The Ultimate Synopsis

- Sara James

Ultimate Frisbee is no longer a game played only on the coasts, nor is it only a game only played by men.

When most students see the flying discs on the quad or on the C-Hall fields and don’t think anything of it, except for maybe Frisbee golf. However, for those who live, breath and endure pain for ultimate, those discs are a sign of unexplainable amounts of exhilaration.

Not everyone can just go and play ultimate frisbee. It takes time and practice if you want to play at tournaments. A lot of practice. Truman has two teams - JujiTSU for the men and TSUnami for the women.

As a member of TSUnami I am very aware of the commitment necessary to prepare for tournaments. Most of us work out three to five mornings a week to keep up endurance and strength. Then we have practice at night, everyday for two hours. By 9 p.m. you are exhausted, but it is worth it. Anyone who has played sports can understand the sacrifice given for the love of the game.

For those of you who have no idea what is involved with ultimate I will provide a quick synopsis. You have a field (regulation size is 70 yards by 40 yards, with end zones 25 yards deep), seven players at each end (one for offense and one for defense), and a disc. The defense pulls the disc from their endzone towards the offense to initatite play.

Once received by the offense, the disc is thrown up the field by a series of passes (a person is stationary when holding the disc) and the goal is to catch it in the endzone for a score. It is constant give and go, sprinting and running, and switing from offense to defense - like soccer and basketball.

Ultimate - a non-contact sport - is self officiating and prides itself on the idea of spirit-of-the-game. There are many other rules and terms, but to explain them would require you to attend a game, but if you would like to read the complete set of rules go to upa.org.

What most people do not realize is that when an ultimate player says that he or she is going to a tournament, they mean that they will be playing ultimate for a minimum of eight hours that weekend. Games usually begin at 9 a.m. on Saturday mornings and teams are normally done playing by 4 p.m. Then on Sunday morning games start between 9 and 10 a.m. and depending on whether or not it is single-elimination or double-elimination, teams normally play past noon, and sometimes they play until 3 or 4 p.m.

It’s not like playing a single or double header; you play solid for hours at a time. Then of course at night you can’t lay around and sleep to prepare for day two of the events; you have to go dance off your sore muscles and stretch them out until the morning hours. This normally seperates the true ultimate players from the mediocre ones.

If you haven’t figured out yet why we return from weekends sore, bruised, cut, sunburned and limping, allow me to elaborate. When a player is on the field, the disc is all that matters, not your body. It is a non-contact sport, but when you are diving in mid-air, side-by-side with another person, attempting to either catch or defend the disc, you tend to get tangled up. Of course, the ground is never as fluffy as a feather bed either. Laying out - when you are parallel to the ground to grab the disc - hurts a lot. You get the air knocked out of you, covered in mud, and sometimes, you get cleated or run into.

When you are in a game though, it’s imperative to catch that disc, and you’re running on so much adrenaline that you have no idea that what you’re about to do will hurt. Well not right away, usually the next day is when it takes it’s toll on your body.

Ultimate is constantly criticised as not being a real sport or a real game (remember, curling is considered a sport), but I dare you to come to a tournament, or practice for a week (you’re definitely invited), and see what it takes to play.

Final Four Thoughts

By John Scognamiglio

I have given up trying to predict March Madness this year. And why should I? Both teams that I picked to make it to the national championship game are done (Duke over U Conn). My favorite team from last year (West Virginia) made it to the Sweet 16 only to lose to Texas on probably one of the top-five greatest bang-bang finishes in tourney history, and I didn't even pick the Mountaineers in the first round (darn you Salukis for giving me false hope).

But now, we are down to four teams in the tournament. These are supposed to be the best in the land. The cream rises to the top. And what do we have in the Final Four? LSU, UCLA, George Mason, Florida.

Let's start out with the interesting tidbits.

For the first time since 1980, no No. 1 seed reached the Final Four. For the first time since 1986, an 11th seed has reached the Final Four (LSU did it then). The combined seeding of teams is the third-lowest all-time at 20 (LSU-4, UCLA-2, George Mason-11, Florida-3).

Oh, and one more tidbit, on ESPN.com's Tournament Challenge, 1.5 million plus people submitted over 3 million brackets. How many picked the Final Four correctly? Only four brackets left have the exact Final Four. Even ESPN.com is running stories on people who bet on George Mason to win it all from the beginning of the tournament when their odds were in between 300-1 and 400-1.

Now on to the juicy details:

Is there any reason why George Mason shouldn't be America's team? We gave that nickname to Gonzaga at the onset of the tourney and they fell to UCLA. It seems fitting to give the nickname America's team not only to a school that is less than 30 miles from our nation's capital and the site of the regional finals, but the school is named after one of the signers of the U.S. Constitution. How can that not be criteria to fit America's team?

How can anyone not root for George Mason to win it all? When 1985 rolled around and Villanova beat Georgetown (No. 8 defeating No.1), I was only a little over one year old. This could be my Villanova moment. I still feel a little bit wrong about jumping on the George Mason bandwagon this late, but I'm sure there is still plenty of room left for others.

Is this the ultimate Cinderella story for college basketball? In a word, YES!!! There is no greater story. There have been underdog teams before like LSU in 1986, Villanova in 1985, and even North Carolina State in 1983. The difference between them and George Mason: the previous three teams came from power conferences (SEC, Big East, ACC) whereas George Mason is the much-maligned mid-major team from the CAA. Penn and Indiana State in 1979? Sure, those were mid-major teams who made it to the Final Four, but Indiana State was a No. 1 seed behind the magic that is Larry Bird while Penn was a ninth seed Cinderella.

The road George Mason traveled to the Final Four is probably the most perilous ever for a Cinderella. First round: Tom Izzo's Michigan State Spartans. Round 2: Roy Williams' North Carolina Tar Heels. Sweet 16: Wichita State Shockers in the Ultimate BracketBuster game. Elite 8: Jim Calhoun's Connecticut Huskies.

There are other teams in the Final Four besides George Mason.

Billy Donovan's Florida Gators looked pretty solid all throughout the Minneapolis Regional. And if I were to give away a player of the tournament award, Joakim Noah definitely deserves it for his play.

How about Florida's fellow SEC member Louisiana State. Is Glen "Big Baby" Davis not the next Shaquille O'Neal? Shouldn't we change his nickname to "Baby Aristotle" too?

The final team in this year's Final Four had the most question marks of any team in the field: preseason, regular season, postseason. Coach Howland and the UCLA Bruins have been one of the more pleasant surprises this year, considering that most of the season, UCLA had been riddled with injuries to key players, but they got healthy at the right time, and knocked off Gonzaga and Memphis to punch their ticket to Indianapolis.

After only picking three Sweet 16 games correctly last post, I have decided not to predict the final three games. I have a feeling that the teams that I pick to win will lose their games, so logically I'll pick LSU and UCLA and Florida to win the title.

There is one thing I will predict, though. This Final Four will be one of the highest-rated in television viewing not just because all the major markets are represented, but because everyone wants to not see the clock strike midnight just yet for George Mason.

Sweet 16: How Sweet It Really Is

By John Scognamiglio

On the eve of the most wide-open Sweet 16 in recent memory, and since my bracket already lost two Final Four teams, this weekend should be filled with many more bracket busting games.

Thursday evening in the Atlanta region, Duke opens up the night against LSU. The key to this matchup is the fight in the paint between Shelden Williams and Glen "Big Baby" Davis. Even though this is the ninth straight Sweet 16 game for Duke, their eyes are on getting to the Final Four and possibly a national championship. That being said, they cannot overlook a dominant LSU team. My prediction is that "Big Baby" will become the new "Landlord" in college basketball after Davis dominates Williams early, getting the Duke senior into foul trouble, but J.J. Redick will have the last laugh as he goes for thirty-plus points in the Blue Devils Sweet 16 win. Even if Williams gets into foul trouble, we have yet to see the best Duke's freshman forward Josh McRoberts has. So it very well may be that McRoberts will be the key to the win over the Tigers.

In the other Atlanta semifinal, West Virginia faces Texas. Both teams are drastically different than when the two matched up earlier in the season. In that semifinal matchup from the Guardians Classic all the way back in November, LaMarcus Aldridge made the game-winning layup and blocked a last second shot as Texas escaped with a 76-75 win. With John Beilein and Co. looking to get back to the Elite Eight, I think the Mountaineers have the advantage against the Longhorns, but don't be surprised if this game goes into extra periods. Aldridge and Daniel Gibson definitely need to bring their "A" games into this matchup, and with Texas dismantling North Carolina State in the Round of 32, it's possible that Texas may escape with another dramatic win. What do I think will happen? Based on what has transpired so far, this game is definitely my sleeper for game of the Sweet 16 and the Mountaineers will triumph, setting up a classic Duke vs. West Virginia regional final.


The best regional in terms of probably play and frenzied fan support will be the Oakland Regional. Game one of this region features one of this year's Cinderellas, Bradley University from the much-maligned now validated Missouri Valley Conference, against the Memphis Tigers of Conference USA. While it is easy to say this is just a matchup between a one seed against a thirteen seed, I think Bradley will give Memphis fits. Why? Because Bradley has one of the few potent 1-2 punches with Marcus Sommerville and Patrick O'Bryant. The pundits are saying about this matchup that Memphis is just too athletic and quick for Bradley. Well, Bradley has already taken down Kansas and Pittsburgh, and O'Bryant has already shown that he is not only strong in the post, but smart too, as evidenced by the game against Aaron Gray and Pittsburgh. However, I think Memphis will win this game, but kudos to Coach Les and the Bradley Braves for making it this far and validating the Missouri Valley Conference.

The game of the Sweet 16 is in the Oakland Region. Gonzaga. UCLA. Past dynasty meets current mid-major dynasty. UCLA came out of the first round as probably the most dangerous team in the region by destroying Belmont. However, the second round game versus Alabama showed college basketball nation that UCLA is not without flaws. Free throw shooting will be a must for UCLA in this game, especially after Gonzaga only allowed Indiana to shoot six free throws against them. If Alabama showed the free throw flaw of UCLA, then Indiana showed how to shut down Adam Morrison. All year long, I believed that Adam Morrison and Gonzaga were just a one-man show. As the season progressed, I changed my opinion that Gonzaga's fate was in the hands of both Morrison and J.P. Batista. Saturday's game against Indiana highlighted what I needed to see to say Gonzaga is a Final Four contender. I needed to see the Bulldogs' role players come up big when Morrison has an off night. They did and that is why I believe that Gonzaga will not only take down UCLA, but defeat Memphis in the Oakland Region final.

Friday night's action in Washington, D.C. begins with a matchup that if no one can smile about it, then they really do not appreciate the greatness that is March Madness. Seventh seeded Wichita State takes on eleventh seeded George Mason in what is being dubbed by some as a mid-major Super Bowl. My hope is that no matter who wins this game, Billy Packer and Jim Nantz are forced by CBS to call it. There would be no greater glee in my life Friday evening then hearing the two people who lambasted Greg Littlepage and the selection committee over the involvement of mid-major teams being forced to call a game in which, gasp, a mid-major is forced to go the Elite Eight.

I've been a fan of the Shockers all season long especially the play of senior center Paul Miller. He has just been a dominant force in the paint, and he is one of the reasons why the Missouri Valley Conference regular season champions are still in the Big Dance. George Mason on the other hand has been the giant killers of the tournament, no offense to Bradley. What have the Patriots done? Oh nothing, except eliminate two members of last year's Final Four, including the defending national champion North Carolina Tar Heels. The return of Tony Skinn has been a great boost to the Patriots, even though the defeated Michigan State without him. I will not choose a winner in this game because when two mid-majors hook up this late with a spot in the Elite Eight on the line, everyone is a winner. Oh all right, my heart still lies in the Missouri Valley, so I say the Shockers will win. Happy now?

They might as well call the nightcap in Washington, D.C. the "Duel in the Dog Pound." I will go out on a limb and say the Huskies will win this game. Not buying it since the game is Connecticut versus Washington? Darn. Brandon Roy has really emerged as one of the premier players of the tournament with his play in taking down Utah State and Illinois en route to the matchup. Plus, I still feel good with Lorenzo Romar, the former St. Louis University Billikens head coach. However, U Conn has one of the more impressive lineups in the field if they can maintain a level of dominance befitting their No. 1 seed. Rudy Gay, Rashad Anderson, Marcus Williams, Denham Brown, Josh Boone? It's a scary lineup no matter how you look at it.

The win over Kentucky showed the Connecticut Huskies are vulnerable but I think Coach Calhoun will use that game as fuel to light fires inside of Gay and Co. and U Conn will pounce on Washington, setting up the final of U Conn versus Wichita State.

The last region is the Minneapolis region which features three Big East schools and one from the SEC. Well, Boston College is in the ACC now, but for as long as I live, BC will always be in its heart a Big East school. Villanova versus Boston College is going to be a game that features two entirely different schools of offense. Villanova has their four-guard offense, while BC relies on the interior presence of Craig Smith and Jared Dudley. Will Sheridan will definitely have his hands full in the paint. In the all-time record books, Villanova holds the edge over Boston College with regards to wins.

If it were guards versus guards, Villanova wins. Forwards against forwards, Boston College has the edge. When it's five-on-five, I think Villanova's four guard offense will be too much for Coach Skinner's Boston College team and the Wildcats advance to the Elite Eight.

If you asked me before the tournament began, which team would be the most impressive after the first weekend I would never have said Florida. I have never seen as complete a player in the tournament as Florida's Joakim Noah. He scores, assists, grabs rebounds, gets steals, gets blocks. He has to be the player of the first two rounds. Their reward for getting to the Sweet 16: facing Georgetown and the new John Thompson. Could Georgetown be returning to the time of the glory years when they flourished with Thompson's father and had dominant centers that ran roughshod over the Big East? Well, Roy Hibbert looks pretty comfortable in his 7'2 frame being the next great Georgetown center, but you have to look at the box score of the Georgetown -Ohio State contest. Seven Hoyas played, and only four scored points. That is either good or bad depending on your viewpoint.

The good thing is that the anyone on the Hoyas can hang 20-plus on an opponent and when four Hoyas are in double digits in scoring, they are downright nasty. The flip side of the argument is if one of the Hoyas has an off night, does Georgetown have role players that could easily slip in and fill the void. G'Town is definitely not afraid of any big-name programs; they were the first team to knock Duke from the undefeateds. Like the Duke-LSU matchup, it's going to be a war in the paint between Noah and Hibbert, and in a war, I have to go with the complete package and say Florida will knock of Georgetown.

So recapping, Duke and West Virginia will meet in Atlanta. Memphis will lose to Gonzaga in Oakland. U Conn will meet Wichita State in Washington, D.C. Boston College will meet Florida in Minneapolis. All eight of these teams have the potential to moving onto Indianapolis and possibly winning a national championship.

You Can't Spell "Laugh" twice without HAHA

By John Scognamiglio

After an amazing weekend of college basketball, we are finally down to sixteen teams. Buzzer beaters and upsets resounded in the first weekend. Now that the dust has settled let's look at the conferences represented:

ACC: 2 teams (Duke, Boston College)
Big East: 4 teams (Connecticut, Villanova, West Virginia, Georgetown)
SEC: 2 teams (Florida, Louisiana State)
Big 12: 1 team (Texas)
Pac 10: 2 teams (UCLA, Washington)
WCC: 1 team (Gonzaga)
Conference USA: 1 team (Memphis)
CAA: 1 team (George Mason)
MVC: 2 teams (Wichita State, Bradley)

Oh my god!! Wait, the world is coming to an end. The Missouri Valley and CAA have the same number of teams in the Sweet 16 as the ACC and Big 12. Someone go feed Billy Packer oxygen. As Will Hunting would say, "How do you like dem apples?"

This was a very good year for the mid-majors and I don't mean to toot the Valley's horn again, but look at the road Wichita State and Bradley went through to get to the Sweet 16. Wichita State went through the most spoilerific team from the Big East (Seton Hall) and then dismantled the regular season SEC East Division Champions (Tennessee). Bradley took down Big 12 tournament champion Kansas and then Big East power Pittsburgh to get to the round of 16. The Valley went .500 against the Big East, with Northern Iowa losing to Sweet 16 member Georgetown and Southern Illinois losing to Sweet 16 member West Virginia.

Let's not forget about CAA member George Mason. They entered the tournament on a dubious note. As you may remember, Tony Skinn, one of the team's top players, received a one-game suspension for hitting an opposing player in the team's CAA semifinal loss to Hofstra. Well, that one game was the opening round game against Michigan State. The team performed admirably, taking down Michigan State 75-65. Well, Skinn returned today against North Carolina and had eight points coming off the bench in George Mason's 65-50 victory.

The mid-majors are doing well this year and Doug Elgin, commissioner of the Valley, along with Greg Littlepage are having big smiles on their faces. If this trend continues, Packer and his colleague Jim Nantz may be forced to eat their words, considering that one matchup will be Wichita State against George Mason. That means one mid major will be an Elite 8 team. Oh the humanity.

If the first two rounds were this fun, I can't wait till this coming weekend.

My Thoughts About The First Day of the Greatest Days of 2006

By John Scognamiglio

My heart rate has finally calmed down after today's action. What a barn burner for a day.

After day one of the action, I have picked correctly 14 out of 16 games, the only two losses coming in 5-12 matchups.

Games of the Day:

Well, since it is March there are too many to pick here. Indiana outlasting a very good San Diego State team in regulation, George Washington beating UNC-Wilmington in OT, Gonzaga outlasting Xavier, and Montana upsetting Nevada. However, I feel there were three games of the day.

Game 1: Boston College defeating Pacific in double overtime. Not only did Boston College nearly wreck my bracket, as well as Indiana could have too, they persevered against an upstart 13 seed. While some may fear that this game is emblematic of Boston College all year, I feel this game is the kind of game that will light a fire under Coach Skinner when they go into the next game against Montana.

Game 2: UCLA defeating Belmont. It wasn't an exciting game deserving of March Madness status, but UCLA has a legitimate shot of making me look foolish in my Oklahoma bracket. They looked really fluid out there today against Belmont, squashing any opinion that they didn't deserve a number two seed. Coach Howland has done a great job this year balancing the injuries to key players and would be my favorite for coach of the year if not for a certain Roy Williams at UNC.

Game 3: Wichita State dismantling Seton Hall. Hey Billy Packer, still feel like mid-majors don't belong? Well, Wichita State did a heck of a job dismantling one of the more dangerous teams from the Big East, dangerous as in, to invent a word, spoilerifc. The Shockers won the game by 20, showing that they deserved a shot in the tourney by winning a huge game to silence critics.

Interesting trend of the Day:

ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Big East, Pac 10, SEC. These are the so-called power conferences. Well, five teams today from non-power conferences won their games, the most notables were UW-Milwaukee over Oklahoma and Wichita State over Seton Hall. The other three victories were mid-majors over other mid-majors.

Player of the Day:

Tie goes to the Duke seniors J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams. They combined for 58 points in Duke's 70-54 victory over Southern. Each had 29 points. So let's see, the other Blue Devils combined for 12 points. It's tournament time and Redick, Williams, and Coach K (sorry, even if I'm Scognamiglio, still can't spell Coack K's last name) know it's crunch time for them.

What to Look Forward to on Friday:

Great 6-11 battle between SIU-Carbondale and West Virginia. Barn burner as UAB faces Kentucky. Three top seeds in action, will one finally fall? My pick for game of Friday will be Kentucky versus UAB. These two teams met two years ago, the result was UAB eliminating top-seeded Kentucky. So look for Tubby vs. Anderson round two. My upset special of tomorrow is the Salukis over West Virginia. Coach Lowery's team really impressed me in the MVC tournament, especially with their stifling defense against Bradley in the MVC title game. Also, look for some mid-majors to pull off upsets against power conference teams (Northern Iowa over Georgetown perhaps?) or mid-majors scaring power conference teams before faltering in the final minutes (Kansas barely beating Bradley).

So far, it's been a heart pounding tournament. Cannot wait for day two to get here.

12 Hours before the greatest four days in sports

Conor Nicholl

The greatest four days in sports begins tomorrow with the first round of the NCAA Tournament. I will be in New York City and will spend a lot of time in front of televisions, trying to catch every game I can.

Here's a few thoughts on March Madness and the Div. II tournament before Thursday morning:
March Madness: Scogs, our friend and collegue, delivered an outstanding post about the Missouri Valley Conference and their treatment from Billy Packer on Selection Sunday. Packer said the Missouri Valley Conference (4 bids) and the Colonial Athletic Association (2 bids) didn't deserve to be in the tournament.

I think those six teams from those conferences (only one of those teams is favored) will win two games tomorrow. One of those teams (I think Wichita State) will reach the Sweet 16. Hopefully, that should be enough to give the mid-majors some well-deserved credibility. I am a huge mid-major fan and would love to see them pull multiple upsets on the first few days.

With the mid-majors, Gonzaga, a No. 3 seed, needs to break through this year. Some have them reaching the Final Four, others have them falling in the first round to the A-10 tourney champion Xavier.

I am in three bracket pools, but am having a tough time picking a Final Four. There is a tremendous amount of good teams in the pool this year that have a chance to reaching the Final Four. Other than four No. 1s and No. 2s, here's my short list of squads that have a terrific shot: Gonzaga, North Carolina, Illnois, Boston College, Marquette, West Virginia, Michigan State, Georgetown. At least one of those teams will reach the Final Four.

To the readers: Who is your surprise team?

Other predictions: There will be one huge upset on the first two days. (like No. 14 Bucknell over No. 3 Kansas last season). It could be Kansas again this year- they play No. 13 Bradley (a MVC team) in the first round. Bradley was one of the hottest teams in the country down the stretch.

Villanova's Allan Ray, after suffering an eye injury in the Big East tournament, will play tomorrow for No. 1 ranked Nova. With Ray back, this team reminds me a lot of Illinois from last year. They are dominated by guard play, can shoot the three and rebound surprisingly well. I think they are a Final Four team, but their ball control is not as strong as the Illini's from last year. They have a lot fewer assists than the Illini and that could be a problem. Still, I love watching Nova play.

Can't wait to see a lot of teams play over the next few days.

Div. II Tourney:
Tarleton State University, the winners of the Lone Star Conference, advanced to the Elite Eight after defeating Central Missouri and Northwest Missouri at the buzzer. I thought, as well as many of my Index collegues, that Tarleton was not as strong as the MIAA teams because they came from a weaker conference. But they can play. I am especially interested with the win over Central Missouri- CMSU hadn't lost a game by six points or less the entire conference and postseason, compiling an 8-0 record.

CMSU also had the highest offensive efficiency of any team entering the South Central, scoring an average of 119 points per 100 possessions. (For more on off. efficiency, see kenpom.com) I thought the winner of CMSU and Truman was going to advance to the regional final, but Tarleton came on strong and played well in the clutch.

The Storm Before the Madness

-John Scognamiglio

I know this is a Truman Sports board, and there are plenty of things I could be discussing, for example, the women's swimming team's 6th-straight national championship, or the Bulldogs falling in the opening round of the NCAA tournament. But on the eve of the first day of the Div. I NCAA tournament (all apologies to Monmouth), I feel it is my duty to report on something that has really made me mad ... No, furious.

After the loss to Central Missouri, I came home Sunday looking forward to Selection Sunday and watching the show, something of a tradition for me the past couple of years. This year, I was really pysched about how much love mid-major conferences got from everyone. One conference this year just leapt off the charts this season: the Missouri Valley Conference.

The Valley last year got three bids to the Big Dance, and this year, Conference Commissioner Doug Elgin said he thought six teams could get into the tournament. Most people thought the Valley was good enough for five bids, including ESPN.com's bracketologist Joe Lunardi. The odd man out was supposed to be Creighton, and even they had a respectable RPI.

Imagine my surprise when they are announcing the last 16 teams when I saw Northern Iowa announced as the 10 seed in the Minnesota region. It was not as much a surprise as Northern Iowa, because they've had a good season. It was the immediate thought that Missouri State was going to get snubbed.

I feel for Coach Barry Hinson and the Bears. All they did was put together a top-25 RPI team, and they now have the rather dubious distinction of having the highest RPI rating ever to not be invited to the Big Dance. Their RPI was 21.

The real firestorm occurred after the pairings were announced when Billy Packer, that bastion of unbiased tournament opinions (cough cough), lit into Committee Chairman Greg Littlepage for not inviting more teams from major conferences. The world is going to end since the MVC got the same number of bids as the ACC. Oh no ... Start stocking up on bottled water and canned goods.

It's quite simple. The Valley this year played by the NCAA's rules to maximize their chances. They scheduled tough non-conference games to build up their RPI standings, and when conference season rolled around, they just ran into each other, creating one of the most competitive conferences in all the NCAA divisions ... except maybe the MIAA.

For Billy Packer to just go to bat for teams like Cincinnati and Maryland and Florida State while pushing down other deserving teams is exactly why this tournament is so great. Everybody likes an underdog, and who are the underdogs? Mid-major teams are the underdogs. There is only one way to make everyone happy, and that's have a mega-tournament with all 326 Division I teams.

The fact of the matter is this: We are finally starting to see parity in all conferences, and almost anyone can win. It's been 20+ years now since 8th-seeded Villanova upset the top-ranked Hoyas of Georgetown, and there have been teams that have gone to great postseason success. Now that teams in the Valley have proven they can hang with almost any team, don't be surprised next year if more mid-major conferences call on the big dogs for games. Maryland head coach Gary Williams opened a can of worms when he called out Missouri State for not playing them. Now he can expect calls from all the Valley schools seeking games. Other conferences may come calling.

So when someone asks where you were in 2006, you can say you were at the birth of the greatest era of parity in the NCAA.

Nearing the finish line

-Lindsay McReynolds

INDIANAPOLIS - It is Friday night. We are leading the in the team standings and it is time to put the points up on the board to make it stay that way.

It is crazy to realize that what we have trained all season for is almost over, and at the same time a sixth national championship is well within our reach.

Tonight's swims have basically ensured that we will break our record of five national team titles in a row that we shared with Oakland University last year in achieving a sixth team title. We are up about 120-something points, next is Drury and then UC San Diego. It is a dog fight for second place now - no pun intended.

The most exciting event of the evening would definetly be the women's 4X800 relay of freshman Jacqui Dempsey, sophomore Molly Pollette, junior Lija Kaleps-Clark and sophomore Whitney Wodstrchill. It came down to the wire. Pollette came back in the final leg of the relay to touch out Drury by two hundredths of a second! The crowd went crazy, everyone was hugging each other and jumping up and down.

I think at that moment we realized that we were well on our way to winning this championship meet.

However, we still have one day of competition left, and it is a big day with many great events for us.

Wish us luck.

Keeping the momentum going

-Lindsay McReynolds

INDIANAPOLIS - Tonight we go into finals with 322 points. Drury is trailing shortly behind with 241. It has been a great past two sessions.

Last night the parents, sitting in their seating area labeled the "dog pound," were a crazy mass of purple and pink with signs and banners along with some funky headbands with pipecleaners sticking out of both sides, with bulldogs adorning the top.

Lija Kaleps-Clark swam an amazing IM last night, finishing second. The team just seems to be able to feed off of one another's energy, inspiring each other to reach their fullest potential. Junior Brittany Anderson, who had only swam the 400 IM three times in her entire life, started off yesterday morning with a time of 4:41. After her morning swim, she was seated 10th in the consol heat with a 4:34. Last night she won the consol heat with a time of 4:29.

It is swims like these that just send a rush of adrenaline through the team. The relays yesterday finished 5th and 3rd in the 200 free relay and the 400 medley relay, further securing our lead, while not necessarily lengthening it. We have been able to add to our points by placing key people in the final heats by swimming great in the morning, coming in energized and ready to "attack" while everyone else is still tired.

Here at nationals there is no such thing as my "shoulder hurt" or "I just couldn't." It is known that every time someone gets in the water they try their best because they want a national championship for their team.

Tonight we go into finals with a large number of girls qualified for a second swim. Hopefully tonight's session will prove to be a continuance of the past couple sessions, and our spirit and Bulldog pride will bring us out on top.

Wish us luck.

Day one at the national meet

- Lindsay McReynolds

INDIANAPOLIS - Today was the first day of the meet we have been training for all year.

It is here at the NCAA Div. II National Championships, where goals can be achieved and dreams can come true. The back of our team shirts this year say Res Firma Mitescere Nescit, which means a firm resolve does not know how to weaken.

Going into this national championship meet, there is a lot of pressure - pressure to win a sixth national championship.

After the first day of competition, we have set ourselves to do exactly that.

“I am very pleased with where we are standing, we are swimming very well,” head coach Mark Gole said.

By no means, however, does this mean that we can back down now. Every swim, every place and every second counts. All that matters now is the team and what will help the team.

Today was an amazing day for our team. We started off great in the 1000, with five girls scoring in the top 16. Sophomore Whitney Wodstrchill placed fourth in the 1000 freestyle, an event which she doesn’t even normally swim. It was a great way to start off the meet. Senior Katie Funk placed 6th, Sophomore Molly Pollette 8th and first-time scorers Freshmen Jacqui Dempsey 14th and Jessie Lemaster 11th.

This was a great event for us not only because we had so many scorers, but because in the past our main rival Drury has gained a lot of points in this event. This year that was not the case.

In the 200 IM Junior Lija Kaleps-Clark had a great swim, coming in second place. It definitely got us all really excited about all the good things that were sure to come from her throughout the meet.

Brittany Anderson and her sister Erika also made a great contribution in the IM, helping to score much-needed points in the consolation finals. Sophomore Laura Harp also had a great race.

The 50 free was also an exciting race. Whitney Jensen placed third with a lifetime best. It was a great swim and really got everyone excited for the relay that was next. Emily Pufall also swam an outstanding race, placing 11th in the consolation heat.

The relay was perhaps the most exciting event of all, however.

The 4X200 medley with sophomore Emily Greenwood, junior Bridget Brunsman, Harp and Jensen took home our first first-place trophy for the meet. Not only was this a great win for us, but it led to a great afor us as a team, especially as Drury who had placed second to us in the relay, was later announced as having false started.

In a meet where every point counts, this disqualification gave us an even greater lead over them. After the first day of competition, we are in first place with 145 points. Second is UC San Diego with 123 points. This is the first time in two years that we have led in the team standings after the first day, and it is really exciting.

The mens team also swam well today. The Bulldog men placed no one in finals in the 50 free, while they did have a good showing, it was more so due to the fast field of swimmers in the event. Senior Josh Otis placed sixth in the 200 IM, having a great swim just off his personal best time. The mens relay consisting of junior Robert Fletcher, Otis, senior Chris Brammer and sophomore Ryan Ferrell placed eighth in their 4X200 medley.

A great addition to the meet from last year is the exciting addition of an athlete’s lounge on deck. With internet access, pizza and other yummy foods, it makes for a great place to converse with other swimmers and grab a quick drink or bite to eat. However, as Bulldogs our key concern is for our swimmers in the water, so we don't spend too much time in there.

I am proud to say that we are the best cheerers on deck. No one gets behind their teammates like we do, and although today is just the first day of competition, already I have a sore throat from cheering so loudly.


-Note- Swim team member and Index advertising manager Lindsay McReynolds is with the team at the national championship meet in Indianpolis. She will be posting periodically throughout the four-day event with insider insights.

Jemison carries SBU into Sunday’s title game

Conor Nicholl

KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Deon Davis was very surprised.

Davis, a starting SBU forward, looked up at the scoreboard in the final minutes of Southwest Baptist’s second round MIAA matchup against Northwest Missouri State and couldn’t believe the number of points next to teammate’s Jason Jamison’s name – 25.

“I was like, wow he is really playing well right now,” Davis said. “He was a huge plus for our team tonight.”

And on a night where SBU saw little production from four of its top scorers, it was Jemison who kept Northwest at bay and put the Bearcats into the championship with a 65-63 win.

Northwest effectively corralled SBU forward Jim Grabowski (0 points), Davis (5) and 7-foot-2 center Frans Steyn (7), but didn’t have an answer for Jemison, a player who looks very similar in size and stature to the Bulldogs’ Matt Brock.

Like Brock, Jemison lives from behind the three-point stripe, and tonight, he couldn’t miss. He finished with 27 points (no one on either side had more than 15) and sunk 7 of 15 three-pointers, including several that took the momentum from Northwest.

“Every shot he took uplifted us and built confidence,” Davis said.

Jemison, the third-leading scorer for the Bearcats entering the night, usually plays third fiddle to Pace and Steyn.

Jemison, though, has also been one to shoot a lot, but was not in the top 10 among the conference’s leaders in three-point shooting, hitting only 31.2 percent of his shots.

The first two times against Northwest, Jemison scored close to his season average of 11 points, but tonight, he couldn’t miss.

“When he shoots like this, it makes things tough for us,” Northwest head coach Steve Tappmeyer said. “It gives them three weapons and can really make things difficult.”

Jemison also made things hard for Northwest on the defensive end, containing guards Addae Houston and Xzavier Gaines.

“We first liked him because of his ability to shoot,” SBU head coach Jeff Guiot said. “He can shoot and likes to shoot. There was back to back games were he only took three shots and we almost rushed him to the hospital. He was trying to be the complete player. But his offense picks up when he plays well on defense.”

Jemison began heating up in the second half. SBU had only a one-point lead in the first half as Jamison sunk two of four treys.

But his defense picked up in the second half, helping his offense, keying the run that started the second half that gave SBU control the rest of the game.

“He doesn’t need much encouragement to keep shooting,” Guiot said. “We recognized that he had the hot hand and we kept feeding him the ball. That was something we did very well tonight.”

In a 51 second stretch, Jemison nailed two threes, extending the Bearcats lead from 27-26 to 33-28. His second three started a 13-6 run that provided SBU with plenty of cushion.

“We try to focus on eliminating runs,” Tappmeyer said. “And we couldn’t do that in the second half. They had some runs in the second half and then when they got up by 16 or 18 points.”

Jemison hit three more threes in a seven-minute stretch in the second half, further extending SBU’s advantage.

His final three provided SBU with a 58-42 lead with 5:16 remaining, helping the Bearcats hold off Northwest’s final charge.

Washburn cruises into women’s championship

Conor Nicholl

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — I recently finished reading famous sports broadcaster Dick Enberg’s autobiography “Oh My!”

Back in the 1970s, Enberg was the television voice of the UCLA Bruins – the same Bruins that won nine championships in 11 years.

Enberg talked about how UCLA exuded confidence – every time they stepped on the floor, everyone knew they were going to win.

I have that feeling with the Washburn University women’s team. No one can stop this squad. The Lady Blues are the defending national champions and have won 48 straight games. Few teams can even compete with them.

Today, in the first game of Day 2 action, Washburn defeated No. 5 Missouri Western 73-60 in a game that really wasn’t that close. The Lady Blues took the lead at the 15:13 mark of the first half and led comfortably throughout.

Mo. West tried to make a comeback, but it just seemed everybody knew who was going to advance to final. In the parity-driven MIAA, Washburn is the only team that laps the field. No. 2 Emporia State University dominated teams for most of the season, but even they are vulnerable to a loss.

This afternoon, ESU couldn’t get their last shot to fall and fell to No. 3 Central Missouri State University by three points, 63-60.

While teams like ESU and CMSU have terrific players, no one can match the Washburn’s overall talent.

No player in the MIAA – or possibly Div. II – is as fast as Lady Blues guard Jennifer Harris, the unanimous conference MVP. The New Jersey transfer finished with 27 points, many of them coming off steals or lightning-fast dribble-drives.

They also have senior point guard April Roadhouse – she can do more without scoring points than possibly any collegiate player I have seen.

She finished with a team-high nine rebounds, four assists and just two points (on free throws in the 80 seconds) and exercised calm over the entire team on the offensive and defensive ends.

Similar to Truman’s Chip Sodemann, Roadhouse exudes confidence and experience. She doesn’t turn the ball over and plays tremendous defense.

Brooke Ubelaker and Amanda Holmes are also very talented players who can score in double figures and rebound very well.

No team can beat that squad-not tomorrow and probably not this season.

Bulldogs lose captain for final two minutes Friday night

Conor Nicholl

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Everyone – from the Truman fans to players – looked at head coach Jack Schrader.

No one really knew what to do. Senior point guard Chip Sodemann, the heart and soul of the Bulldogs, had fouled out with 2:04 left with the purple and white ahead of No. 6 seed Emporia State University 87-86 last night in the first round of the men’s MIAA Postseason Tournament at Kansas City’s Municipal Auditorium.

As shooting guard Austin Kirby talked to Sodemann, Schrader stood up and tried to make a decision. He was going to lose his best ballhandler and his team leader for the final two minutes of a game the Bulldogs needed to win to secure a solid seed for the NCAA Regional next weekend.

After nearly 30 seconds, Schrader put in senior guard Matt Brock, the team’s three-point specialist and had Kirby, a natural shooting guard man the point.

Sodemann, who finished with 14 points and two assists, sat down for a few seconds, a towel draped over the back of his head. As the game restarted, he walked to the end of the bench and got a cup of water.

For the final 90 seconds, he stood at the end of the bench with the towel still on the back of his head, no expression on his face.

“I was disappointed,” he said. “I was praying that we could still pull through and hoping that someone could step up and make a play.”

Kirby made a terrific play on the ensuing possession, driving hard to the lane and drawing contact from ESU’s Shawn Herrmann, forcing Hermann’s fifth and game-ending foul.

Kirby sunk both foul shots, giving the Bulldogs a one-point lead, but Emporia came right back with a LeRoy Dawson layup.

Sodemann had held Dawson, the conference’s second leading scorer, in check the entire game.

“I didn’t know if we lost confidence, we just didn’t gain confidence,” Schrader said. “With Chip on the floor, we gain confidence.”

Emporia’s Wes Book hit a three with 22.7 seconds remaining giving Emporia a four-point lead.
Andy Calmes took the inbounds pass for a coast-to-coast layup to close the gap to two, but the Bulldogs had to foul on their next possession.

ESU guard Tyrell Sledge sunk two free throws, giving the Bulldogs a chance for a quick bucket. But without Sodemann on the floor, the offense was a little discombobulated.

Sodemann has hit many clutch shots – especially threes – in the final seconds of games, but this time the Bulldogs had to look elsewhere.

Kirby attempted a three that fell short and then Brock tried a lean-in three that hit off the front rim. Emporia grabbed the rebound with 2.1 seconds left, and after Sledge hit two free throws, closed out a thrilling 96-90 victory.

Men’s Basketball Notebook

Offensive Attack

Schrader said he was trying to keep the score in the 60s last night. Instead, the Bulldogs proved they can run with any team in the conference, keeping pace with Emporia State, the MIAA’s top scoring team.

Ninety points represented the highest output for the purple and white since a 91-67 victory against Harris-Stowe State College on Dec. 22.

Six Bulldogs scored in double figures. Sophomore forward Nick Certa led the way with 18 points, Calmes and Kirby had 15 apiece, Sodemann finished with 14, senior forward Derek Lindsey tallied 13 and junior center Garret Grimm chipped in 12 more.

Certa, who only scored 16 points in his last five games, was a perfect 4-for-4 from beyond the arc.

Agbo's Status

Junior forward Grant Agbo didn’t play Friday night.

Sodemann and Lindsey were asked of Agbo’s status in the postgame session, but Schrader cut in and quickly said, “He’s sick.” Sodemann said the team had prepared the entire week without Agbo.

Agbo has battled sickness and injury throughout the season, including playing with the flu against Washburn University on Jan. 28.

Earlier this season, Agbo had his finest game of the year against the Hornets, scoring 21 points and grabbing 14 rebounds.

Bench Play

Schrader went deep into his reserves last night, using freshman guard Banks Estridge, Brock and Certa in the early going. The senior twins, Ryan and Gavin Welker, also saw some playing time.

Mules Win Another Thriller, Friday’s Highlights from Day 1 of Men’s Tournament

Conor Nicholl

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri Southern State University pulled off another remarkable comeback. In the past two seasons, the Lions rallied to win three games where they faced a deficit of 20-plus points.

Tonight, they kept the game closer, but still found themselves down seven with 45 seconds left to Central Missouri State University, the tournament’s No. 2 seed.

CMSU led 61-54 with 44.7 ticks left after Michael Hicks, the Mules’ first team All-MIAA player and the conference’s leading scorer, sunk two free throws. Southern made two foul shots on their end.

The Mules turned it over on the inbounds pass (their second miscue in the final minute) and Southern’s Quentin Edwards converted the first end of a two foul shots.

He missed the second one, but Southern grabbed the rebound and Edwards sunk a layup, bringing the Lions within two at 63-61 with 4.8 seconds remaining. Southern fouled Hicks, the MIAA’s best foul shooter, but Hicks made only one of two foul shots.

In an odd move, CMSU, the defensive team, called a timeout to set their defense with 4.1 seconds left.

“I thought our guys were a little rattled,” CMSU head coach Kim Anderson said.

The Mules remained composed on the inbounds play and forced Southern – a team that doesn’t shoot the three very well – into an off-balance 35-footer that fell short of the rim. The Mules will play No. 6 Emporia State, a team that beat the Bulldogs in a thrilling nightcap 96-90.

The key thing is that we just survived and won,” Anderson said. “There are nine teams in the conference and that ones that are ranked 5 through nine have all lost a lot of close games. That’s the difference. The breaks have fallen our way a few times. Every team is close, but I think SBU is better than everybody.”

Overall, the Mules are now 7-0 in conference games decided by six points or less, easily the MIAA’s best mark in those games. SBU is second with a 6-2 mark and the Bulldogs third at 6-3.
Anderson was surprised that his team hadn’t lost a close conference game.

“That’s very interesting,” he said. “We still have components from a [MIAA] championship team from last season that can step up and make plays. Mike Hicks is an outstanding player. It never entered my mind that he would miss a foul shot down the stretch. [Senior guard] Theo Jones has matured a lot and that has really helped. [Senior guard] Corey Brown is a veteran player with talent and experience.”

And the shooting has been the real key for the Mules. Entering tonight’s contest, Hicks was the second best player in the conference (behind Emporia’s LeRoy Dawson) in the final five minutes of conference games decided by two or fewer possessions.

Last night, Southern’s Myron Hodge did an excellent job of controlling Hicks from the field, holding him to 2-for-13 shooting from the field and 1-for-8 from beyond the arc.

Still, Hicks scored 19 points because of incredible free throw shooting, hitting 14 of 16 shots from the line. He was clutch in the final five minutes, scoring five (all free throws) of the Mules’ nine points, keeping Southern at bay.

Star Watch

Many of the all-conference selections had cold shooting during Day 1: (stats include Friday)

First Team All-MIAA
Player Points Season Average FG Season Avg.
Sheldon Pace, SBU 10 13.7 44.4 52.7
Michael Hicks, CMSU 19 21.5 15.4 42.8
Eddie Jackson, PSU 12 19.2 21.4 35.4
Demarius Bolds, MWSU 13 17.3 16.7 45.4
Andy Calmes, Truman 15 13 66.7 49.1

Players: Pace said last Saturday at Pershing Arena that he will do whatever his team needs him to do. On Friday, that meant finding his guards for threes and getting the ball inside to center Frans Steyn (game-high 21 points).

Hicks: see above story. Hicks constantly had hands his face the entire night, but his free throw shooting allowed the Mules to advance to Saturday’s play.

Jackson: see Friday’s post. Jackson had a terrible game and was the main reason why Pitt. St. lost Friday.

Bolds: If Jackson was bad, Bolds may have been worse. His frustration showed the entire night as Mo. West. – many writers’ (including my friend and colleague Tyler Madsen) pick to win the tournament – shot a MIAA tournament-record low 26.4 percent.

Calmes: Calmes played very well for the Bulldogs, scoring points off layups, runners and rebounds. He had a fine night, but it just wasn’t enough for a victory.

Player of the day: Herrmann. He dominated the inside for Emporia State, scoring 26 points and helping the Hornets upset the third ranked Bulldogs.

Quote of the day: “There’s not going to be a lot of hugs and kisses in our locker room. Not that I would want to kiss any of my players, but I may hug one or two.”

Missouri Western head coach Tom Smith after his No. 5 Griffons lost 72-49 to No. 4 Northwest Missouri State University in the first round Friday night

Bulldogs fall in first round to Hornets

- Joseph Barker

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Truman Bulldogs cracked the 90 point barrier for the third time season during Friday night’s game against Emporia State University.

This time the Bulldogs didn’t win.

The third seeded ’Dogs fell 96-90 to the sixth seeded Emporia Hornets in the first round of the MIAA Conference Tournament. With the loss Truman falls to 20-8 on the season.

The game, easily the highest scoring of the first round contests, featured constant back and forth action. The score was tied 15 times throughout the game with the lead changing 23 times.

Offensive action from both squads started from the opening tip. Both teams shot above 50% in the first half.

The Bulldogs were 14-27 from the field and 8-13 from long range. Emporia matched the ’Dogs hot shooting, opening the contest with 16-28 shooting from the field and 2-6 from behind the arc.

ESU took the advantage on free throws, hitting 6 more than the ’Dogs to put the up 46-42 at the half.

Emporia extended their lead early in the second half going up by as much as seven with 15:15 left to play in the half. Truman then went on a three shooting binge - with senior guard Chip Sodemann, junior guard Austin Kirby and junior center Garret Grimm knocking down treys. Those shots, plus two buckets by junior forward Andy Calmes put the ’Dogs on a 15-4 run and had them up by four with 12:05 left in the game.

With 1:37 left in the game Kirby hit two free throws to tie the game for the 15th time at 87 all. The Hornets then went on a 9-3 run, highlighted by sophomore guards Wes Book’s three pointer with the shot clock winding down and the game clock showing 23 seconds left. The three put the Hornets up by far and signaled the end of the game.

The rest of the second half featured more back and forth action. The ’Dogs couldn’t contain senior Shawn Herrman. The Hornets 6’6” forward knocked down a game-high 26 points and was 10-10 on the night.


Six ’Dogs scored double figures with sophomore swingman Nick Certa leading the way with 18. All five starters cracked the 10-point mark.

But in the end it wasn’t enough.

Implications: The loss does NOT end the season for the 'Dogs. Truman is still in postion to secure one of 8 open spots in the Regional Tournament. The purple and white are currently fifth in the region. The NCAA's will decide the eight team field Sunday night.

Game Notes: Junior forward Grant Agbo dressed, but did not play a minute for Truman. Head coach Jack Schrader said after that game that Agbo was sick. … Six different players for the ’Dogs hit three pointers in the first half. … ESU will take on Central Missouri State University tonight at the Kansas City (Mo.) Municipal Auditorium. … Before the win Emporia had been 0-7 in MIAA conference tournament games. …Stat of the Night Part One: Truman had 21 assists and 17 turnovers, well above their season average. … Stat of the Night Part Two: Emporia scored 23 points off of Turnovers to Truman’s 8. ... Truman shot 53.8% (14-26) from downtown. ... Both Truman and Emporia closed the game shooting above 50% from the field. ... Complete game stats can be found at the Truman Bulldogs athletic site.

No. 1 SBU wins first round game over No. 8 Pitt. State, ends Eddie Jackson’s career

Conor Nicholl

KANSAS CITY, Mo.—Eddie Jackson sat in an unfamiliar place.

Jackson, the senior first team all-MIAA guard for Pittsburg State University, wasn’t playing with less than five minutes to go in the Gorillas’ first round contest against Southwest Baptist University.

He had a blank look on his face as leaned back in his chair, arms and hands rested on the chairs beside him, a blank look on his face.

Jackson, the conference’s leading scorer at 21.6 points/game, was 5-for-23 from the field, 0-10 from behind the arc and scored only 12 points when head coach Gene Iba took him out of the game.

He reentered with 3:07 left, but finally left the contest with 1:16 remaining and SBU ahead 66-52.

The fans stood and cheered as Jackson walked to the bench, but he barely acknowledged the crowd, keeping his head down.

Afterward, Jackson said little during the postgame news conference.

“It just came down to me not making shots,” he said. “The team got me the ball when I needed it, but I just didn’t make shots.”

Pitt. St. runs a similar offense to Duke. They don’t run set plays. Duke tries to get the ball and set single, double and triple screens for J.J. Redick. Pitt. St. does the same thing with Jackson – and they didn’t deviate from the plan today.

Jackson killed SBU in their two regular season meetings, scoring 32 and 25 points.
This time, though, SBU consistently had players in Jackson’s face, forcing up plenty of poor shots.

“We threw three or four different players at him,” said SBU guard and MIAA MVP Sheldon Pace. “You have to do that to great players. We just wanted to make him take tough shots and hopefully try and wear him down.”

Jackson began the night two-for-two, but then missed 11 of his next 13 shots, finishing the first half with 10 points.

“No question, Eddie missed some shots that were open,” head coach Gene Iba said. “But, it’s pretty tough to shoot when you have a [a six-foot-11-inch] guy and a [7-foot-two-inch] guy in your face and a guard coming up behind you.

Jackson started getting frustrated in the second half. Behind forward Edward Morris, Pitt. St., the No. 8 seed in the tournament, led 37-35 at the first media timeout of the second half. Jackson, though, had missed three more shots.

Pitt. St. was finding rhythm and open shots from other players, but Jackson didn’t stop shooting after the timeout.

At the 13:45 mark, Jackson was guarded by two players but hoisted a three from well beyond NBA range, air balling the shot.

When I asked about Jackson’s shot selection afterward, Iba stayed calm but spoke forcibly.

“Did you see the first two games against SBU?” he said, looking right at me.

I said, “No.”

“Did you know how many points he scored?”

I said, “32 and 25.”

Iba stayed calm and explained why Jackson took 35-footers.

“He took those same shots in those games and made them,” he said. “Eddie is the best bad shot player I have ever coached. We try to get him in the flow taking 15 footers and then he can shoot from anywhere.

“He missed those [threes] in our [regular season] last game and missed them tonight. If you can tell me what the difference is between today and those other games, then I need a new guy on my coaching staff.”

Jackson scored only two points the rest of the day. Pitt. St. couldn’t keep pace with Southwest, as the Bearcats finished the game on a 30-15 run, winning 67-52 and ending the Jackson’s – one of the most electrifying players over the last two years – career.

First Game Notes

SBU 7-2 center Frans Steyn was the best player from the first game, scoring 21 points and dominating the post.

Colt Blair, the MIAA Freshman of the Year, was very impressive for the Bearcats, scoring seven points, including a key three-pointer that gave SBU a 59-49 lead in the second half. Head coach Jeff Guiot called Blair’s trey one of the top three plays of the day.

Morris, who had 30 versus the Bulldogs earlier this year, played very well for the Gorillas, keeping PSU in the game with his rebounding and scoring. He also had his own highlight reel, bringing down the house on three dunks.

Halftime

The MIAA provided plenty of entertainment during the halftime of the second game, as six mascots played three-on-three full court basket. Pittsburg State’s Gorillas, Missouri Western’s Griffon and Northwest’s Bearcat teamed up against Emporia’s Hornet, Southwest’s Lion and Truman’s own Spike the Bulldog.

Spike couldn’t provide much offense, as he was wearing slippers instead of shoes.

The mascots provided multiple highlights during the 4-3 game won by Pitt. State’s team.
Early in the contest, Mo. West had a wide-open layup, but Pitt. St.’s Gorilla pushed him

ESU’s Hornet hit a three and did a snow angel on the floor and Gus Gorilla earned MVM (Most Valuable Mascot) honors for his terrific defense.

Fond Memories and Hopes for Women's Basketball

By John Scognamiglio

As the women's basketball team ended their season today in Kansas City, there are many moments that I will remember of this team.

Unfortunately, the lingering memory for me will be the freshman of the year award not going to Georgia Mueller. Watching Mueller and her postmate Jennifer Franklin gives me great hope for the future of the women's program. Both freshmen proved themselves all throughout the season and it will be interesting to see if Coach Sloop plays both of them together next year as a legitimate 4-5 punch down in the blocks.

Another good memory is the three-point shooting this year. Sophomore guard Candace McGee moved into fifth place all-time on the career three-pointers made list. A sophomore moves into fifth place. Which means the next two seasons may be fun to watch as Candi moves higher and higher, establishing herself as a legitimate deep threat.

This year's women's squad reminds me of a few of the men's squads from years past. The only loss this year on the women's team will be Ali Long. Before this year, the men's squad lost Jon Hardy to eligibility last year, and Aaron Mueller and Matt Beran, the year before. Losing three seniors over two years means that the men's team was loaded with underclassmen. This year, the men's team loses five seniors.

With the women's squad, next year, Natalie Schupbach may be the only senior on the squad. So if the women's team follows the men's team theory, the women's team will be very good within two years. Do I believe that they could be better next year? Of course. They already have Sarah Gordon, a 6'5 transfer from Tennessee-Chattanooga. When she plays next year, could the 'Dogs transfer from a three/sometimes four guard offense to a three post/two guard offense, with Gordon at the center? It's certainly an intriguing notion. The starting lineup could conceivably be: Katie Fowler at the point, Candace McGee at shooting guard, Natalie Schupbach at the three, Georgia Mueller or Jennifer at the four, and Sarah Gordon at center.

To the women's basketball squad of 2005-2006, I say so long, and thanks for all the fish...I mean memories, good ones.