ARCATA, Calif. – Humboldt State men’s basketball is no stranger to the NCAA West Region Championships, and the Lumberjacks won’t have to travel far for this season’s edition of March Madness.

HSU earned the No. 8 seed and will face West Region host No. 1-seeded Western Oregon in Monmouth, Ore., Friday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

“This group of Lumberjacks have proven they are championship quality on the court as well as off the court,” said Head Coach Steve Kinder. “I am extremely excited about having this group of young men represent our institution not only regionally, but nationally by participating in the NCAA tournament. Our task now is changing gears emotionally and focus on another opponent that is nationally-ranked Western Oregon.”

The Green and Gold defeated No. 23 UC San Diego in the California Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament to earn a NCAA Tournament spot. This will be the Jacks’ 14th NCAA West Region appearance and first since the 2011-12 season.

Western Oregon picked up close wins over Seattle Pacific and Alaska to capture the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Tournament title. The Wolves are 27-3 overall and went 2-0 against CCAA competition during the regular season.