NCAA Basketball: New D-1 members Cal Baptist and North Alabama join for 2018-19

GLENDALE, AZ - APRIL 03: The ball goes through the hoop during warm ups before the game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Gonzaga Bulldogs during the 2017 NCAA Men's Final Four National Championship game at University of Phoenix Stadium on April 3, 2017 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

NCAA Basketball is already a huge sport with 351 total teams. For the 2018-19 season, that number raises by two, with Cal Baptist and North Alabama joining.

There are 351 Division I college basketball teams and that number will grow to 353 on July 1^st when California Baptist and the University of North Alabama begin the reclassification process from the Division II ranks up to Division I.

For those unfamiliar with the two schools, here are capsules of the Lancers and Lions respectively.

California Baptist University

Location: Riverside, California

Enrollment: 9,941

Mascot: Lancer

Colors: Blue and Gold

Conference: The Lancers have already accepted an invitation to join the WAC beginning July 1^st. The Lancers will be eligible for the NCAA Tournament upon completion of their reclassification in 2022-23.

Recent Basketball History: Head Coach Rick Croy enters his 6^th season for the Lancers. In the three years prior to Croy’s arrival, the team finished above .500 once, in 2011-12 when they made the national tournament, losing in the first round.

During Croy’s tenure, the team has had a complete turnaround going 132-29 in the last five seasons with five straight trips to the Division II NCAA Tournament, including a trip to the Elite Eight last season. The team will be in a bit of a transition as well as they return only two of their top six scorers. Jordan Heading is a 6-2 guard from Australia who averaged 14 points per game last season and De’jon Davis is a 6-7 junior forward who averaged eight points and five rebounds in 2017-18.

University of North Alabama

Location: Florence, Alabama

Enrollment: 7,333

Mascot: Lion (Leo III and Luna are live lions that live on campus)

Colors: Purple, White, and Gold

Conference: The Lions have accepted an invitation to join the Atlantic Sun on July 1^st and will be eligible for the NCAA Tournament in 2022-23.

Recent Basketball History: Tony Pujol was named head coach of the Lions in April. He has 14 years of experience as an assistant coach at the Division I level, most recently at Wyoming.

The four years prior to Pujol’s arrival on campus, the Lions have a 59-58 record. Despite the middle-of-the-road record, the Lions do return three of their five double-digit scorers. The junior guard trio of Kendall Stafford, Tavares Tolliver, and Kendarius Smith averaged 42 points and 17.6 rebounds last year. With just two seniors leaving Pujol inherits a young roster that averaged 82 points per game last season.

Next: 25 preseason candidates for 2019 Player of the Year

It’ll be awhile before we see these teams even have a shot at making the NCAA Tournament. In the meantime, they can make an immediate splash similar to Grand Canyon a few years ago. If that happens, they’ll be a force in their respective leagues for years to come.

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