SLIPPERY ROCK — It's not good enough just to be in the NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament.

For coach Kevin Reynolds and Slippery Rock University, it's a chance to take the next step into national prominence.

“This is an excellent opportunity for our team to see where we're at on a national level,” Reynolds said.

The Rock (22-8) will take on Winston-Salem State University in the first round of the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional tournament at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at West Liberty (W.Va.) University.

Winston-Salem is the 14th-ranked team in the country and the No. 2 seed. SRU claimed the No. 7 seed.

Playing ranked opponents is nothing new for Slippery Rock these days. The Rock has played ranked opponents Indiana (Pa.) University (twice), Gannon University (twice) and East Stroudsburg University in the last six games.

Three of those games have come in the last eight days, including a loss in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference tournament championship game to IUP Saturday.

“We had to run the gauntlet,” Reynolds said.

Doing that has left The Rock battle tested as they prepare to face Winston-Salem (21-6), which was upset by Bowie State in the semifinals of its conference tournament.

“We've played a lot of games on the road or at neutral courts,” Reynolds said. “Five of our last seven games have been on the road or at neutral sites, so I feel like we are battle tested. Our conference tournament got us ready for what we are about to face.”

And that's a Winston-Salem team that is very athletic and very deep.

The Rams have had nine players start at least four games and have 10 players averaging more than 11 minutes per contest.

Justin Glover, a 6-foot-3 senior guard, leads Winston-Salem in scoring at 17.3 points per game.

Glover is a dangerous outside shooter who has drained 64 3-pointers on 200 attempts. He is shooting 41 percent from the floor.

“He's taken more 3s than some of our guys have taken shots all year,” Reynolds said.

The Rock, though, is balanced on offense with four players averaging in double digits.

Taylor leads that group with 14.2 points per game,

Taylor is also 12th in the nation with 10 rebounds per contest.

Both teams are good on the boards. The Rock is second in the nation, averaging 45.6 rebounds per game and is also second in the country in rebounding margin at plus-11.9.

SRU has pulled down 16.7 offensive rebounds per game while Winston-Salem is averaging 14.8 offensive boards.

“They gang rebound like we do,” Reynolds said. “Probably the No. 1 criteria in the game is going to be rebounding.”

Should SRU beat Winston-Salem, it would get a rematch against either IUP or East Stroudsburg in the second round on Monday.

“What's nice is we play a new team (in the first round),” Reynolds said. “We didn't get a fourth meeting against IUP or a third against East Stroudsburg. I hope we do get one of those (in the second round). That would be a nice problem to have.”

Notes: The Rock is making its second NCAA tournament appearance in the last three years. Two seasons ago, SRU played West Liberty, the No. 1-ranked team in the country, and lost 117-73. ... This will be the fifth NCAA tournament for The Rock, which also made the tournament in 1978, 1990, 1991 and 2011. ... This is the third consecutive NCAA tournament appearance for Winston-Salem, which has gone 61-21 in the last three seasons.