Kellen McCormick (’12), who was a key member of Notre Dame Prep’s basketball team for four years, plays tomorrow with the Western Michigan Broncos in the first round of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.
McCormick's the third NDP alum to play in the NCAA basketball tournament. Bobbie (Bieszki) Hall ('00) participated in the NCAA women's tourney with Oakland University and Dave McGlown ('98) played in the men's with Southern Illinois.
WMU enters the field as a 14 seed and will be playing the Orange, who are a three seed, for the third time in team history. Syracuse holds a 2-0 advantage in the series over the Broncos, but the teams have not met in recent history, with Orange wins coming on Dec. 1, 1978, and Dec. 21, 1988.
McCormick was a Class B First-Team All-Stater with the Fighting Irish, averaging 18 points and nine rebounds per game during his senior season. He scored his 1,000th point in a January 2012 matchup with division rival Bishop Foley. A redshirt freshman, he made his collegiate debut and first career start with the Broncos this season against New Mexico State, adding 14 points and four rebounds. He followed that up with 14 points at Hawaii and six points and two rebounds against Alabama A&M.
The Broncos are making their sixth trip to the NCAA Tournament and earned a spot by defeating Toledo, 98-77, in Saturday's Mid-American Conference tournament to receive an automatic bid. WMU is 2-3 all-time in the NCAAs, including a 77-67 win over Virginia Tech in 1976 and a 75-72 win over Clemson in 1998.
The WMU vs. Syracuse game is Thursday, March 20, at 2:45 p.m. on CBS.
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About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. The school's upper division enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower divisions enroll students in jr. kindergarten through grade eight. All three divisions are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school's home page at www.ndpma.org.