Cougars Receive NCAA Tournament Bid

PROVO -- The No. 14/15 BYU men's basketball team has received an at-large invitation to the 2010 NCAA Tournament and will play Florida of the SEC in first-round action on Thursday in Oklahoma City at the Ford Center. Game time is scheduled for 11:20 a.m. CT.

The Cougars (29-5) are the No. 7 seed after earning a No. 8 seed the previous three seasons. The winner of the BYU-Florida game will advance to the second round to face the winner of No. 2 seed Kansas State and No. 15 seed North Texas on Saturday.

Florida finished the season 21-12 and placed fourth in the East Division of SEC with a 9-7 record. The Gators defeated Auburn in the first round of the SEC Tournament before falling to Mississippi State. Five Florida players average double figures, including Kenny Boynton (13.6), Erving Walker (12.6), Chandler Parsons (12.1), Alex Tyus (12.0) and Vernon Macklin (10.4). BYU is 2-0 all-time against Florida, winning 74-65 in Provo in 1959 and 79-73 in 1991 in Orlando.

BYU has posted the best record in program history in 2009-10 at 29-5 overall while finishing second in the Mountain West Conference at 13-3. Fifth-year head coach Dave Rose has led BYU to four-straight 25-plus win seasons — the best four-year stretch in program history. All-MWC First Team honoree and USBWA District VIII player of the year Jimmer Fredette leads the Cougars, averaging 21.7 points and 4.7 assists. Second-team All-MWC and All-District performer Jackson Emery adds 12.6 ppg, 80 threes and a school record 89 steals. Jonathan Tavernari (10.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg) and Tyler Haws (11.3 ppg) earned All-MWC Third Team honors while Tavernari was the MWC sixth-man of the year.

This will be BYU's 25th NCAA Tournament appearance, fourth-consecutive and seventh in the last 10 years (2001, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010). Cougars have an 11-27 record in the NCAA Tournament. BYU is in search of its first NCAA Tournament victory since the 1992-93 season when the Cougars defeated SMU 80-71 on March 18, 1993.

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TICKETS – NCAA TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND

Oklahoma City - Ford Center

Price: $68 + $6.50 per ticket fee

Request Deadline: Monday, March 15 at 1 p.m.

Tickets are subject to availability (requesting tickets does not guarantee them). Tickets will be assigned based on Cougar Club membership, Season Ticket Holder and date/time of purchase. Tickets are for BYU session only (includes No. 2 BYU vs. No. 10 Florida and No. 2 Kansas State vs. No. 15 North Texas). If awarded tickets, they will be available for pick-up 30 minutes before gates open for the first game of the session. Upon a Thursday win, your card will automatically be charged for the Saturday Second-round session.

Fans purchasing tickets need to login using their correct BYUtickets.com account to make sure priority is given.

Follow the Tournament on Facebook

Follow the Cougars and the rest of the field at facebook.com/Sports

Follow the Tournament at Nike.com

Support the Cougars and watch Jay Bilas from ESPN break down what makes every team tough. Visit the BYU-specific page at go.nike.com/byu

2010-11 New Season Ticket Deposit

Basketball Fans, if you are not a current season ticket holder, but would like to reserve your spot in the Marriott Center for the 2010-11 season, use this link at BYUtickets.com to place a $25 deposit.