OLEAN, N.Y. (AP) — Fresh off winning their first Atlantic 10 Conference tournament, the Andrew Nicholson-led St. Bonaventure Bonnies are the 14th seed in the NCAA tournament’s East Region, and will open against Florida State at Nashville, Tenn., on Friday.
The Bonnies (20-11) learned of their seeding in Atlantic City, N.J., on Sunday, hours after beating Xavier 67-56 in the championship game. Nicholson, the A10 player of the year, had 26 points, 14 rebounds and eight blocks.
The 17th-ranked Seminoles upset North Carolina 85-82 earlier in the day to win the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
The Bonnies earned their sixth tournament berth and first since 2000. It’s a significant step forward for a program that had floundered because of a recruiting scandal that abruptly ended the Bonnies 2002-03 season and led to NCAA violations.
