BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – The 2022-23 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) men's basketball regular season came to a close on Saturday afternoon. After one of the more exciting and unpredictable seasons in recent memory, the field is officially set for next week's MIAC Men's Basketball Playoffs.
Carleton (17-3) locked up the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament after earning the sixth MIAC championship in program history - the team's first since 2010-11 and first outright MIAC title in a century (1922-23). The Knights now have a bye through the first round of play and will host a semifinal game at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, February 23.
Saint John's (13-7) will be the No. 2 seed after topping Bethel for the Johnnies' 13th conference win in the regular season finale on Saturday. SJU will be making its 29th appearance in the conference tournament and has earned a bye into the semifinal round. The Johnnies will face the higher remaining seed at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, February 23.
Saint Mary's (12-8) locked down the No. 3 seed with a win over Gustavus on Saturday. The Cardinals will host No. 6 seed Hamline (10-10), who dropped a three-point heartbreaker to Concordia on Saturday afternoon. The two squads split their regular season series. The playoff rubber match is tentatively scheduled for 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 21.
Macalester (11-9) is slotted in at No. 4 and will host No. 5 St. Olaf (10-10) on Tuesday afternoon. The Scots fell to Augsburg on Saturday afternoon, while St. Olaf wrapped up its regular season early on Wednesday night. The two teams split their two games in the regular season and will match up for a third time next Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. in St. Paul.
Tuesday's two quarterfinal winners will advance to Thursday's semifinals, where No. 1 Carleton and No. 2 Saint John's will be waiting. The bracket will re-seed following the first round, matching up the lowest remaining seed against the top-seeded Knights, while the Johnnies will welcome the higher seed to Collegeville. Both semifinal contests are tentatively scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
The semifinal winners will meet on Saturday, February 25, in the 2023 MIAC Men's Basketball Playoff championship game. The game is tentatively scheduled for 7:00 p.m. The MIAC Playoff champion will receive the postseason championship plaque and the Conference's automatic bid to the 2023 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament.
2023 MIAC MEN'S BASKETBALL PLAYOFF SCHEDULE
Quarterfinals | Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023 | 7:00 p.m. |
No. 6 Hamline at No. 3 Saint Mary's
No. 5 St. Olaf at No. 4 Macalester
Semifinals | Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023 | 7:00 p.m. |
No. 4/5/6 seed at No. 1 Carleton
No. 3/4/5 seed at No. 2 Saint John's
Championship | Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023 | 7:00 p.m. |
Highest remaining seed will host
GAME TIMES ARE TENTATIVE
| 2023 MIAC Men's Basketball Playoffs |