Interactive Bracket | Championship Central

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The NCAA Division III Tournament pairings have been announced and the Bridgewater State University men's basketball team will travel to Williamstown, Massachusetts Friday night (TBA) to take on the host Ephs of Williams College in an opening round contest.

Williams (22-5) is hosting a four-team pod at the John Wesley Chandler Athletic Center with Ramapo College (21-6) taking on Moravian College (20-7) in the other first round match-up. The winners will advance to play a second round game on Saturday evening.

Bridgewater State will be making its’ eighth NCAA Tournament appearance and sixth in the last thirteen years. The previous seven trips to the national tournament came in 1983, 1999, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2014.

The Bears enter the tournament with an overall mark of 18-9. Bridgewater earned the automatic qualifier to the NCAAs by winning the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Tournament championship on Saturday with an 77-72 victory over fourth seeded Fitchburg State University. The Bears were the #2 seed at the MASCAC Tournament after posting an 9-3 conference mark during the regular season.

The BSU men's basketball team is under the watchful eye of 26-year head coach, Joe Farroba. The four-time (1998, 2009, 2010, 2012) MASCAC Coach of the Year sports a career mark of 379-312 (.548) including a conference regular season record of 194-118 (.622). Farroba’s 379 wins are by far the most in program history as he is the only Bridgewater coach to reach not only the 300-win milestone but also the 200-win milestone.

On the court, Bridgewater State is led senior guard Rocky DeAndrade (Mansfield,Mass.), senior forward Joseph Carty (Natick, Mass.) and sophomore forward Rayshon Ward (Fayetteville, N.C.).

DeAndrade is averaging 16.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists while shooting 47% (141-300) from the floor, including 42% (61-148) from behind the arc.  He currently sits second in the MASCAC in points per game, third in both three point percentage and free throw shooting, fourth in assits, sixth in steals, and ninth in field goal percentage. The MVP of the MASCAC Tournament, DeAndrade reached the 1,000-point milestone on Janurary 25th in a 68-58 win over Fitchburg State Universtiy. He currently ranks 23rd all-time at BSU in scoring with 1,139 points.

Carty has notched 15.5 points per game and 12.7 rebounds per game this season, while shooting 43% (111-256) from the field. He leads the MASCAC in both offensive and defense rebounds, as well as sitting fourth in free throw percentage (88.7%), and sixth in points per game (15.0). Carty also ranks fifth nationally in rebound with 12.7 per game and eighth in double-doubles with 16.

Ward is averaging 15.6 points and 7.4 rebounds per game  while shooting 50% (152-303) from the floor and 37% (28-78) from behind the arc. He currently sits third in the conference in both defensive rebounds and total points, as well as fourth in total rebounds, and fifth in field goal percentage. 

Release courtesy of Bridgewater State Sports Information