The 2012 NCAA Tournament bracket and field has been announced, and Lamar will receive a No. 16 seed in the Midwest region. The Cardinals will take on Vermont in a first round matchup, and they will play on Wednesday, March 14. If they advance, they will face No. 1 seed North Carolina on Friday, March 16.

The Cardinals earned the 16th seed after winning the Southland Tournament championship, topping McNeese State, 70-49, in the title game. Things looked really bad for the Cardinals when coach Pat Knight unleashed a famous post-game rant after a loss to Stephen F. Austin, during which Knight said his players were "stealing money" by being on scholarship and would be "homeless without a job" if they kept acting like they did on and off the court. The Cardinals have not lost since.

Here's a look at the Midwest Region of the 2012 NCAA Tournament bracket:

No. 1 North Carolina vs. Lamar/Vermont, Friday, March 16

No. 8 Creighton vs. No. 9 Alabama, Friday, March 16

No. 5 Temple vs. No. 12 Cal/South Florida, Friday, March 16

No. 4 Michigan vs. No. 13 Ohio, Friday, March 16

No. 2 Kansas vs. No. 15 Detroit, Friday, March 16

No. 7 Saint Mary's vs. No. 10 Purdue, Friday, March 16

No. 3 Georgetown vs. No. 14 Belmont, Friday, March 16

No. 6 San Diego State vs. No. 11 NC State, Friday, March 16

For more on Lamar, visit our team page. For more coverage of Lamar in the 2012 NCAA Tournament, visit SB Nation Houston's Storystream. Click here for a link to our NCAA bracket 2012. Brackets on the brain? Us too! Play Yahoo! Tourney Pick’em and be a part of the craziest month of college basketball. It is fun, easy, and free.