Coyotes face Gannon in D-II quarterfinal

The Cal State San Bernardino men’s basketball team will make its second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Division II Elite Eight when it faces Gannon University this morning in Evansvile, Ind.

The Coyotes (26-7) of coach Gus Argenal earned the trip with a 74-67 victory over Azusa Pacific in the West Regional championship on March 18. Chris Mitchell led the way with 25 points, earning regional MVP honors.

Cal State, the No. 6 seed, is matched with thirdseeded Gannon (32-3), located in Erie, Pa.

The Golden Knights, who have won 21 in a row and average 101.4 points per game, won the Atlantic Regional, 67-65 over Charleston (WVA.) on a buzzer-beater for their only lead of the game. It was also Gannon’s lowest point total of the season.

Gannon, making its first Elite Eight appearance since 2009, was 3-23 a year ago. The year-over-year improvement is the largest in NCAA history at any level, according to the university website.

• Washington hired Utah State’s Danny Sprinkle one day after Utah State was eliminated from the NCAA Tournament with a second round loss to Purdue.

• Stanford hired Kyle Smith away from Washington State after he oversaw an impressive turnaround that earned him Pac-12 Coach of the Year honors.

• South Carolina leading scorer Meechie Johnson is entering the transfer portal, just days after leading the Gamecocks to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in seven years.

• Vanderbilt hired Mark Byington away from James Madison just three days after he led the Dukes to a first-round upset of Wisconsin in the NCAA Tournament.

• West Virginia hired Darian Devries to move the Mountaineers past one of the ugliest years in school history three days after he guided Drake into the NCAA Tournament.