INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - For the first time in school history the Southwest Minnesota State University men's basketball program ranks in the top 10 for average attendance among the nearly 300 NCAA Division II basketball playing schools.

The Mustangs ranked ninth in the country averaging 2,435 fans in their 16 home games at the R/A Facility during the 2008-09 season.  It's the ninth time in the last 10 years SMSU has ranked among the top 30 in the country.

Southwest Minnesota State, which had a school record 3,689 fans attend its NCAA regional championship game victory over Augustana College on March 17, was one of just 17 NCAA Division II schools to average over 2,000 fans per game this past season. 

SMSU outdrew 145 NCAA Division I schools during the year and averaged more fans than 12 NCAA Division I conferences.

“This is a credit to our players and the way they played all season long,” said SMSU men's basketball head coach Greg Stemen.  “Just as importantly it's a credit to our fans in Marshall and southwestern Minnesota for coming out and supporting our program this past year.  There is no question our fan support played a huge role in this season's success.”

SMSU was among five Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference schools ranked among the top 20 nationally.  As a conference, the NSIC led the nation in attendance with 297,459 fans in 175 games and ranked second in average attendance with 1,700 per game.

Southwest Minnesota State finished the season with an overall record of 28-7 and won the NSIC regular season championship with a mark of 17-3.  SMSU?also captured the NCAA Central Region championship and advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight in Springfield, Mass.