The 2011 NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college basketball as a culmination of the 2010âÂÂ11 basketball season. The winner was Bellarmine; the tournament's Most Outstanding Player was Jet Chang of runner-up BYUâÂÂHawaii, the first player from a losing team to earn that honor in the Division II tournament since 1998.
The 2010 champion Cal Poly Pomona did not qualify for the tournament, while runner-up Indiana (PA) did. Along with Bentley, Midwestern State, and Augusta State, Indiana was one of four teams from the 2010 Elite Eight to qualify.
The champions of the 22 Division II basketball conferences qualified automatically. An additional 42 teams were selected as at-large participants by the tournament selection committee. The first three rounds of the tournament were organized in regions comprising eight participants in groups of two or three conferences (two in the Central and Midwest regions). The eight regional winners then met at the Elite Eight for the final three rounds held at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Massachusetts.
The following teams automatically qualified for the tournament as the winner of their conference tournament championships:
Location: Knights Hall Host: Bellarmine University
Location: Hamilton Field House Host: University of Central Oklahoma
Location: Spragins Hall Host: University of Alabama in Huntsville
Location: Taylor Center Host: Minnesota State University, Mankato
Location: Christenberry Fieldhouse Host: Augusta State University
Location: Academic, Sports, and Recreation Complex Host: West Liberty University
Location: Nicholson Pavilion Host: Central Washington University
Location: Dana Center Host: Bentley College
Location: MassMutual Center Hosts: American International College and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame