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Tigers to play hot team in opener
3/14/2008
By NICK McQUEEN
Hays Daily News
Early in the season, three teams from the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association saw action against No. 21 ranked University of Central Oklahoma.
Upon finding out his team would play the Bronchos in the first round of the NCAA Div. II South Central Region tournament during Sunday's selection show, Fort Hays State University men's basketball coach Mark Johnson instinctively called his fellow MIAA coaches to get a read on the Bronchos.
The only thing he could find out was Central Oklahoma is far from the same team that went 1-2 against MIAA members Washburn University, Southwest Baptist (Mo.) University and Missouri Western State University. The No. 3 seeded Bronchos are one of the hottest teams in the region heading in, and the Tigers' first-round opponent for Saturday's noon game, the first in the eight-team field. Action gets underway in Stephenville, Texas, home of top seeded Tarleton State University.
"They're probably playing the best of anyone in the region,"¬ Johnson said of the Bronchos (25-5), who tied a single-season school record for wins. "They've had five losses, with three of them to MIAA teams, but that was early in the season."
Central Oklahoma has since reeled off six straight and wins in 16 of its last 17 games, claiming the North Division of the Lone Star Conference, and capturing the conference's postseason tournament championship. The at-large and sixth-seeded Tigers (19-10) got in by having a tough strength of schedule this season, joining MIAA members Northwest Missouri State University, the No. 2 seed, and Southwest Baptist, the No. 5 seed.
The trip to Texas marks the first regional appearance for Fort Hays as a member of the MIAA and the first in the South Central. It is the third trip under Johnson as his Tigers made two trips to the North Central Region, the most recent two seasons ago when Fort Hays lost in the semifinals at Winona, Minn.
"This is a very tough region," Johnson said. "Teams that come out of this region have done very well in the Elite Eight."
The regional winner advances to Springfield, Mass., for the Elite Eight. The Tigers last made the Elite Eight during the 34-0 1995-96 national championship season.
The type of team the Tigers have produced this season looks to fit right in with the new region, with teams known more for their athletic ability rather than size, like those of Fort Hays' old league, the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.
"Instead of the size, it's more about a lot of very good athletes," Johnson said.
Central Oklahoma has a little bit of both, most obvious in the form of 6-foot-5 forward Sam Belt, a player Johnson knows could hurt the Tigers the most.
"They have a real nice inside-outside presence, and they play well in transition," Johnson said "They'll push the tempo and try and force you to turn it over."
Belt leads the Bronchos with 19.5 points and 7.6 rebounds a game, and was named to the all-region team this week. While producing in the paint, Belt also hits from the outside, where he has drained 63-of-156 3-pointers this season on a team that likes to shoot the long ball. The Bronchos shoot 35 percent from 3-point range, and make over nine a game in 27 attempts.
"'When you shoot that many, that's a good percentage," Johnson said. "Some of those are going to be maybe not the greatest shots in the world."
Belt will be the most difficult matchup for the Tigers, especially on the inside.
"That's why they've been doing so well," Johnson said of the Bronchos' inside-out balance. "We go into a funk, because we don't have that inside-out presence."
The Tigers can shoot the 3-pointer, too. Fort Hays shoots 38.8 percent from beyond the arc and has made 229 3-pointers this season. Junior guard Tyrone Evans, after a slow start, leads the Tigers with 12 points a game and has 78 3-pointers. Evans twice this season has made eight 3s in a game after breaking out for 19 points in a 33-point loss to Southwest Baptist. Four nights later, Evans hit eight 3s, including a game-winning buzzer beater to edge Washburn, a win that spawned five straight victories for the Tigers.
Junior guard Terry Jeffries finished second this season in the MIAA with 4.1 assists per contest.
The guard duo of Jeffries and Evans has led the Tigers to wins in six wins in their last eight contests, including a first-round win over Missouri Southern in the first round of the MIAA tournament to secure the regional berth.
The meeting will mark the eighth time the Bronchos and Tigers have met, but the first since the 1985 season. Fort Hays leads the all-time series, 6-1. Saturday's winner will face the winner of the Northwest Missouri-St. Edwards contest in Sunday's semifinal. The region championship game is Tuesday.
Also Saturday, Southwest Baptist takes on No. 4 seed West Texas A&M in the first round, with host Tarleton State taking on No. 8 St. Mary's (Texas).
Assistant sports editor Nick McQueen can be reached at (785)628-1081, Ext. 128, or by e-mail at
nmcqueen@dailynews.net.
| Scoreboard | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sport | Date | Opponent | Score |
| BB | 5/11 | Central Missouri | L 4-2 |
| BB | 5/10 | Missouri Western | W 4-3 |
| BB | 5/09 | Emporia State | L 6-5 |
| BB | 5/04 | Pittsburg State | W 17-5 |
| BB | 5/04 | Pittsburg State | L 4-3 |
| BB | 5/03 | Pittsburg State | L 15-7 |
| BB | 5/03 | Pittsburg State | L 5-4 |
| SB | 5/02 | Central Missouri | L 3-1 |
| SB | 5/02 | Missouri Western | W 3-2 |
| SB | 5/01 | Pittsburg State | W 6-0 |
