If you love alliteration, the ultimate underdog story and college basketball, then the 15-seed Bryant Bulldogs might be your cup of tea in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. While Bryant basketball has a strong history at lower levels, they have only recently made their way to Division I. Bryant went 23-11 this season en route to winning the American East and earning their automatic bid to the Big Dance.
It has been a long and painful road for Bryant to level up, but the Bulldogs seem to have finally arrived. They made the transition to Division I in 2008, needing several years before they were even eligible for a postseason tournament. While they made it as far as the Division II national title bout back in 2005, the Bulldogs' first trip to the NCAA Tournament was its most recent prior to this season back in 2022.
The other thing of note with this small school basketball team is Phil Martelli Jr. is running point on the sidelines. He is the son of the iconic former head coach at Saint Joseph's and former Michigan associate head coach under Juwan Howard. Martelli played for his father at St. Joe's and was named co-team captain alongside Hawks iconic point guard Jameer Nelson on their incredible 2003 team.
But this March Madness is all about Bryant, baby! So where do these basketball Bulldogs call home?
Where is Bryant University located?
Bryant University is located in Smithfield, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1863 as the Bryant and Stratton National Business College, where they taught bookkeeping and other forms of business communication and administration. This private school was also known as the Bryant College of Business Administration from 1935 to 2004 when it then officially became as Bryant University.
Despite an enrollment of only around 4,000 students, Bryant competes in 25 varsity-level athletic programs. Bryant competes in the America East in most sports, although its football program does compete in the CAA. Regardless, men's basketball is probably the school's biggest and most well-known program on a nationwide level. They made the NCAA Tournament seven times at the Division II level.
Since transitioning to Division I, here is what Bryant has done so far in its NCAA Tournament history.
Bryant basketball NCAA Tournament history
To date, Bryant basketball has only qualified for the NCAA Tournament at the Division I level twice.
Year | Seed | Result |
|---|---|---|
2022 | No. 16 | First Four: vs. 16 Wright State (L, 93-82) |
2025 | No. 15 | First Round: vs. 2 Michigan State (TBD) |
Bryant's only other appearance to date was in the First Four in the men's tournament three years ago in 2022. They lost by nine points to the Wright State Raiders in Dayton. The Bulldogs are one seed better than they were the last time they are in. However, they will be up against it on Friday night, as they take on one of the biggest and best blue bloods in March Madness history in Michigan State.
A win over Tom Izzo will make Phil Martelli Jr. an inordinate amount of money during the offseason.