The Northwest Missouri State University women's and men's basketball teams are both listed among the 10 teams under consideration in the initial NCAA Division II Central Region rankings.

This first set of rankings is listed alphabetically, not in order of rank. Next Wednesday, the NCAA will rank the teams 1-10. The top eight teams in the Central Region, including three automatic selections of conference champions from the MIAA, the Northern Sun and the Great American Conference, will advance to the 2024 NCAA Division II Central Region tournaments set to take place March 16-19 at sites to be determined.

The Bearcat women are 19-5 overall against NCAA Div. II opponents. The MIAA has seven teams listed under consideration in the region. The Bearcats possess the region's ninth-best RPI (.571).

Women's Central Region Teams Under Consideration
Central Missouri (17-6/15-6)
Fort Hays State (17-6/17-6)
Harding (22-2/22-2)
Minnesota State (21-5/19-4)
Missouri Southern (18-6/17-5)
Missouri Western (19-4/18-3)
Nebraska-Kearney (15-7/15-7)
Northwest Missouri State (19-5/19-5)
Pittsburg State (18-5/18-5)
Southern Nazarene (23-1/23-1)

The Northwest men are 20-4 against NCAA Div. II competition and 20-3 against in-region foes. The MIAA has only two teams listed in the initial offering from the NCAA. The Bearcats have the No. 2-ranked RPI in the region (.612), trailing on Minnesota State (.626).

Men's Central Region Teams Under Consideration (D-II Record/In-Region Record)
Augustana (14-10/14-10)
Fort Hays State (17-5/17-5)
Minnesota Duluth (22-5/22-5)
Minnesota State (21-2/21-2)
Minot State (17-7/17-7)
MSU Moorhead (22-4/22-4)
Northwest Missouri State (20-4/20-3)
Southeastern Oklahoma State (17-7/16-7)
Southwest Minnesota State (16-10/16-10)
Winona State (16-9/16-9)