SPOKANE, Wash. -- Whitworth will host Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in the first round of the NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday in the Whitworth Fieldhouse. The bracket for the 60-team tournament was announced this morning.

Click here for a printable bracket (PDF)

"We are pleased that the NCAA committee looked at our strength of schedule and awarded us this home game and CMS is a quality opponent," said Whitworth head coach Jim Hayford. "Coach Scalmanini and I have known each other for nearly twenty years and there is great respect between our programs. This should be a great environment with a great crowd and great teams."

The Stags, led by head coach Ken Scalmanini, finished the regular season with a 21-6 overall record. C-M-S won the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletics Conference regular season title with an 11-3 record, then defeated Cal Lutheran 60-54 in the SCIAC tournament semifinal before beating Pomona-Pitzer 56-44 in the tournament championship.

Ross Nakamura

Whitworth is 22-5 and finished second in the Northwest Conference regular season with a 12-4 record. The Pirates defeated Linfield 74-66 in the NWC semifinal before upsetting third-ranked Puget Sound 90-80 in the tournament championship in Tacoma. Senior guard Ross Nakamura scored a game-high 24 points in the win at UPS.

The winner of Thursday's game will travel to Tacoma, Washington to take on Puget Sound (24-3) in the second round of the tournament.

Early this season C-M-S handed Whitworth its first loss of the season, 73-68, in the semifinal of the Lee Fulmer Classic at Redlands (Calif.).

This is the second straight year Whitworth has hosted an NCAA Division III tournament game. Last March the Pirates played host to Occidental (Calif.) in the second round and came away with an 83-75 win. Whitworth will be making its fourth overall NCAA Division III tournament appearance and third in a row.

Ticket Information: Thursday's game will tip off at 7:00 p.m. in the Whitworth Fieldhouse. General admission tickets will be $6 for adults and $3 for students, children and seniors. A limited number of reserved seats will be available on Wednesday by calling 777-3224.