March 16, 2018
14th Annual Columbia 300 Music City Classic
Dates and Location: March 16-17-18 Smyrna Bowling Center, Smyrna, Tennessee
Timing: Friday – Five, 5-game Baker matches to begin at 9:40 a.m. (CDT) Saturday – Five traditional team games at 9:30 a.m. Sunday – Best of seven Baker bracket begins at 8:30 a.m.
20 of Top 25 here: Another huge field awaits as 32 teams are entered, making it the largest NCAA tournament of the regular season. Twenty of the Top 25 teams in the latest NTCA poll will be in action.
Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Arkansas State, Belmont Abbey, Central Missouri, Delaware State, Elmhurst, Felician, Grambling State, Howard, Lincoln Memorial, Lincoln University, LIU-Brooklyn, Louisiana Tech, Maryland-Eastern Shore, Maryville University, McKendree, Monmouth, North Carolina A&T, North Central College, Prairie View, Saint Francis University, Sacred Heart, Sam Houston State, Southern, Stephen F. Austin, Texas Southern, Tulane, Vanderbilt, UAB, Wisconsin-Whitewater, Youngstown
Defending champs: McKendree topped Arkansas State in last year’s title game with Sacred Heart beating Stephen F. Austin in the third-place game.
Hosting success: Vanderbilt has won just four of the previous 13 tournaments here so there is no tangible home lane advantage with the large, talented field and challenging lane patterns. The Commodores have been fifth the past two years.
Awards on the line: A five-player all-tournament team along with a Most Valuable Player Award will be announced after Sunday’s competition ends.