Men’s Basketball Set to Square Off With Johnson & Wales University in ECAC Division III New England Championship

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Elms College men's basketball team earned the seventh seed in the 2013-14 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III New England Championship and will travel to No. 2 Johnson & Wales University on Wednesday, March 5 for a first round game at 7:30 p.m. in Providence, R.I.

This is Elms' third appearance in the ECAC postseason since 2009-10 and won the ECAC championship in its first appearance as the second seed, besting then top seed Eastern Connecticut State University, 94-71. The Blazers returned to the tournament in 2011-12 as the third seed and advanced to the semifinals before losing to Salve Regina University.

In 2013-14, Elms earned the top seed in the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Championship tournament for the second season in a row with a 12-4 overall record. The Blazers downed fifth-seeded Regis College, 81-71 in overtime in the semifinals before falling to second-seeded Mitchell College, 72-71 in a championship thriller at Picknelly Arena. Elms enters ECAC championship action with a 15-12 overall record and led by First Team All-NECC selections graduate student Andre French (Torrington, Conn.) and junior Kenny Lockett (Atlanta, Ga.).

In 2013-14, Johnson & Wales earned the third seed in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championship tournament with a 15-3 league record and advanced to the semifinals with a 92-58 win over sixth-seeded Anna Maria College. The Wildcats then lost to second-seeded St. Joseph's College (Maine), 66-64 in the semifinals.  The Wildcats stand at 20-7 overall entering ECAC postseason play.

This is Johnson & Wales second straight appearance in the ECAC postseason. The Wildcats earned the sixth seed in last season's tournament and fell to Eastern Connecticut State, 85-64 in first round action.

ECAC Division III New England Championship Seeding