The Saint Louis University Billikens claimed a No. 9 seed in the 2012 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship and will face No. 8 Memphis Friday at 6:50 p.m. at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
Saint Louis enters the NCAA Tournament with a 25-7 record, and 12-4 Atlantic 10 Conference record that placed the Billikens second in the league. Memphis, the Conference USA regular-season and tournament champion, is 26-8 overall including a 13-3 C-USA mark. The winner of the Billikens vs. Tigers matchup likely will meet No. 1 Michigan State Sunday, March 22. The winner of that game advances to the West Regional in Phoenix March 22 and 24.
It is the Billikens’ seventh appearance in the NCAA Tournament and first since 2000, when the Billikens won the Conference USA Tournament. The last time SLU claimed an NCAA at-large bid was in 1998. Fifth-year head coach Rick Majerus is no stranger to NCAA Tournament play. In his 25 years of coaching, Majerus has advanced to the NCAA Tournament 11 times. His 1997-98 Utah team was the national runner-up.
