“It’s an honor and a blessing,” Edwards said in a reaction video posted on Purdue’s athletics website. “Most people don’t get to play in the NCAA tournament so for this to be my fourth year in college and be my fourth straight year (going), it’s truly a blessing.”
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Here is a look at all eight area players headed to the tournament:
Vincent Edwards, Purdue
The 6-foot-8, 225-pound starting forward is the No. 2-seeded Boilermakers’ third leading scorer with 14.5 points per game and the team’s top rebounder with 7.3 rebounds per game.
He is the only player in the 68-team tournament field to average 14.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists and also have 45 made 3-pointers.
Earning its highest seed in almost 25 years, Purdue (28-6) will face 15th-seeded Cal State-Fullerton in the first round Friday in Detroit. Tip-off is set for 12:40 p.m. on TruTV.
A.J. Harris, New Mexico State
The redshirt sophomore starting guard from Dunbar is New Mexico State’s third leading scorer with 9.7 points per game to go along with 2.9 assists. He had 18 points to help lead the Aggies to the Western Athletic Conference Tournament championship and automatic bid with a 72-58 win over Grand Canyon on Saturday.
No. 12-seeded New Mexico State, which has won six of the last seven WAC tournament titles, is headed to San Diego for its first round game against fifth-seeded Clemson on Friday at 10:57 p.m. on TruTV.
Justin Bibbs, Virginia Tech
The senior guard from Dayton averages 13.1 points, 1.6 assists, 2.5 rebounds for the Hokies. He spent two years at Chaminade Julienne before finishing his high school career at national powerhouse Montverde Academy in Florida.
Virginia Tech (21-11) earned the eighth seed in the East Region and will face No. 9 seed Alabama (19-15) in the first round Thursday at the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh. This is the Hokies’ second consecutive NCAA bid.
Jarron Cumberland, Cincinnati
The 6-foot-5 sophomore guard from Wilmington averages 10.9 points and 3.7 rebounds and has started all 34 games for the American Athletic Conference champion Bearcats.
Cumberland had eight points in the AAC tournament final against Houston, as the Bearcats added to their regular-season title.
Second-seeded Cincinnati (30-4) is making its eighth straight tournament appearance and will face Georgia State (24-10) on Friday in Nashville.
Jaaron Simmons, Michigan
The senior guard from Alter High School has appeared in 27 games off the bench for the Big Ten champion Wolverines, chipping in 1.5 points per game in 8.1 minutes.
Simmons, a transfer from Ohio University, had two rebounds against Purdue in the Big Ten tournament final.
Michigan (28-7) earned its second straight automatic berth and eighth NCAA Tournament bid overall under head coach
The Wolverines will be the No. 3 seed in the West Region and will face No. 14 seed Montana in the first round on Thursday at approximately 9:50 p.m. in Wichita, Kansas.
Kyle Ahrens, Michigan State
The 6-foot-6 junior forward from Versailles hasn’t yet appeared in a game for the Spartans this season, but earned the team’s Scholar-Athlete Award. Ahrens was an Academic All-Big Ten selection last year.
Michigan State extended its Big Ten record by earning a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the 21st consecutive season, receiving a No. 3 seed in the Midwest Region.
The regular-season conference champion Spartans (29-4) will face No. 14 seed Bucknell (25-9) in the first round on Friday at 7:10 p.m. in Detroit on CBS.
Adam Giles and Alan Vest, Wright State
Giles, a junior forward from Miamisburg, and Vest, a junior guard from Chaminade-Julienne, both have appeared in games off the bench for the Horizon League champion Raiders.
Vest has played in 13 games, averaging 5.3 minutes, and Giles averages 2.5 minutes in six games.
No. 14-seeded Wright State, which is making its third Division I tournament appearance, will play No. 3-seeded Tennessee in the first round at 12:40 p.m. Thursday in Dallas.
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