Mount St. Mary’s Punches Ticket to NCAA Tournament, Set to Face Duke

One of the closest Division I men’s basketball programs to Westminster is heading to the NCAA Tournament.

Based in Emmitsburg, Mount St. Mary’s secured a spot in the Big Dance with an impressive 83-72 victory over American University in the First Four matchup on Wednesday night in Dayton, Ohio.

The Mountaineers (23-12) now advance to face No. 1 seed Duke in an East Region showdown set for Friday in Raleigh, North Carolina. The win was fueled by dominant performances from Dola Adebayo and Jedy Cordilla, who each poured in 22 points to lead Mount St. Mary’s past their D.C.-based rivals.

American (22-13) suffered an early setback when leading scorer Matt Rogers injured his right knee just four minutes into the game. Though he attempted to play through the pain, Rogers ultimately exited with 5:28 remaining in the first half and did not return.

Despite Rogers’ absence, American started strong. But Mount St. Mary’s took control late in the first half, as Dallas Hobbs’ buzzer-beater made it 48-38 at halftime, and never looked back. The victory improved Mount St. Mary’s all-time NCAA Tournament record to 3-6.

With momentum on their side, Mount St. Mary’s now turns their attention to Duke, a powerhouse program with a storied tournament history. Tipoff is set for Friday at 2:50 p.m. as the Mountaineers look to pull off a monumental upset and extend their March Madness journey. The game will be broadcast on CBS.