Eastern Washington Eagles
Record: 26-8, 14-4 Big Sky
Head coach: Jim Hayford (4th season)
Season summary: Trailing by 11 with 6:18 left to top-seeded Montana on the Grizzlies' home floor in the Big Sky title game, things didn't look good for the Eagles. But Eastern Washington dominated the final minutes, using a 21-6 run to capture the conference's automatic bid. The Eagles rank third in the nation in scoring at better than 80 points per game, powered by the nation's leading scorer, Tyler Harvey. The sophomore guard averages 22.9 points per game and exploded for 42 points in the Big Sky quarterfinals, drilling eight 3-pointers. Playing in its first NCAA tournament since 2004, a team with a some international flavor will look to make a splash in the Big Dance.
How they make a run: Tyler Harvey finds daylight and continues to make opposing defenses pay, sending the Eagles soaring into the second weekend after a pair of bracket-busting upsets.
How they falter: Eastern Washington can't get stops defensively, as a team that ranks 328th in scoring defense gets punished for 40 minutes by a bigger-name opponent.
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