Rochester, MN-

With Rainy River Community College handing Fond du Lac Tribal & Community College a 113-86 loss on Sunday, February 24, the Northern Division of the Minnesota College Athletic Conference concludes play and sends four teams on to the MCAC/NJCAA Region XIII post-season.   Eight teams total from the Minnesota College Athletic Conference will meet in Coon Rapids on March 1-2-3 for the right to advance to the2018-19 NJCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championships.

In the Southern Division of the MCAC, three playoff participants have played their way into the MCAC/Region XIII tournament, but Mother Nature may have the last word as to the fourth team to join the fray. 

Central Lakes College ran away with the Northern Division championship and top North seed in 2018-19, posting a 15-1 MCAC mark; their only blemish was a 93-85 loss to Vermilion Community College in early January.  Mesabi Range College surged to a second place Divisional finish at 12-4 as the Norse have won their last five games and look to be in strong form heading to Coon Rapids, where they will be the No. 2 seed from the North.   With today's win, Rainy River secures third place at 11-5 overall and advances to the playoffs.  The fourth and final spot for Northern Division advancement saw a battle between Lake Superior College, Itasca Community College and Northland Community & Techncial College, all of whom entered the final weeks of play with a chance to punch their ticket to the post-season party.  In the end, 9-7 Northland's 5-1 run in February sends them on to Anoka-Ramsey, as they hold the tiebreaker over fellow 9-7 squad Itasca with a win over #3 seed Rainy River. The Pioneers will trek to Coon Rapids as the final Northern Division rep.

Like their Northern Division counterparts, teams in the Southern Division battled down to the wire to decide the post-season programs.  Riverland Community College and St. Cloud Technical & Community College traded wins on each other's courts and finished with identical 10-4 Divisional records.  The Divisional co-champions flipped a coin after the OT contest on Saturday, and Riverland will take the #1 Seed in the from the South to the Region tournament while SCTCC will be #2.  Anoka-Ramsey Community College sits comfortably in the #3 spot with a 9-5 Conference mark as the Golden Rams play host next weekend and have five of their last six games. 

The fourth position in the Southern Division is still unknown.  Rochester Community & Technical College is scheduled to host M State-Fergus Falls on Monday, February 25 as a make-up from an earlier postponement. Western Technical College has a huge stake in the RCTC- M State match-up, as a Spartan win would send the Cavaliers to the tournament.  A Yellowjacket win would put RCTC at 8-6 overall and allow them to edge the upstart Western Tech squad in the standings. With blizzard conditions prevailing in southern Minnesota Sunday into Monday, both colleges and administrations are working to find a safe option for conducting the contest early this week.  

For more information on Minnesota College Athletic Conference All-Division Teams and more Region XIII mens' basketball tournament information stay tuned to www.MCACSPORTS.org and the Conference social media feeds. 

For more information on Anoka-Ramsey Community College - the host site for the Minnesota College Athletic Conference and Region XIII mens' basketball tournament - please visit: http://www.arccgoldenrams.com/landing/index

MCAC Men's Basketball Standings: http://www.mcacsports.org/sports/mbkb/2018-19/standings

MCAC Men's Basketball Schedule: http://www.mcacsports.org/sports/mbkb/2018-19/schedule

NJCAA Division III National Statistical Leaders: http://www.njcaa.org/sports/mbkb/2018-19/div3/leaders

MCAC Men's Basketball Statistical Leaders: http://www.mcacsports.org/sports/mbkb/2018-19/leaders

All things NJCAA Basketball can be found on the NJCAA Basketball Twitter feed; click below for more info.

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About the Minnesota College Athletic Conference

The Minnesota College Athletic Conference is the organizational body for NJCAA-affiliated two-year technical and community college athletic programs in the Minnesota State system.  The mission of the Minnesota College Athletic Conference is to advance intercollegiate athletics by providing an engaging and supportive environment for success of our student athletes and competition among member institutions.  The MCAC is committed to the guiding principles of encouraging the development and success of student athletes, promoting the integrity, honesty and loyalty to member schools as well as upholding the sustainability of conference athletic programs.