State 5) Tennessee 6) San Diego State 7) Clemson 8) Loyola Chicago 9) Georgia Tech 10) Rutgers 11) Syracuse 12) Oregon State 13) Liberty 14) Morehead State 15) Cleveland State 16) Drexel.
The entire NCAA Tournament will take place in Indiana, with the majority of the 67 games being played in Indianapolis.