COLUMBUS, Miss. – The W men's basketball was officially announced as the No. 4 seed for the upcoming St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) post-season tournament, beginning Wednesday (Feb. 26/7 p.m.). The Owls (12-13) will be traveling to No. 5-seeded Eureka College (9-16).
 
Despite being the higher seed, MUW cannot host a SLIAC playoff game this season. This is due to The W being a new SLIAC member in 2023-24 and not being permitted to host for its first two years in the league. That "road" stipulation is magnified this season, in particular, as The W sports a 9-3 record (.750) in the confines of Pohl Gym. Conversely, the Owls are 3-8 in the opponent's building and 0-2 in neutral-site games (an aggregate win percentage of .300).
 
The Owls and Red Devils might be the most intriguing match-up of the opening round, with the teams playing virtually even in the regular season meetings and with both contests going overtime. On January 18 in Columbus, MUW won by a 75-67 score in overtime. On the return game in Eureka on February 15, the two teams went double overtime with EC prevailing, 82-78.
 
Historically, the clubs have met four times with the series split, 2-2 (each team winning on its home floor).
 
In the last meeting between the teams, the double-overtime loss at Eureka, MUW's Dariun Doss had a team-leading 20 points, while also grabbing six rebounds. Doss was 6-for-11 from the floor and 8-of-10 from the free throw stripe. Jackson Reid added 17 points and six boards, with James Dukes pulling down a team-leading eight rebounds and booking eight points, as well as dishing three assists.
 
In its second season as a SLIAC member- and fourth under head coach Dean Burrows - 2024-25 marks the first-ever conference post-season tournament bid for The W's men's basketball program. Its 12 wins this season is also a school record for the seven years of the program's, existence. In 2022-23, while competing as an independent while awaiting NCAA III membership, Burrows led The W men's hoops to its first-ever post-season play of any kind by earning a spot in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) national tournament.
 
Game links can be found at: OwlsAthletics.com.