The Hobart basketball team will travel to Chester, Pennsylvania, to take on the defending national champion, Christopher Newport in the first round of the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship. The Statesmen and Captains will tip off at 5:10 p.m., Friday, March 1 in Widener's Schwartz Center.
 
The Hobart-CNU game will be followed by the host Pride taking on Roger Williams at 7:40 p.m. Friday's winners will square off in the Schwartz Center at 7:40 p.m. Saturday, March 2.
 
Tickets are $15 for general admission, $10 for seniors. Tickets go on sale at 4 p.m. Friday.
 
WHWS-FM (105.7) will broadcast Hobart's game against CNU. A live webcast and live stats will be available on widenerpride.com.
 
The Statesmen earned an automatic bid into the big dance by winning the Liberty League Tournament Championship. Hobart is making its sixth NCAA tournament appearance and first since 2020. That year, the Statesmen won a program record 23 games, including NCAA upsets of No. 14 Saint Joseph 78-74 and No. 17 Springfield 62-61. Hobart was scheduled to play at Christopher Newport in the Round of 16 when the remainder of the tournament was canceled due to COVID.
 
The Captains won the Coast-To-Coast Conference Tournament and its automatic bid in the NCAA fray. CNU is making its eight straight and 27th overall NCAA appearance. The Captains defeated Mount Union 74-72 in the 2023 national championship game to capture the program's first title.
 
Here's a snapshot of each team:
 
HOBART
Location: Geneva, New York
Mascot: Statesmen
Overall Record: 22-5
Record at Neutral Sites: 2-0
Liberty League Record: 13-5 (Regular Season Co-Champs, Tournament Champs)
D3hoops.com Poll: NR
How they reached the NCAA tournament: Automatic bid
NCAA tournament record: 4-4 (5 appearances)
National Championships: 0
Head Coach: Stefan Thompson '13 (4th season, 74-34)
Scoring Offense: 71.5 ppg
Scoring Defense: 66.3 ppg
Field Goal Percentage: .437
3-Point Field Goal Percentage: .319
Free Throw Percentage: .718
Rebounding Margin: +6.0 rpg
Turnover Margin: +0.5
Scoring Leader: Pat Healy, 12.9 ppg
Rebounding Leader: Carter Meshanic, 7.2 rpg
Assists Leader: Aidan Rodgers, 3.4 apg
 
CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT
Location: Newport News, Virginia
Mascot: Captains
Overall Record: 21-6
Record at Neutral Sites: 2-0
Coast-To-Coast Conference Record: N/A (Tournament Champs)
D3hoops.com Poll: 23
How they reached the NCAA tournament: Automatic bid
NCAA tournament record: 33-25 (26 appearances)
National Championships: 1 (2023)
Head Coach: John Krikorian (13th season at CNU, 311-71; 17th season overall, 376-113)
Scoring Offense: 73.2 ppg
Scoring Defense: 63.2 ppg
Field Goal Percentage: .417
3-Point Field Goal Percentage: .318
Free Throw Percentage: .601
Rebounding Margin: +7.5 rpg
Turnover Margin: +1.3
Scoring Leader: Jahn Hines, 15.4 ppg
Rebounding Leader: Trey Barber, 7.8 rpg
Assists Leader: Hines, 2.6 apg
 
ROGER WILLIAMS
Location: Bristol, Rhode Island
Mascot: Hawks
Overall Record: 14-14
Record on the Road: 8-7
Commonwealth Coast Conference Record: 8-8 (Tournament Champs)
D3hoops.com Poll: NR
How they reached the NCAA tournament: Automatic bid
NCAA tournament record: 1st appearance
National Championships: 0
Head Coach: Mike Tully (21st season at RWU, 285-269; 24th season overall, 306-336)
Scoring Offense: 80.9 ppg
Scoring Defense: 80.8 ppg
Field Goal Percentage: .488
3-Point Field Goal Percentage: .380
Free Throw Percentage: .680
Rebounding Margin: -4.9 rpg
Turnover Margin: -0.4
Scoring Leader: Mac Annus, 20.4 ppg
Rebounding Leader: Finn Miller, 7.0 rpg
Assists Leader: Phillip Sughrue, 4.6 apg
 
WIDENER
Location: Chester, Pennsylvania
Mascot: Pride
Overall Record: 23-4
Record at Home: 13-1
Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth Record: 12-2 (Regular Season Champs)
D3hoops.com Poll: 16
How they reached the NCAA tournament: At-Large bid
NCAA tournament record: 19-19 (17 appearances)
National Championships: 0
Head Coach: Chris Carideo (18th season at Widener, 272-191; 23rd season overall, 358-243)
Scoring Offense: 83.6 ppg
Scoring Defense: 70.5 ppg
Field Goal Percentage: .465
3-Point Field Goal Percentage: .357
Free Throw Percentage: .726
Rebounding Margin: +2.9 rpg
Turnover Margin: +4.3
Scoring Leader: Dominic Dunn, 14.1 ppg
Rebounding Leader: Dunn, 7.7 rpg
Assists Leader: Howie Rankine, 3.7 apg