UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA GOPHERS EARN SECOND STRAIGHT NCAA BERTH

Following a run to the Big Ten Tournament title game for the first time, the Gopher Basketball team earned a second-straight NCAA Tournament berth. The Gophers (21-13) were granted a No. 11 seed and will face No. 6 Xavier (24-8) on Friday at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, Wis. The game time has not been decided.

This marks Minnesota's eighth NCAA Tournament berth and just the second time that it has earned berths in consecutive seasons. The Gophers earned a No. 10 seed last season and lost to No. 7 Texas in the first round.

The Gophers were placed in the West region with their pod in Milwaukee. If they are able to advance, they will face the winner of No. 3 Pittsburgh and No. 14 Oakland on Sunday.

Minnesota has won seven of its last 10 games including three over top 15 ranked opponents entering the NCAA Tournament. This marks Tubby Smith's 16th trip to the NCAA Tournament 19 seasons as a head coach. Smith stretched his NCAA-leading streak of consecutive seasons with 20 victories or more to 17 with the Gophers' Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal win over Michigan State on Friday. Smith is 29-13 all-time as a head coach at the NCAA Tournament.

As the sixth-seed at the Big Ten Tournament, the Gophers recorded wins over Penn State (76-55), 11th-ranked Michigan State (72-67 in OT), and sixth-ranked Purdue (69-42) to advance to their first championship game. But fifth-ranked Ohio State (27-7) went on an amazing run midway through the second half, and earned the Big Ten's automatic NCAA Tournament berth.

The Gophers and 24th-ranked Musketeers have played three times, but have not met on the court since Minnesota recorded an 83-76 win on Dec. 27, 1956. The Maroon and Gold has won all three games in the series. Xavier went 14-2 in the Atlantic 10 this season, tying for the regular season crown with Temple. The Musketeers fell to Richmond in the Atlantic 10 Tournament semifinals.