Pointers to Face Familiar Foe in NCAA
Tourney
UW-Stevens Point will face a familiar opponent
when it opens defense of its NCAA Division III men�s basketball championship
as the Pointers will meet either Lawrence or Gustavus Adolphus in a second
round game on Sat., March 5 at the Quandt Fieldhouse.
The Pointers are 24-3 overall and received a first
round bye, while Lawrence (19-5) plays at Gustavus Adolphus (22-5) in a
first round matchup on Thursday in St. Peter, Minn. The winner comes to
Stevens Point on March 5 for a 7 p.m. game.
The Pointers played both teams on the way to their
national championship last year as the two squads were the only teams to
hold halftime leads on UW-Stevens Point in the postseason with the Pointers
rallying for a 66-55 win at Gustavus Adolphus in the second round and an
82-81 overtime win over Lawrence in the sectional final.
�No matter which way you cut it, they�re probably
not happy to be in our bracket and we know it�s no bargain to play either of
these teams,� Pointers� coach Jack Bennett said. �The bright side is we�re
at home and we�ve played well at home.�
In fact, the Pointers are 15-0 at the Quandt
Fieldhouse this year, including wins in all three rounds of the Wisconsin
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament and an 87-77 victory over
UW-Whitewater in the title game on Saturday. UW-Stevens Point has a 19-game
home winning streak, but lost to Gustavus Adolphus in the 2003 second round
at home.
�That is one of the marquee matchups in the first
round of the tournament,� Bennett said of Thursday�s game in Minnesota. �A
plus is that we�ve had the experience of playing both of them and know what
we�re going to see.�
UW-Stevens Point will make its third straight
appearance in the tournament and fifth trip in the last nine seasons. The
Pointers won the national title last year and made trips to the Elite Eight
in 1997 and 2000. |
