ATLANTA  After winning the USA South Athletic Conference Championship, Methodist men's basketball learned who and where it will be playing for the Sectionals of the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament, announced Monday afternoon.

Friday, March 6, the Monarchs will play at host Emory University at 7:30 p.m. in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Methodist automatically clinched a spot in the field of 64 after defeating Huntingdon College, 79-73, in the USA South championship, Saturday evening. The matchup against Emory will be the fourth time these two programs have faced off with the Eagles winning the previous three contests.

JUST THE FACTS
Event: Sectionals; NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, Rounds 1 and 2
Who: Emory (Ga.) University (21-4), Methodist (18-10), Pomona-Pitzer (Calif.) Colleges (21-5), Centre (Ky.) College (24-4)
Time: Round 1, March 6, 5 p.m. Pomona-Pitzer vs. Centre, 7:30 p.m. Emory vs. Methodist; Round 2, March 7, 7:30 p.m.
Location: WoodPec Gymnasium; George W. Woodruff Physical Education Center; Atlanta, Ga.

HOW THEY GOT HERE

• Emory Eagles: Ranked 12th in the nation, Emory University earned an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament after finishing with a share of the University Athletic Association (UAA). The Eagles' two previous wins over No. 13 Washington University (Mo.) sealed the automatic clinch since the UAA does not have a postseason tournament. 11-3 in conference action, Emory was 10-1 in non-conference games with the only blemish to Guilford College. The Eagles went 6-2 in the month of February.
• Methodist Monarchs: Methodist entered its postseason tournament as a 3-seed in the East Division. The Monarchs went on the road and defeated 2-seed and host William Peace before downing the 1- and 2-seeds from the west, Covenant and Huntingdon at the neutral site location of Danville, Va. Methodist was 11-6 in USA South play and 7-4 outside of the conference. The Monarchs enter the tournament having won eight of their last nine games.
• Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens: After opening the season with two straight losses, Pomona-Pitzer reeled off 11 straight victories, and the Sagehens enter the tournament on a six-game win streak. Pomona-Pitzer earned two wins in its postseason tournament to claim the automatic bid from the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Association Conference after a 13-3 regular season record in the league.
• Centre Colonels: In its postseason tournament, Centre defeated the No. 8, No. 5, and No. 3 teams in the Southern Athletic Association to win the conference title and an automatic bid. The Colonels had to overcome a late eight-point deficit to Berry in the championship game to secure the berth. Centre's 13-game win streak was snapped by two consecutive conference losses in early February. Centre went 11-3 in league action and a 13-1 in non-conference play with the only loss to Case Western Reserve. 

KEY NOTES

• Emory earned its second straight conference title and notched its eight consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament … Romin Williams was one of four Eagles to average over 13 points per game with 16.1 … The Eagles outscore their opponents by an average of nearly 13 points … They shoot 47 percent from the field and 38 percent from three while holding opponents to 42 percent from the field and 30 from deep.
• Methodist is making its sixth trip to the NCAA Tournament all-time, and its first since the 2004-05 season … The Monarchs are looking to replicate the 1996-97 season when they made their first and only trip into the NCAA "Elite Eight" … They are led by first-team all-conference selection and tournament MVP, Dante Burden … Burden led the team in scoring (18.8 per game), assists (4.1), and steals (2.5) in the regular season and upped his play in the postseason by averaging over 26 points in the three USA South tournament games.
• Pomona-Pitzer won its second straight conference championship, and this year marked the first time they won both the conference title and the postseason title in the same season … Three Sagehens made the first team of the seven-player all-conference squad, led by league player of the year, Micah Elan … Elan led the SCIAAC with 21.6 points per game and his 47 percent shooting from downtown was good for second in the conference.
• Centre won its third straight regular season conference title but its first conference tournament championship since 2014 … 2014 is also the last time the Colonels appeared in the NCAA Tournament … Four Centre players made an all-conference team, led by Jacob Bates, the league's player of the year … Bates led the team in scoring (19.2 points per game) on 57 percent shooting, and he also led in rebounding with 7.8 boards a game … He was first in the conference in rebounds, and third in points per game.