Bowling Green defenseman Connor McDonald, left, takes a shot while defended by Alaska-Fairbanks defenseman Antti Virtanen on Feb. 15 in Bowling Green, Ohio. (AP file photo)

That was announced when the NCAA revealed the field for the 16-team tournament on Sunday night.

After capturing the WCHA regular-season title in a runaway, Minnesota State also won the league playoff championship with a 3-2 overtime win over Bowling Green State on Saturday night in Mankato, Minnesota.

The Mavericks trailed 2-0 early in the third period before netting two goals with their net empty in the final two minutes of regulation. Jake Jaremko scored with 1:44 remaining in the third period, then Connor Mackey put the tying goal in with 56 seconds left in regulation.

And the game was over before OT was two minutes old when Nick Rivera put in a deflected shot just 1:37 into the extra period.

Minnesota State's Nick Rivera skates against Bemidji State during a WCHA game on March 1 in Mankato, Minn. (AP file photo)

“On behalf of the WCHA, I want to applaud Minnesota State and Bowling Green for advancing to the 2019 NCAA tournament,” WCHA President and Men’s League Commissioner Bill Robertson said in a news release. “Minnesota State has won more games than any team in the country, while Bowling Green has been at its best in the postseason this season.

“Our congratulations to (Minnesota State head coach) Mike Hastings, (Bowling Green head coach) Chris Bergeron and the student-athletes, staff, administrators and fans of both schools. We all look forward to them carrying the WCHA banner in the NCAA Championship.”

The Mavericks, who are 32-7-2, earned the overall No. 3 seed in the NCAAs and the top seed in the East Regional to be played Saturday and Sunday at Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island. Minnesota State is making its sixth NCAA tournament appearance and fifth in seven years under Hastings, according to the WCHA.

The Mavericks not only boast the most wins in Division I, but the best goals-against average of 1.71, goal margin of plus-74 and power play goals with 44. MSU is also third nationally in total goals with 144 and goals against with 70.

Minnesota State faces the tourney host and No. 4 East seed Providence at 1 p.m. EDT Saturday to be televised on ESPNews. The other East semifinal will be played at 4:30 p.m. that day between No. 2 Northeastern and No. 3 Cornell and will also be on ESPNews.

NCAA men's hockey tournament bracket

The winners meet at 4 p.m. Sunday to be shown on ESPN2.

Bowling Green, the No. 3 team in the WCHA in the regular season after finishing a point behind runner-up Northern Michigan University, makes its first NCAA appearance in 29 years as the No. 4 seed in the Midwest Regional to be played at the PPL Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

This will be the Falcons’ sixth NCAA appearance, which includes the 1984 national championship, but first since 1990. During the recent WCHA playoffs, BGSU swept No. 6 Michigan Tech and No. 2 NMU in best-of-3 series, each including a double-overtime victory, before falling to the Mavericks in the league final.

The Falcons (25-10-5) face Midwest No. 1 and overall No. 2 seed Minnesota-Duluth at 4 p.m. Saturday to be shown on ESPNU. The Bulldogs are also the defending national champion.

The other semi pits No. 2 Quinnipiac against No. 3 Arizona State at 7:30 p.m. online on ESPN3. The winners meet back in Allentown at 6:30 p.m. Sunday to be televised on ESPN2.

Interestingly, the two Big Ten teams that qualified, Ohio State and Notre Dame, are in the other two regionals, both of which will be played Friday and Saturday.

In the Northeast Regional to be held at Manchester, New Hampshire, No. 3 Notre Dame takes on No. 2 Clarkson at 6:30 p.m. Friday on ESPNU, immediately after No. 1 Massachusetts and No. 4 Harvard square off at 3 p.m. on ESPN2. The regional final is at 6:30 p.m. Saturday on ESPNU.

In the West Regional at Fargo, North Dakota, No. 3 Ohio State faces No. 2 Denver at 4 p.m. EDT Friday on ESPNU, followed by No. 1 St. Cloud State facing No. 4 American International at 7:30 p.m. EDT Friday online on ESPN3. Their finale is at 9 p.m. EDT Saturday on ESPNU.

The four regional winners take nearly two weeks off before the Frozen Four begins Thursday, April 11, at the Key Bank Center in Buffalo. The East and Midwest winners square off in one semifinal with West and Northeast in the other. Those games will be played at 5 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. on ESPN2.

The national championship game is two days later at 8 p.m. on Saturday, April 13, also on ESPN2.

Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.