| Cardinals earn trip to NAIA tournament |
 |
 |
 |
| Sports - William Jewell | |||
| Written by Bill Knust | |||
| Thursday, 11 March 2010 09:59 | |||
|
William Jewell junior guard Jonathan Benson was not afraid to admit it. In fact, it was probably a little easier to say now that the Cardinals’ men’s basketball team had wrapped up its spot in the 73rd Annual Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men’s Basketball National Tournament. “Last year, we got third place in the conference tournament, and we felt like we backed in,” Benson said. “This year we definitely earned it and beat three really good teams to be here.” The Cardinals’ 47-46 overtime win against Lindenwood in the finals of the Heart of America Athletic Conference gave them an automatic berth into the tournament. The tournament winner, along with the top two finishers in the conference, earn automatic bids. The tourney begins Wednesday, March 17, and runs through March 23 at Kemper Arena. The bracket was announced Wednesday, March 4. Last season, Jewell finished third in the HAAC, but MidAmerica Nazarene and Central Methodist, No. 1 and No. 2 in the regular season respectively, met in the finals of the postseason tournament and gave Jewell the last automatic bid. The Cardinals did not disappoint once they advanced to Kemper Arena, though. They knocked off No. 1-seeded Rogers State (Okla.) in the first round, 76-73. “It was the best experience of my life just playing basketball there,” Benson said. “Then we knocked off the No. 1 team. Knowing we get to go back is just huge for us.” Senior guard Kyle Fisher echoed Benson’s sentiments. “We are very excited,” Fisher said. “Last year was a once in a lifetime experience beating the No. 1 team in the nation. Hopefully, this year we can win our first round game again, keep going and win a couple more games after that.” Fisher thinks this year’s experience could be a better one, especially since Jewell has players who have been in the environment before. “I think we were kind of happy to be there the first time,” Fisher said. “Then after we won the first game, it was kind of like I wouldn’t say we relaxed, but we were happy with what we did. This time we want to get all the way to the Final Four, and all the way to the championship.” Jewell coach Larry Holley said that fans at Kemper will see a different Jewell team this year. “We have a lot of new faces, and we are playing a shorter rotation this year,” Holley said. “Usually the first five minutes are full of energy, then you are kind of dead. … Last year our team could create turnovers off our defense and fast break. People who went last year aren’t going to recognize us this year if they haven’t seen us yet. It is a different style of play.”
|
