Terriers Head to March Madness and Frozen Four

Tonight the national spotlight shines on two Terrier teams, and the excitement is high. After last weekend’s stunning postseason home wins, the men’s basketball and women’s ice hockey teams take on tough opponents this evening.

Entering the second round of the NCAA tournament with the nation’s third-longest winning streak, at 11 games, the 16th-seeded men’s basketball team meets top-seeded Kansas for the first time ever tonight at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla., with tip-off set for 6:50 p.m.

NBA commentators Marv Albert, Steve Kerr, and Craig Sager will provide live national coverage of the game on TBS. Boston-area fans can also follow BU radio announcers Doug Brown and Brian Maurer on WWZN 1510 AM.

Just over an hour later, the number-three Terrier women’s ice hockey team faces off against number-two ranked Cornell in the NCAA semifinals at Tullio Arena in Erie, Pa. Opening faceoff for the Frozen Four matchup is set for 8 p.m. Fans can watch free live streaming video of the game at NCAA.com. It is the team’s first trip to the Frozen Four in their six-year history.

Appearing in their seventh NCAA tournament and their first since 2002, the men’s basketball team (21-13) wrested a thrilling 56-54 come-from-behind victory from Stony Brook last Saturday at Agganis Arena. John Holland (CGS’09, COM’10), who earned 2011 America East Player of the Year honors at the end of the regular season, was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, recording his 10th career double-double (27 points, 11 rebounds).

The Terriers could make history tonight. No 16th-seeded team has ever defeated a top-seed. BU will try to earn the program’s first win over a ranked team since 1959, when the Terriers advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight. The winner of tonight’s game advances to the third round, facing either the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, or Illinois on Sunday.

In six short years the women’s ice hockey Terriers have gone from being the new kids on the block to the NCAA Frozen Four. Not bad for a team whose men’s counterpart has been BU’s claim to athletic fame for decades. Tonight’s matchup with Cornell (31-2-1) is the first-ever between the two schools’ women’s programs. The Terriers (26-6-4) punched their ticket to Erie with a 4-2 win over Mercyhurst in the NCAA quarterfinals last Saturday at Walter Brown Arena.

Adding to the excitement of playing in the national title series is the possibility of a BU–Boston College championship matchup, as the first semifinal pits number-one Wisconsin against the fourth-seeded Eagles. The national title game will be held on Sunday at 2 p.m. in Erie.

The women’s ice hockey Terriers may end the weekend by joining men’s ice hockey and women’s rowing as the only BU sports to have claimed a national crown.

The BU women’s ice hockey team takes on the Cornell Big Red in the NCAA Women’s Frozen Four tonight, March 18, at 8 p.m., in Erie, Pa. Tickets can be obtained here or by calling 814-452-4857.

The BU men’s basketball team meets top-seeded Kansas tonight, March 18, at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla., at 6:50 p.m. Ticket information is here or call 866-7-BOK-CTR.

Brian Kelley can be reached at bkelley@bu.edu.