GREENWOOD, Ind. – "March Madness" is almost here for the Great Midwest Athletic Conference and the playoff races continue to tighten as men's and women's basketball and indoor track and field come down the final stretch of the regular season.
With several G-MAC Championship bids at stake and the indoor track and field conference championship less than two weeks away, teams are laying it on the line and making their final push before entering the postseason.
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MEN'S BASKETBALL
Alderson Broaddus (17-7, 8-3 G-MAC), Central State (16-9, 8-3 G-MAC) and Kentucky Wesleyan (18-6, 7-3 G-MAC), all have a legitimate shot to win the conference regular-season championship and the right to host the men’s tournament in their respective city.
As we approach March Madness, anything can happen, and if it comes down to the very last possible criteria in a tiebreaker for first, then hopes could potentially hinge on a simple call of ‘heads’ or ‘tails’ in a coin flip.
Just when it looked like AB would pull away from the rest of the pack, the Marauders entered the picture. When KWC was first and dipped to third, the Panthers were resilient and came through in overtime to remain in the hunt at one game back.
So with Central State and Alderson Broaddus tied for first, Thursday night’s showdowns around the league could be decisive in terms of who comes out on top down the stretch.
Four of the six seeds in the conference tournament have been decided. Trevecca Nazarene (9-13, 5-5 G-MAC) and Ohio Valley (8-12, 5-5 G-MAC) are close to nailing down the final two postseason bids, but still need to finish strong.
TNU can clinch a spot in the G-MAC Championship with a win at Davis & Elkins (6-16, 2-9 G-MAC) while Ohio Valley (8-12, 5-5 G-MAC) will have home court advantage against Central State this evening. A D&E loss would clinch spots for both TNU and OVU, but the Senators are still clinging to their tournament hopes.
The spotlighted event will feature Kentucky Wesleyan at Alderson Broaddus in Philippi. In the first meeting of the season, the Panthers clamped down defensively and hounded the Battlers into a 26-point margin of defeat in Owensboro.
Three-time G-MAC Athlete of the Week Ken-Jah Bosley was at it again versus Central State and Cedarville (10-15, 6-5 G-MAC), helping will his team to consecutive wins. After struggling earlier in the game, Bosley came alive towards the end of regulation and in overtime against the upset-minded Yellow Jackets.
Jeremy Brown almost single-handedly pulled Central State into a first-place tie at Trevecca Nazarene, netting a game-high 27 points. CU’s Marcus Reineke continues to have the edge in the scoring title at 18.2 points per game and TNU’s Byron Sanford is a close second at 18.0 ppg.
Reineke and Cedarville will gear up for Salem International (3-17, 1-9 G-MAC) with their conference championship berth already locked in.
AB will try to slow down Bosley and turn the tables on KWC with the strength of its home crowd. Thursday will also showcase two of the league’s top scorers -- Bosley and Battler guard Malcolm Tatum, who comes in averaging 14.4 ppg.
Men's Basketball:
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WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Three of the six G-MAC Championship bids are undecided heading into this week’s slate of games and realistic postseason hopes are on the line for five of the six remaining teams. Cedarville, Kentucky Wesleyan and Trevecca Nazarene, have clinched at this point in the season.
No. 25 Cedarville (22-3, 12-1 G-MAC) continues to carry the torch at the top of the league and crashed the first edition of the Midwest regional rankings released by the NCAA on Wednesday. The Lady Jackets came in at No. 10 and have aspirations of ending at No. 8 or better before Selection Sunday of the NCAA Division II Championships to become an at-large selection.
Cedarville had an 11-game win streak interrupted by Trevecca Nazarene, ultimately suffering its first conference loss of the season. CU had a resounding answer at Kentucky Wesleyan (14-8, 9-3 G-MAC) shortly after.
Two-time G-MAC Athlete of the Week Kaci Britt Bell has been a driving force for the Trojans all year and TNU showed no signs of an emotional letdown after blowing the doors off the hinges in the first half against Central State with a 61-19 lead by halftime. She would average 19.5 points per game and 4.5 steals/rebounds on the week.
Riding a red-hot shooting streak from long distance, Ursuline (7-18, 6-8 G-MAC) has won four straight and will be a very dangerous draw in the tournament bracket (if it qualifies). The Arrows dueled Alderson Broaddus (7-16, 4-9 G-MAC) and outgunned the Battlers in one of the highest scoring games of the season around the league. Sharpshooting guard Makayla Rosselot torched the net for 28 points. UC beat Davis & Elkins (11-11, 7-6 G-MAC) earlier in the week.
D&E’s Sharmaine Baker got back on track against non-conference opponent and nationally-ranked California (Pa.) with 27 points. The bruising senior post performer is averaging 20 points per game on the season. Guard Stephanie Wooten had 14 points with 12 assists in the effort against the Vulcans.
Ohio Valley (6-15, 5-7 G-MAC) squeezed past Salem International (0-24, 0-12 G-MAC) 57-53. Despite forcing 27 turnovers, SIU was just short of pulling out its first victory of the season. The Tigers will remain on the prowl when they travel to Cedarville and Central State (7-16, 4-9 G-MAC) this weekend.
Central State’s Iniquia Snell netted 27 points, but the team fell short against Kentucky Wesleyan (14-8, 9-3 G-MAC) in each team’s first game of the week.
Women's Basketball:
Composite Schedule |
Overall Statistics |
Standings
MEN'S AND WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD
The G-MAC Indoor Track and Field Championships on the campus of Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, are quickly approaching and some of the individual/team favorites are starting to emerge as times and distances continue to improve throughout the regular season.
Three institutions competed this past week, including Cedarville, Central State and Trevecca Nazarene, at respective events around the Midwest Region.
Cedarville traveled to Bloomington for the Hoosier Hills meet. Competing against top Division I schools, the Yellow Jackets held their own while shattering several school records and even met the NCAA Division II provisional mark in the women’s distance medley relay in a time of 12:01.62.
A favorite heading into the G-MAC Championships later this month, Anna Pomento recorded an impressive attempt in the shot put at 12.27m. For the men, Matthew Bird ran a 22.78 in the 200m. Two-time G-MAC Athlete of the Week Josiah Bernard ran the 400m in 50.20 seconds, The 4x400 team with Bird and Bernard, along with Kyle Gerhart and David Yoder, finished in 3:24.73, which is good for fourth in the Cedarville record book.
Central State had a few winners of its own in Berea at an event hosted by Baldwin Wallace. Led by G-MAC Athlete of the Week Darin Gooch, the men’s 4x200 and 4x400 finished first with times of 1:33.50 and 3:31.67, respectively. Gooch also finished second in the long jump with a new conference record.
Shatasia Walker won the 55m hurdles with a time of 8.42 seconds, while teammate Cindi Latimer paced the 800m group at 2:26.27. Latimer was also a part of the 4x400 relay team that finished first with Christle Pendleton, Zoe Tucker, and Desirae Sands. Individually, Tucker finished second in the 200m. Central State will next compete at the Ohio State Tune-Up this weekend.
Caroline Hampton of Trevecca Nazarene finished an impressive fifth in the 3000m among a host of Division I runners, beating the school record and setting a new conference benchmark in the event. Hampton finished in 9:59.82, which provisionally qualifies her for the NCAA Division II national championships. The freshman earned her second G-MAC Athlete of the Week award of the season.
Anna Hoffman also beat a school record in the 800m, finishing with a time of 2:17.84.
For the men, Ben Moroney and Josh Winskie each broke the school record in the 3000m, however Moroney finished just ahead of his teammate with a time of 8:53.61.