HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – March Madness officially has a start date for the Northern Kentucky University women's basketball team as the Norse earned the No. 3 seed in the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship.
 
As one of the top four seeds in the tournament, NKU will host No. 6 South Carolina Upstate in Regents Hall on Friday, March 6 at 7 p.m.
 
The Norse finished the regular season 17-12 overall, ensuring the program's 32nd-consecutive winning season, and 8-6 in the Atlantic Sun in their first season eligible to participate in the Atlantic Sun Championship.  NKU secured a home contest in the tournament with a 68-61 victory over Kennesaw State on Wednesday and clinched the No. 3 seed by defeating USC Upstate, 83-60, on the road Saturday.
 
This marks the third-straight season the Norse will participate in a postseason tournament but the team's first Atlantic Sun tournament appearance.  NKU earned berths to the Women's Basketball Invitational in each of the past two seasons with the Norse earning the school's first NCAA Division I postseason victory with an 84-72 victory over McNeese State in The Bank of Kentucky Center on March 20, 2014.
 
For more information on the women's basketball Atlantic Sun Championship, including ticket information, please visit http://www.nkunorse.com/postseason.
 
NKU's first-round contest on Friday also means that the NKU Coaches' Show will air on Monday, March 2 at 7 p.m. Fans are encouraged to attend the show at the Mellow Mushroom in Wilder, Kentucky, or tune in on FOX Sports 1360.