Temple, Villanova, Lehigh Get NCAA Bids

Three local men’s basketball teams will be in the NCAA tournament that starts on Thursday.

Villanova will take on , while Temple gets Ivy League powerhouse Cornell and Lehigh gets top-seeded Kansas.

The action kicks off at 12 p.m. ET on Thursday. Villanova will play Robert Morris in Providence, while Lehigh plays Kansas in Oklahoma City.

On Friday, Temple plays Cornell in Jacksonville.

The 24-7 Villanova Wildcats lost five of seven to end the season and seemed to play their way out of such a high seed. Instead, they got a No. 2 seed in their sixth straight trip to the NCAA tournament under coach Jay Wright.

The three-time defending Atlantic 10 tournament champion Temple Owls were disappointed with their fifth seed in the East Regional and will play No. 12 seed Cornell (27-4) in the NCAA tournament.

The Owls (29-5) have won 10 straight games, shared the A-10 regular season championship with Xavier and beat Richmond 56-52 earlier Sunday to clinch another conference tourney title.

Patriot League champion Lehigh, north of Philadelphia in Bethlehem, Pa., faces No. 1 overall seed Kansas. The Mountain Hawks (22-10) are going to the tournament for the fourth time and earned the automatic bid with a win Friday over Lafayette.