Friday, March 02, 2012

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The 2012 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men’s Basketball National Championship marks the 75th Anniversary of the longest continuous national basketball tournament in any sport in the country. To commemorate this celebration of basketball, the NAIA has announced the 75 members on the 75th Anniversary All-Star Team. This team is comprised of 60 athletes and 15 coaches.

Lipscomb's Philip Hutcheson (1986-90), John Pierce (1990-94) and Don Meyer (1975-99) were honored as members of the anniversary team.

Members of the All-Star Team have been invited to be a part of the festivities in mid-March at Municipal Auditorium in downtown Kansas City. Attendees will be recognized with a special reception preceding the National Championship final on March 20 and then introduced at halftime of that contest.

A special committee of current and former coaches, tournament staff, dedicated media and long-time supporters was created to help with the selection process. After fans voted on a web site ballot, this committee followed several criteria to select the 75th Anniversary All-Star Team. Criteria included and in no particular order: performance at a national tournament, game statistics, involvement in a national championship-winning team; status on All-Tournament Team and/or Tournament MVP.