DAHLONEGA - The fifth-seeded University of North Georgia (UNG) men's basketball team will open play in the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional on Saturday night, facing fourth-seeded Lenoir-Rhyne at 7:30 p.m. at top-seeded Anderson's Abney Athletic Center.

General admission tickets for the public will also be sold at the door. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for students, children, military members and seniors.

Tipoff between North Georgia and Lenoir-Rhyne is scheduled for 7:30 p.m., with the winner advancing to Sunday's regional semifinal where they will face the winner of the host Trojans and No. 8 Young Harris. Anderson's Abney Athletic Center is located at 316 Boulevard in Anderson. The facility operates under a clear bag policy. 

North Georgia enters the tournament with a 22-7 record after closing the regular season on a nine-game winning streak. The Nighthawks earned the No. 3 seed in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament and advanced to the championship game with a pair of victories before falling in the title contest to Lander.

The Nighthawks opened postseason play with a 77-60 victory over Georgia College in the PBC quarterfinals before defeating Columbus State 65-59 in the semifinals to reach the championship game against No. 23 Lander.

The Nighthawks placed three players on the Peach Belt Conference All-Tournament Team, including Zack Hawkinson, Colin Turner and Chase Champion. Turner also earned second-team All-Peach Belt Conference honors during the regular season, while AJ White was named a first-team all-conference selection after a standout campaign.

White added another accolade earlier this week, earning first-team D2CCA All-Southeast Region recognition.

The NCAA appearance is the third in the last four years under head coach Dan Evans.

Lenoir-Rhyne enters the NCAA tournament with a 24-8 record after finishing second in the South Atlantic Conference standings. The Bears defeated Emory & Henry 88-80 in the SAC quarterfinals before falling to Catawba in the semifinals.

Lenoir-Rhyne also had three players earn all-conference recognition this season, highlighted by Conrad Luczynski, who was named to the D2CCA All-Southeast Region second team.

Saturday's contest will mark just the second all-time meeting between the two programs. The teams last met in 1975, where Lenoir-Rhyne took a 58-52 victory.