Grand Canyon, BYU-Hawaii begin post-season journey

BYU-Hawaii men, Grand Canyon women embark on post-season journey

QUEEN CREEK, AZ - The Grand Canyon University women's basketball team will fly north while the BYU-Hawaii men get to relax in the comfort of their own beds as the Pacific West Conference sends its two league champions on a mission into the post-season.

The NCAA announced its 64-team field for men's and women's basketball Sunday night, March 8, from its headquarters in Indianapolis, IN. The field featured one PacWest men's team and one women's squad slotted in their respective eight-team West Region bracket.

BYU-Hawaii - the top seed in the West Region and ranked third in the nation at 25-1 - will host a four-team sub-regional this Friday night in Laie, HI, starting at 5:30 p.m. in the Cannon Activities Center.

The Seasiders will face eighth-seed Humboldt State (20-11) in the opening round on Friday at 7:30 p.m. The game will immediately follow the battle between fourth-seed Cal State-Dominguez Hills (21-6) and fifth-seed Central Washington (18-6) scheduled for 5 p.m.

The winners of the two first-round games will play on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. for the right to advance to the regional championship game slated for Tuesday, March 17 at the home of the highest remaining seed in the region.

If BYU-Hawaii keeps winning, the Seasiders will remain at the Cannon Activities Center until the round of eight in Springfield, MA, March 25-28.

Grand Canyon, meanwhile, will travel to Seattle, WA, to face top-seed Seattle Pacific at 7:30 p.m. on March 13. The Antelopes are 16-11 overall and three-time champions of the PacWest. Seattle Pacific has erected a 21-2 overall mark as the top seed and is hosting all eight teams in the region.

If Grand Canyon wins, the Antelopes would battle either Humboldt State or Western Washington in the regional semifinals on Saturday night. The West Region Championship is scheduled for Monday, March 16.