augustana, wheaton advance to ncaa Division iii men's basketball tournament

NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- Augustana and Wheaton will represent the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) in the 2008 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament announced Monday.

Augustana (22-5, 11-3) earned the conference's automatic bid to the tournament with a 71-60 win over Illinois Wesleyan in the championship of the CCIW Men's Basketball Tournament last Saturday. Wheaton earned an at-large bid after finishing 19-7 overall this season (9-5 in the CCIW).

Augustana will host Aurora at 8 p.m. on Friday, March 7, which will follow a 6 p.m. first round game between the College of Wooster and Washington University. The winners of the two games will play each other at 7 p.m. on Saturday, March 8 at Augustana.

Wheaton will travel to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater to face Lawrence at 6 p.m. on Friday, March 7. The other match-up will see host Whitewater face Loras with the winners of each game facing each other at 7 p.m. on Saturday, March 8.

For the full bracket, visit ncaa.com. For information on all CCIW winter teams and individuals competing at the NCAA level, visit cciw.org.