IU seeded sixth, will face San Diego State Thursday

IU drew the No. 6 seed of the Oakland Bracket and will take on No. 11-seeded San Diego State in Salt Lake City on Thursday afternoon, as selected on Sunday night by the NCAA Tournament selection committee. \n"It is good to get a six seed," IU coach Mike Davis said in a press release. "I really thought anywhere from a No. 7 seed to a No. 9 seed, but a six seed is definitely good." \nThe Aztecs (24-8, 13-3 MWC) were on the bubble with an RPI in the 60s, but they clinched a tournament berth after an overtime defeat of Wyoming (14-18, 5-11) for the Mountain West Conference Tournament championship. After a disappointing non-conference stretch that saw them go 7-5 with losses to Illinois-Chicago, Providence and San Diego, SDSU won 16 of 18 to garner the conference title outright. \nThe 13 conference victories tied last season's Utah team for an MWC record. \n"I saw San Diego State play a little bit last night against Wyoming," sophomore guard Robert Vaden said in a statement. "They have the player of the year in their conference (Brandon) Heath, and they have a big man down low in (Marcus) Slaughter that is pretty good. I think we have a good matchup with them, and we can make some things happen." \nMWC Tournament MVP Marcus Slaughter averaged 16.6 points and 11 rebounds per game this season. MWC Player of the Year, Brandon Heath, averaged 18.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists per outing from his guard spot. \nThe Aztecs also have another able big man in Mohamed Abukar, who scores 13.8 points per contest. They are an experienced team with seniors being their first three reserves, but two true freshmen -- point guard Richie Williams and small forward Kyle Spain -- are in the starting lineup. \n"Slaughter I know is a very good player for them," Davis said. \nShould the Hoosiers (18-11, 9-7 Big Ten) advance, they would play the winner of No. 3 Gonzaga and No. 14 Xavier.