• The No. 3-ranked, MIAA Regular Season and MIAA Tournament Champion Washburn Ichabods will host the NCAA Central Regional for the second season in a row and will face Minnesota Duluth in the opening game on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. in Lee Arena.
• The Ichabods (31-1, 18-1 MIAA) clinched their 12th outright MIAA title and their second in a row earlier this season.
• Minnesota Duluth, winners of the Northern Sun Tournament, are 21-11 this season after going 14-9 in conference play … the Bulldogs enter the NCAA Tournament on an eight-game winning streak.
• The Bulldogs were the No. 6 seed winning the tournament title with a win over top-seeded St. Cloud State 76-65 on March 3 in Sioux Falls.
• The Ichabods rolled through the MIAA Tournament outscoring their opponents 267 to 180 including an MIAA Championship game margin of victory record in their 91-59 win over Rogers State last time out to win their seventh MIAA Tournament Championship.
• The Ichabods never trailed in any of the MIAA Tournament games.
• The Ichabods are making their 18th NCAA appearance and enter the tournament with a 20-17 overall record in the event.
• Washburn was 4-1 last season in the NCAA Tournament reaching the 2025 NCAA Division II Final Four.
• The Ichabods were ranked third in the final NABC Poll of the season, which is the highest ranking in the final poll since coming in at No. 4 last season.
• The Ichabods won their first MIAA Tournament Championship since 2021 and their first one in Kansas City since March 4, 2012 when Washburn topped Pittsburg State 67-63 in the championship game.
• The Ichabods have secured their third 30-win season and the second consecutive after last season's 30-4 record.
• Washburn recorded its 29th consecutive home win breaking the previous 28-game streak from Nov. 19, 1993 to Feb. 8, 1995.
• The Ichabods have the No. 1-ranked scoring offense in the MIAA putting up 87.1 ppg and the No. 1-ranked scoring defense allowing 61.9 ppg.
• The Ichabods are coming off one of the best seasons in program history with an NCAA Final Four appearance, an NCAA Central Regional Championship and an MIAA regular season title with a 30-4 overall record after going 17-2 in MIAA play.
• The Ichabods have recorded 32, 20-win seasons in program history and six under Ichabod head coach Brett Ballard in his nine seasons receiving four NCAA postseason berths coaching the 2024-25 squad to only the program's second 30-win season in school history.
• The 2025-26 season marks the 121st season of Ichabod basketball.
• The Washburn Ichabods were picked atop the MIAA Preseason Coaches and Media polls released Oct. 6 by the league office. In the MIAA Coaches Poll, Washburn received 13 of 14 first-place votes, tallying 169 points, finishing ahead of Rogers State which had one first-place vote and 141 total points. In the MIAA media poll, the Ichabods received 23 of 25 first-place votes from the media for 346 total points. Fort Hays State had one first-place vote and 297 points, and Rogers State had a first-place vote and 286 total points.
  • The Ichabods recorded their 32nd, 20-win season in program history and their sixth under head coach Brett Ballard in his ninth season on the Ichabod bench with the win over Missouri Western earlier this season … the Ichabods have already recorded their second-consecutive 30-win season.
• The Ichabods are first in the nation in scoring margin in the NCAA D2 ranks at +25.1 ppg and are ranked fourth in field goal percentage at 50.9 percent - leading the MIAA … Washburn is third in assists per game (18.9), sixth in assist/turnover ratio (1.58), fifth in effective field goal percentage (.580) and second in rebound margin (+10.7) … Washburn is second in scoring defense (61.9 ppg), 11th in fastbreak points (17.7 ppg), seventh in defensive field goal percentage (.395), seventh in turnover margin (+5.6) and 10th in turnovers forced per game (+17.6).
• Dillon Claussen is eighth in the nation in field goal percentage at 62.5 … Jeremiah Jones is first the nation in total steals with 102 and is ranked second in steals per game at 3.19 per contest.
• Jack Bachelor is 21st in the nation in total assists with 149 and seventh in assist to turnover ratio at 3.10 to 1 … Bachelor is ranked ninth on the active D2 assists chart and he is third on the active NCAA D2 chart in assist to turnover ratio and ranked eighth out of all NCAA levels at 2.89 … Bachelor is also 10th in 3-pointers made with 95 and 19th in 3-pointers per game with 2.97.
• Brady Christiansen is 10th on the NCAA active D2 chart with 770 career rebounds … he also moved into the top 30 all-time at Washburn in scoring with 900 career points.
• Jeremiah Jones is ranked fifth in career steals on the active NCAA D2 chart and No. 17 out of all NCAA levels.
• Sam Ungashick has scored 969 collegiate points with 610 coming at Washburn with 359 being scored in his lone season at Benedictine as a freshman before joining the Ichabods.
• Washburn's current 29-game homecourt winning streak is second in the nation behind Nova Southeastern's 102-game winning streak.
• The Ichabods' current 29-game homecourt winning streak is the longest in program history.
  • The Ichabods won their first tournament title since the 2021 season and the first one in Kansas City since 2012.
• Washburn's MIAA Tournament titles have come in 1992, 1994, 1997, 2001, 2012, 2021 and 2026 … the 2012 and 2026 titles are the only one coming in Kansas City.
• Jack Bachelor was named the Tournament MVP with games of 24, 27 and 14 also dishing out 22 assists with only two turnovers hitting 16 3's during the three games … he joins Will McNeill (2012) and Jalen Lewis (2021) as Ichabods to win the tourney MVP honor.
• Brady Christiansen was also named to the all-tournament team after averaging 14.3 ppg with 10 rpg hitting 50 percent of his 3-point shots going 7 of 14 overall from deep.
• Jeremiah Jones scored set an MIAA single game tournament record in the semis against Missouri Western with eight steals en route to all-tournament team honors.
• The Ichabods in the win in the championship game over Rogers State set the largest margin of victory in an MIAA Tournament game with 32 topping the previous mark of 29 set in 2019. WASHBURN ICHABOD HEAD COACH BRETT BALLARD ...
• is 198-80 in his ninth season as the Ichabods' head coach and 231-110 overall in his 11th year as a head coach.
• has led the Ichabods to five NCAA postseason appearances in eight seasons at Washburn as well as the 2021 MIAA Tournament Championship and the 2025 MIAA Regular season title.
• was named the Washburn Ichabod men's basketball head coach on April 6, 2017 after spending the 2014-15 to 2016-17 seasons as an assistant coach with the Wake Forest and Tulsa basketball programs after working under head coach Danny Manning 2012-17 seasons.
• he helped Wake Forest to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since the 2009-10 season following the 2016-17 season.
• prior to taking over the head coaching position at Baker, Ballard spent seven years on Bill Self's staff at Kansas, his alma mater.
• he played two years for the Jayhawks under head coach Roy Williams from 2000-02 after transferring from Hutchinson Community College in his hometown of Hutchinson, Kan. In his two seasons as a Jayhawk, the team reached the 2001 NCAA Sweet Sixteen and appeared in the 2002 NCAA Final Four in Atlanta.
• he earned his bachelor's degree in secondary education from Kansas in 2003 earning an Academic All-Big 12 selection as a senior for his efforts in the classroom.
• he is 1-0 against Minnesota Duluth.
 
MINNESOTA DULUTH HEAD COACH JUSTIN WIECK ...
• took over as the University of Minnesota Duluth head men's basketball coach on May 1, 2018, becoming the 17th head coach in the 89-year history of the Bulldog program and just the fourth since the 1984-85 season.
• spent four years of assistant coaching service at MSU-Moorhead, the Dragons rolled up a 96-38 overall record, made three NCAA Tournament appearances, captured at least a share of two Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference regular titles, advanced to two NSIC Tournament finals and reigned as the NSIC North Division champions three times.
• is 163-69 in his eighth season on the Bulldog bench.
• is 0-1 against the Ichabods.
  • The Bulldogs (21-11) earned their way in to the NCAA Tournament after winning the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Tournament for the third time in program history, downing conference favorite St. Cloud State University. This entry marks the program's seventh entry and fourth under head coach Justin Wieck.
• Caleb Siwek was named the MVP of the NSIC Tournament scoring 34 points, including 19 in the opening half. Kole Hanson scored 18 in the championship win over St. Cloud State.
• Siwek leads the team in scoring for the season at 15.3 ppg hitting 57 3-pointers … Hanson is second in scoring at 15.1 ppg also hitting 57 3-pointers and Noah Pauson is scoring 12.5 ppg … Nick Katona leads the team in rebounding at 6.8 rpg.
• On the season, the Bullldogs are averaging 77.91 ppg and allowing 71.22 ppg and have won their last eight games entering the weekend.
  • Saturday's meeting will be just the fourth between the Ichabods and the Bulldogs.
• Washburn won the last meeting in the first round of the NCAA Tournament as the No. 7 seed topping the No. 2 seeded Bulldogs 83-73 in Sioux Falls on March 12, 2022.
• The Ichabods also own an 86-61 victory by the Ichabods on Nov. 24, 2012 in San Antonio, Texas at the St. Mary's Thanksgiving Classic and a win on March 14, 1989 when both teams were members of the NAIA when the Ichabods won 59-55 in the round of 32 in Kansas City in a 59-55 win.
  March 12, 2022 - SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Washburn Ichabods advanced to the round of 32 after knocking off the No. 2-seeded Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs 83-73 on Saturday at the Sanford Pentagon.
The Ichabods jumped out to a 6-0 lead in the first two-plus minutes of the game but the Bulldogs (25-6) came back using a 13-5 over the next five minutes built a lead of 21-15 as UMD opened 9 of 9 from the free throw line. The Ichabods battled back to tie the score at 26 and then outscored the Bulldogs 6-3 to end the half taking a 32-29 lead into the break.
In the first half, the Bulldogs were 17 of 19 from the free throw line compared to 1 of 2 for the Ichabods. UMD was 5 of 20 from the field in the opening half.
To start the second, the Bullodgs scored the first four points of the frame before a 9-2 Ichabod spurt pushed Washburn to a 41-35 lead. After a 3-pointer by the Bulldogs that cut the Ichabod lead to 46-43, Washburn used a 15-3 run stretching the lead back to 15 with 8:35 to go, but again the Bulldogs trimmed the lead to five with 2:34 to go, but Tyler Geiman hit a step back going up seven and Jonny Clausing hit four straight free throws as Washburn led by 10 and UMD would not get closer than eight.
Geiman and Jalen Lewis scored a game-high 21 points with 17 of Lewis' coming in the second half. Geiman also added nine assists and nine rebounds playing 39:37 of the game. Clausing finished with 10 points and Kevaughn Ellis scored 10 off the bench hitting 2 of 3 free throws. Michael Keegan scored seven adding eight rebounds and four blocks.
UMD was led by Drew Blair's 20 points.
Washburn held the Bulldogs to 33 percent shooting for the game as they were 17 of 52 overall hitting 10 of 28 shots from 3-point range. Washburn shot 49 percent from the field going 31 of 63 and 8 of 20 overall from deep.
  (March 8, 2026) KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The No. 3-ranked and top-seeded Washburn Ichabods delivered a wire-to-wire masterpiece in Kansas City, overwhelming Rogers State 91-59 to capture the 2026 MIAA Tournament Championship at Municipal Auditorium. The Ichabods never trailed, controlling all 40 minutes and improving to 31-1 on the season securing the MIAA's automatic bid and will host the NCAA Central Regional Tournament for the second year in a row starting Saturday in Lee Arena.
Washburn struck first when Bryson Smith opened the scoring, and only seconds later Jeremiah Jones buried a transition three created by a Jack Bachelor steal, setting the tone for an early 5-0 burst. A series of defensive stops paved the way for an 11-3 start, fueled by high-pressure defense, multiple steals, and relentless second-chance efforts. Washburn dominated the glass from the outset, piling up 15 offensive rebounds in the first half alone - turning them into 15 second-chance points while holding Rogers State to none.
Three-point shooting helped Washburn widen the gap. Bachelor connected on multiple threes in the opening minutes, and a transition triple by Smith pushed the lead to 22-10 just before the 13-minute mark. Inside, Brady Christiansen anchored the paint, collecting 12 first-half rebounds - eight on the offensive end – extending possessions and taking the wind out of RSU's defensive stands. His putback at the 6:39 mark pushed the margin to 36-20, and Washburn continued applying pressure until carrying a commanding 49-25 advantage into halftime.
Washburn opened the second half with an emphatic 14-1 run. Christiansen drilled a second-chance three to make it 54-25, and moments later another Jones tip-in extended the lead to 31. The margin continued to swell as the Ichabods attacked from every angle. By the 8:19 mark, Bachelor scored on a fast-break layup to give Washburn its largest lead of the afternoon at 77-38, a 39-point cushion that stood as the game's high-water mark.
Smith led the Ichabods with 21 points, knocking down two threes adding five rebounds. Christiansen delivered one of the most imposing interior performances of the season with 15 points and 15 rebounds for his second double double in as many games. Bachelor added 14 points, handing out nine assists and hitting four threes. Jones recorded 10 points, seven rebounds, and three steals. Washburn also received efficient scoring from Tyson Ruud, who posted 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting as all five Ichabods starters reached double figures.
Washburn controlled the matchup: an 18-5 edge in points off turnovers, a 40-18 advantage in the paint, a 29-4 margin on second-chance points, and a 52-25 rebounding dominance. The Ichabods shot 46.5 percent from the field and 43.3 percent from three, while holding Rogers State to 38.8 percent overall and 33.3 percent from deep. RSU never led or tied at any point in the contest.
  • The Ichabods are making their 18th appearance in the NCAA Tournament entering with an all-time record of 20-17 overall.
• Washburn is 9-3 all-time in games played in Topeka and have won five straight NCAA Tournament games in Lee Arena.
• Washburn has reached four NCAA Elite Eights (1993, 1994, 2001, 2025) and the national championship game in 2001.
• The Ichabods are 4-0 against teams from the NSIC, 1-0 against teams from the GAC and 10-3 against schools from the MIAA.
  • The Ichabods are 1,739-1,138-2 all-time in the 121st year in the program's history.
• Washburn is the seventh-winningest program in NCAA Division II history by victories.
• Washburn is 739-329 since joining the conference and the NCAA.
• The Ichabods have recorded 32 20-win seasons and they have two 30-win seasons after going 35-4 during the 1986-87 NAIA Championship season and after the 2024-25 season's 30-4 record.
• Washburn has won 23 conference championships including 12 MIAA titles.
• Washburn has received 17 NCAA Tournament bids going to four Elite Eight's appearing in the 2001 NCAA National Championship game.
  • The Ichabods are 528-104 (.831) all-time in Lee Arena.
• The 2025-26 season marks the 41st season of play in Lee Arena.
• The Ichabods are 40-1 all-time in home openers.
• The Ichabods have a current 29-game homecourt winning streak from the start of the 2024-25 season to their last win over Missouri Southern breaking the previous school-record 28-game winning streak from Nov. 19, 1993 to Feb. 8, 1995 in Lee Arena.
  • With a win over Minnesota Duluth, the Ichabods will face the winner of the Missouri Western/St. Cloud State game following Washburn's game with the Bulldogs on Sunday in Lee Arena.