Men's Basketball Set to Face IU East in RSC Quarterfinals

OWENSBORO, Ky. – The Brescia University Men's Basketball team is set to travel to Richmond, IN for the first round of the River States Conference Tournament as they take on the Redwolves of IU East. The Bearcats last made the postseason in the 2022-23 season where they fell in the first round to Ohio Christian.

After dealing with some adversity to start the season, the Bearcats fought their way through conference play and earned the #3 seed in the West Division. BU appointed Interim Head Coach, Matt Karn, three weeks prior to the start of the season. As of Feb. 12, Coach Karn has officially been named the head coach for the program and will make his first appearance in the conference tournament. The Bearcats finished the regular season 8-16 overall and 6-10 in conference play.

The #3 seeded Bearcats will visit #2 seed IU East (16-12; 10-6 RSC) in the Quarterfinal Round this coming Wednesday. BU previously faced the Redwolves this season where IUE won by a margin of 10 with a 97-87 final score. However, the Bearcats were without two key players in Damian Garcia and Xavi Tirado. John Saenz and Kabryen Tinson each scored 20 points and combined for eight threes in the loss. Gonzalo Luque tallied 18 points and nine rebounds. Four of the IU East starters were in double-digit points as Jake Johnson led with 27 points and five threes. Antuane Allen followed with 20 points on 8-19 shooting. Being without lead big man, Xavi Tirado and the exception of center Nikola Ticic, the Bearcats were outrebounded 48-28 in the loss. Damian Garcia, the nation's leader in points per game, was also injured for this contest. With the Bearcats now at full strength, this matchup should be much more competitive with the stakes increased.

The event will take place in Richmond, IN at 5pm CT on Wednesday, Feb. 26.