NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Final Four Preview
POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. - The NAIA Division II Men's Basketball Final Four is set and the four teams that comprise the semifinal round are rich in tournament tradition. Tonight's games feature No. 1 seed Bellevue vs. No. 5 seed Northwestern in the 6 p.m. game followed by defending champion and No. 2-seeded MidAmerica Nazarene vs. No. 11 seed Oregon Tech in the nightcap. The 17th Annual Divison-II Championship is being held at the Keeter Gymnasium on the campus of College of the Ozarks. The 2008 tournament will conclude on Tuesday, March 18 with the championship game at 8:30 p.m.
The four teams in this year's Final Four have 45 tournament appearances between them and feature both Northwestern and MidAmerica Nazarene who are tied for the most trips to the national tournament with 13 each. This marks the 10th appearance for Oregon Tech; Bellevue has qualified nine times.
The four teams left have a combined record of 85-37 (.697) and Northwestern, MidAmerica Nazarene and Oregon Tech are the top three teams in tournament wins. This year's Final Four field has combined for 16 appearances in the semifinals, eight championship game appearances and four national championships. MidAmerica Nazarene is making its third straight trip to the Final Four and this marks the second consecutive appearance for Northwestern.
Below are the capsules for each of the Final Four teams:
The Championship game will be televised live on CSTV tomorrow night (March 18) at 8:30 p.m.
Bellevue (Neb.)
--32-3 overall record, #1 seed (first top-seed to advance to the Final Four since 2003)
--has won 11 straight games coming into the Final Four (last loss on Feb. 2 to Ozarks)
--sixth straight tournament appearance, ninth overall (11-8 tournament record)
--second trip to the Final Four (1-0); lost to Oregon Tech in 2004 championship game
Tournament Trail:
def. St. Joseph (Vt.), 111-52
def. #16 Aquinas (Mich.), 65-61
def. #9 Bethel (Ind.), 73-69
Season Averages: Tournament Averages:
74.1 ppg 83ppg
61.3 ppg (4th best in the NAIA) 60.6 opponent ppg
49% FG (tied for ninth in NAIA 52.4% FG (97/185)
32.8% Three Point 30.4% Three Point (14/46)
70.2% Free Throw 68.3% Free Throw (41/60)
+10 Rebound Margin +6 Rebound Margin
Individual Player Tournament Totals:
John Gray-45 points, 14 reb, 6 assists
Klaye Rowe-32 points, 7 reb. 5 assists
Jerrod Tucker-27 points, 9 reb., 1 assist
Hannibal Cofield-26 points, 14 reb., 5 assists
Davon White-22 points, 9 reb., 5 assists
Ben Thorn-21 points, 6 reb. 1 assist
Chance Wallesen-18 points, 5 reb., 3 assists (5/15 three pointers)
Northwestern (Iowa)-30-4 overall record, #5 seed
--has won 13 straight games coming into the Final Four (last loss on Jan. 30 to Dordt)
--10th straight tournament appearance, 13th overall (28-10 tournament record; most wins
at tournament)
--second consecutive trip to the Final Four, 6th overall semifinal appearance (3-2)
--Two national championships (2001, 2003)
Tournament Trail:
def. Minot State (N.D.), 97-90
def. Oklahoma Wesleyan, 86-85 OT
def. #13 Northwood (Fla.), 96-70
Season Averages: Tournament Averages:
87.1 ppg (5th best in the NAIA) 93ppg
76.3 ppg 81.6 opponent ppg
51.1% FG (3rd in NAIA) 50% FG (84/168)
41% Three Point 44.4% Three Point (24/54)
70% Free Throw 80.5% Free Throw (87/108)
+5 Rebound Margin +9 Rebound Margin
Individual Player Tournament Totals:
Chad Schuiteman-59 points, 39 reb, 14 assists (2nd all-time at tournament in rebounding-125; record is 130)
Curt Schilling-47 points, 17 reb. 6 assists (5/16 three pointers)
Andrew Stimson-43 points, 10 reb., 6 assist (7/10 three pointers)
Mark DeYounge-38 points, 9 reb., 4 assists
Kale Wiertzema-36 points, 11 reb., 10 assists
Ben Brown-28 points, 16 reb. 7 assist (4/8 three pointers)
Ryan Hoogeveen-18 points, 9 reb., 4 assists
MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.)- 31-4, #2 seed
--13-1 in last 14 games (last loss on Jan. 28 to Evangel)
--10th straight tournament appearance, 13th overall (23-11 tournament record)
--third consecutive trip to the Final Four, 4th overall semifinal appearance (2-1)
--One national championships (2007)
Tournament Trail:
def. Friends (Kan.), 82-66
def. #15 Cedarville (Ohio), 79-73
def. 10 Ozarks (Mo.), 70-58
Season Averages: Tournament Averages:
82.8 ppg 77ppg
68.2 ppg 65.7 opponent ppg
51.1% FG (4th in NAIA) 54.5% FG (79/145)
41.5% Three Point 41.2% Three Point (14/34)
69.1% Free Throw 72% Free Throw (59/82)
+6 Rebound Margin +7 Rebound Margin
Individual Player Tournament Totals:
Danny Hawkins-72 points, 33 reb., 8 assists (4th all-time in tournament rebounds-112)
Adam Hepker-57points, 6 reb., 16 assists (79 career assists-84 is tournament record)
Brenton Bell-42 points, 12 reb., 10 assists (6/11 three pointers)
Austin Boots-31 points, 4 reb., 2 assists (7/14 three pointers)
Ben Swinger-16 points, 20 reb., 1 assist
Oregon Tech -#11 Seed 29-6
--12-2 in last 14 games (last loss on Jan. 28 to Evangel)
--6th straight tournament appearance, 10th overall (23-8 tournament record)
--third trip to the Final Four in five years, 4th overall semifinal appearance (2-1)
--One national championships (2004)
Tournament Trail:
def. Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio), 77-74
def. #6 Evangel (Mo.), 72-63
def. Grace (Ind.), 81-70
Season Averages: Tournament Averages:
84.9 ppg (8th in the NAIA) 77ppg
69 ppg 65.7 opponent ppg
48.9% FG (12th in NAIA) 52.7% FG (89/169)
41.7% Three Point 31.7% Three Point (13/41)
71.2% Free Throw 67.2% Free Throw (39/58)
+10 Rebound Margin +7 Rebound Margin
Individual Player Tournament Totals:
Ryan Fiegi-60 points, 19 reb., 11 assists (3/10 three pointers)
Josh Wetzler-32 points, 32 reb., 8 assists
Jguwon Hogges-31 points, 10 reb., 8 assists
Myles Daley-31 points, 15 reb., 2 assists
Ryan Beesley-27 points, 6 reb., 3 assists (4/9 three pointers)
Christian Cavanaugh-19 points, 10 reb., 4 assists