WICHITA FALLS, Texas - Midwestern State maintained its No. 6 standing in the latest South Central Region rankings Wednesday as released by the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Committee.
 
The Mustangs stand in precarious position as they battle No. 8 Texas A&M-Commerce in the opening round of the Lone Star Conference Championship Thursday afternoon at Bruin Fieldhouse in Bartlesville, Okla. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.
 
The teams are fighting for a limited number of positions in the NCAA II South Central Region set for next week at a campus site to be determined.
 
The selection show is set for 9 p.m. Sunday night and will be broadcast via streaming video on NCAA.com.
 
Missouri Southern State (21-3) retained its hold at the top of the rankings followed by No. 2 Central Oklahoma (22-3), No. 3 Tarleton State (19-4) and No. 4 West Texas A&M (20-5).
 
Currently, No. 5 Fort Hays State (20-6), MSU and No. 7 Washburn (Kan.) (16-8) would fill out the remaining postseason position in addition to the winner of the Heartland Conference postseason tournament which is guaranteed an automatic bid into the tournament.
 
Texas A&M-Commerce (16-8), No. 9 Incarnate Word (15-10) and No. 10 Nebraska-Omaha fill out the rankings.
 
The top eight teams from each of the eight regions advance to the postseason which will be played from March 12-15 at campus sites.
 
Tournament selections will take place via a Web cast selection show on NCAA.com on Sunday, March 6.
 
The winners of each regional gain a berth into the Elite Eight which is played at the MassMutual Center from March 23-26 in Springfield, Mass.
 
The South Central Region consists of the Lone Star Conference, Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association and Heartland Conference.
 
Each of the conference's postseason tournament winners earns an automatic bid into the postseason, while five other gain at-large bids.
 
Midwestern State advanced to the South Central Regional as LSC champions in 1999, 2000, 2007, 2009 and 2010.
  

NCAA II South Central Region Rankings
Rank					Team	D2 Record	D2 In-Region
1					Missouri Southern	21-3	21-3
2					Central Oklahoma	22-3	22-3
3					Tarleton State	19-4	19-4
4					West Texas A&M	20-5	20-5
5					Fort Hays State	20-6	20-6
6					Midwestern State	17-7	17-7
7					Washburn (Kan.)	16-8	15-8
8					Texas A&M-Commerce	16-8	16-8
9					Incarnate Word	15-10	15-10
10					Nebraska-Omaha	16-8	16-8