Adam MacDonald
The Valdosta Daily Times
VALDOSTA —
The Division II men’s basketball Elite Eight tips off on Wednesday in Springfield, Mass. For the first time ever, the Elite Eight will feature the Valdosta State Blazers. The following is an overview of this year’s Elite Eight participants.
St. Cloud State Huskies
Location: St. Cloud, Minn.
Region: Central champions
National Ranking: 16
Record: 28-5
Elite Eight opponent: Midwestern State (Wed., noon)
Coach: Kevin Schlagel, 13th season (265-117)
Players:
Matt Schneck, Sr. — 18.3 ppg and 11.1 rpg; shoots 61.8 percent from the field.
Taylor Witt, Jr. — 15.9 ppg; 116 assists; 109 turnovers
Brett Putz, So. — 10.2 ppg; shoots 41.3 percent from 3-point.
Team Fact: The Huskies played No. 25 Augustana three times this season and went 2-1, including an overtime win in the Central Region finals that sent them to the Elite Eight for the second time in school history.
Midwestern State Mustangs
Location: Wichita Falls, Texas
Region: South Central champions
National Ranking: 3
Record: 31-2
Elite Eight opponent: St. Cloud State (Wed., noon)
Coach: Grant McCasland, 1st season (31-2)
Players:
Craig Green, Sr. — 16.8 ppg; 82 percent free throw shooter.
Chris Hagan, Jr. — 13.6 ppg; 135 assists
Jason Ebie, Sr. — 10.8 ppg and 4.1 rpg; 174 assists
Team Fact: The Mustangs beat No. 7 Central Missouri 60-59 in the South Central Region finals for a school record 31st victory and their first trip to the Elite Eight.
Valdosta State Blazers
Location: Valdosta, Ga.
Region: South champions
National Ranking: 6
Record: 28-4
Elite Eight opponent: Indiana, Pa. (Wed., 2:30 p.m.)
Coach: Mike Helfer, 5th season (107-42)
Players:
Tyrone Curnell, Sr. — 17.1 ppg and 8.9 rpg; shoots 50.1 percent from the field.
Tristan Crawford, Sr. — 11.6 ppg and 4.2 rpg; shoots 48.3 percent from the field.
Ricardo Lewis, Sr. — 10.6 ppg.
B.J. Dibble, Sr. — 8.5 ppg and 5.8 rpg.
Team Fact: The Blazers avenged a conference tournament loss to No. 1 Arkansas Tech by beating Arkansas Tech in the South Region semifinals on Tech’s home floor. The Blazers beat Rollins in South Region finals to advance to their first Elite Eight.
Indiana University of Pennsylvania Crimson Hawks
Location: Indiana, Pa.
Region: Atlantic champions
National Ranking: 2
Record: 31-2
Elite Eight opponent: Valdosta State (Wed., 2:30 p.m.)
Coach: Joe Lombardi, 4th season (72-46)
Players:
Thomas Young, Sr. — 16.6 ppg and 5.1 rpg.
Darryl Webb, Jr. — 15.3 ppg and 10.1 rpg; 58 steals; shoots 54.1 percent from the field.
Akida McLain, Sr. — 15.1 ppg and 7.6 rpg; shoots 54 percent from the field.
Julian Sanders, So. — 10.2 ppg; taken 220 3-pointers, made 35.5 percent; only started four of 33 games.
Team Fact: IUP won its fifth regional title with a 84-72 win over West Liberty in the Atlantic Region finals. Darryl Webb was named the MVP of the tournament after scoring a career high 27 points and bringing down 12 rebounds in the finals.
Saint Joseph’s (Ind.) Pumas
Location: Rensselaer, Ind.
Region: Midwest champions
National Ranking: Not ranked
Record: 20-11
Elite Eight opponent: Cal Poly Pomona (Wed., 6 p.m.)
Coach: Richard Davis, 4th season (69-48)
Players: Mark Lake, Jr. — 12.5 ppg and 6.6 rpg.
Dayvon Sloan, Fr. — 11.6 ppg.
Phillip Collins, So. — 10.6 ppg.
Team Fact: The Pumas beat Quincy 104-103 in triple overtime in the Midwest Region finals. Phillip Collins put back an offensive rebound with .9 seconds remaining for the winning bucket. Quincy led by 14 in the second half. The Pumas were the No. 8 seed in the Midwest Region.
Team: Cal Poly Pomona Broncos
Location: Pomona, Calif.
Region: West champions
National Ranking: Not Ranked
Record: 25-6
Elite Eight opponent: Saint Joseph’s (Wed., 6 p.m.)
Coach: Greg Kamansky, 10th season (203-88)
Players: Austin Swift, Sr. — 13.1 ppg and 5.1 rpg; shoots 48.8 percent from the field.
Donnelle Booker, Jr. — 9.9 ppg and 5.6 rpg; shoots 57.9 percent from the field.
Dwayne Fells, So. — 9.3 ppg and 4.4 rpg; shoots 60.1 percent from the field.
Team Fact: The Broncos won their second straight West Region title with a 78-75 win over BYU Hawaii. Austin Swift scored the final five points in the final 97 seconds to win West Region tournament Most Outstanding Player. The Broncos lost in overtime in last year’s national championship game.
Team: Augusta State Jaguars
Location: Augusta, Ga.
Region: Southeast champions
National Ranking: 4
Record: 29-3
Elite Eight opponent: Bentley (Wed., 8:30 p.m.)
Coach: Dip Metress, 6th season (144-46)
Players: Ben Madgen, Sr. — 19.5 ppg and 4.4 rpg; shoots 47.2 percent from the field; shoots 44 percent from 3-point.
Fred Brathwaite, Sr. — 16.6 ppg and 8.2 rpg; shoots 58.8 percent from the field
Alex Smith, Sr. — 14.5 ppg and 6.2 rpg; shoots 60.8 percent from the field.
Team Fact: The Jaguars lost to Montevallo in the Peach Belt Conference tournament but beat Montevallo in the Southeast Region final. The Jaguars are making their second consecutive trip to the Elite Eight. They reached the Final Four last year.
Team: Bentley Falcons
Location: Waltham, Mass.
Region: East Region champions
National Ranking: Not Ranked
Record: 25-6
Elite Eight opponent: Augusta State (Wed., 8:30 p.m.)
Coach: Jay Lawson, 19th season (389-177)
Players: Jason Westrol, Sr. — 21.2 ppg and 5.3 rpg; 122 assists; shoots 48.6 percent from the field.
Brian Tracey, Jr. — 14.4 ppg and 8.8 rpg.
Tom Dowling, Jr. — 10.8 ppg and 3.5 rpg.
Team Fact: The Falcons are headed to their third Elite Eight in four years virtue of an 81-69 win over Philadelphia University in the East Region finals. All-American Jason Westrol was the MVP of the tournament after scoring a career-high 33 points in the finals. He also reached the 2,000 point mark in his career.
