Unfortunately it appears the impact of the Corona Virus and the new measures to prevent spread have now impacted all regions of the NCBBA-M, and thus we will have to cancel all 6 regional playoffs due to not having any qualifying teams who are capable of competing during regional weekend (March 27-29).

That said we have decided to crown the following teams as Regional Champions based upon the merit earned over the course of the regular season.

New England – UMass-Lowell – Finished #1 in the North conference during regular season play and is ranked #1 nationally compared to Yale, Boston College and Cortland who all finished #1 in their respective conferences and finished nationally ranked #10, #11, and #15 respectively.

North Atlantic – Penn State – Finished #1 in the West conference during regular season play and is ranked #8 nationally compared to Montclair State, Niagara and Rowan-Gold who all finished #1 in their respective conferences and finished nationally ranked outside the Top 20.

Great Lakes – Ohio State – Finished #1 in the East conference during regular season play and is ranked #2 nationally compared to Notre Dame, Missouri and Indiana who all finished #1 in their respective conferences and finished nationally ranked #3, #4, and #6 respectively.

South Atlantic– South Carolina – Finished #1 in North conference during regular season play and is ranked #5 nationally compared to Florida State and Auburn who all finished #1 in their respective conferences and finished nationally ranked #7 and #16 respectively.

Mid-Atlantic – U.S. Naval Academy – Finished #1 in North conference during regular season play and is ranked #9 nationally compared to Maryland who finished #1 in the South conference and finished nationally ranked outside the Top 20.

Southern Pacific – Arizona State University-Downtown – Finished #1 in East conference during regular season play and is ranked #12 nationally compared to Stanford who finished #1 in the West conference and finished nationally ranked outside the Top 20.

The NCBBA-M is still optimistic that the National Championship will still be able to take place April 17-19.  Some people have asked why we haven’t bagged the entire season like the NCAA, but we are approaching this crisis with a sense of hope and optimism.  While we are preparing for the worst case scenario, it is easy (yet painful) to send an email and end the 2020 season.  What we are also doing is preparing for the BEST case scenario which is much harder.  IF this crisis were to improve quickly we would like to be in a position to still host a National Championship for those deserving, able, and willing to compete.  This will eventually end, life will eventually return to normal, and when it does we want to be able to help heal the psyche of our student athletes through sport as quickly as possible.  That said we are going to monitor status of the situation and on April 1^st reevaluate the situation and the possible feasibility of hosting the National Championship and make the call at that time.  If we are able to proceed with the National Championship, the regional champions mentioned above would receive automatic bids, as well as two necessary At-Large Bid invitees to get to a field of 8.

We wish we were coming to you in a much different state of the world, and we hope you share the same sense of hope and optimism we do.  Please be safe in these coming weeks and we will be in touch in early April with an update on our plans.

Sincerely,

Sandy Sanderson

President

National Club Basketball Association

UMass-Lowell remains the #1 team in the nation by a 6-point margin over Ohio State University who comes in at #2.  The top four remain the same with the University of South Carolina jumping 3 spots to round out the top-five.  Two newcomers join the Top 20 with others making leaps and others taking falls.  Check out the Phenom Elite Week 21 NCBBA-M Top 20 Poll to see where everyone landed!

Please find the official statement from the NCBBA-M on how issues surrounding the COVID-19 Outbreak will be handled through the remainder of the season.

After closing out their regular season undefeated at 18-0, the River Hawks from UMass-Lowell are the new #1 team, edging out Ohio State by 4 points.  The University of South Carolina makes a huge jump landing at #8 and Auburn and IUPUI join the Phenom Elite 20 while Syracuse and Maryland drop out.  Check out the Phenom Elite Week 19 NCBBA Top 20 to see where everyone lands!

Next Poll Released: 3/19/2020!

UNC-Asheville, Havard University – Hoopsters, Maryville University, Monmouth University, West Virginia University, Western Kentucky University, and Wittenberg University have been placed on probation for the remainder of this season and possibly all of next season for violation of NCBBA Rule 22.01.0.

American University has officially joined the NCBBA for the 2020-2021 season.  Welcome Eagles!

The University of Connecticut and Merrimack College have been placed on probation for the remainder of this season and possibly all of next season for violation of NCBBA Rule 22.01.0.

Per usual, Ohio State University and UMass-Lowell claim #1 and #2 respectively even though UMass Lowell inches closer to that #1 position.  This week they were only 5 points back.  Missouri makes some noise jumping into the Top 5 after taking the series against SIUE-White.  Lots of other big match-ups the last two weeks made the Phenom Elite Week 17 NCBBA Top 20 change quite a bit.  We see three newcomers to the Top 20 after big wins and other teams drop out after tough losses.  Lots of basketball to be played, but check out where everyone is slated in this weeks poll!

NEXT POLL RELEASED: 3/5/20

Augustana College, Bellarmine University, and Southern New Hampshire University have all been placed on probation for the remainder of this season and possibly all of next season for violation of NCBBA Rule 22.01.0.

Appalachian State has officially joined the NCBBA for the 2020-2021 season.  Welcome Mountaineers!