FRONT PAGE

CAMPUS NEWS:
   SAFETY BAGS
   NORTHWOODS
   GOODYEAR
   VOELCKER
   BUSTED
  
  
 FEATURES:
   HELIE
 
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT:
  BONNAROO
  
SENIOR:
   LEHMANN

SPORTS:
   UMASS
   FOWLER
   MARCH MADNESS

HEALTH AWARENESS:
   RELATIONSHIPS

BLOGS:
  MIKE
  SCOTT
  JULIANA
 

 PROFS:
   ROTH


PAST ISSUES

UMass Men's Basketball has a shot at NCAA berth

by Scott Farr
Exchange Staff

     Every season teams from across the nation battle for their chance to dance in the NCAA Tournament. Although a lot of the at-large bids have been taken, there are still several spots left open to any other teams to get in. These teams include Georgia Tech, West Virginia, Illinois, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Alabama, Drexel, Old Dominion and . . . UMass? That's right. The UMass Minutemen are still in the running for an NCAA berth and to have a chance to play with some of the big teams out there like Ohio State, Florida, North Carolina, UCLA and Kansas to name a few. But the Minutemen still have some work to do before they are even to be considered.

     Before I mention how their season was this season and their odds of getting into the tournament, I would like to give a brief history of the Minutemen. The team started off slow for the first 70 years until Julius Erving came along and played for the Minutemen on the varsity team for two seasons. He went on to lead them to a 41-11 record from 1969-1971 with two Yankee Conference titles and the school's first two appearances in the NIT. That put UMass on the basketball map with some solid seasons during most of the 1970s.

     Then UMass basketball would fade out for a little while until the early 1990s when there was a strong resurgence with strong teams assembled. From 1991-1996 they were a solid basketball team that consistently went to the NCAA Tournament, and in 1996, they got to the Final Four for the first time in their history, before losing to Kentucky who would later go on to win the national championship.

     After that, the Minutemen hit a sharp decline and soon became a mediocre team that could win games, but never make it back to the "Big Dance," especially when teams in the Atlantic-10 like St. Joseph's, George Washington, Xavier and long time rival Temple were winning big.

     Now the Minutemen have an opportunity to get back into the NCAA Tournament. They are 23-7 overall and 13-3 in the A-10. They are led by four players who score in double figures: center Rashaun Freeman, forward Stephane Lasme (who has four triple-doubles this season), forward Gary Forbes and guard James Life. They also average 77.1 points per game as a team, are 11-2 at home, 12-5 away from home and are regular season co-champions of the Atlantic-10 with Xavier.

     But the biggest concern for UMass basketball and their fans is whether or not they have what it takes to get back to the NCAA Tournament. They have the look of a good team and they have a great conference record, but they did lose to Pittsburgh earlier in the season and they have only one win against a team in the top 25 (Louisville).

     And to add more difficulty for the Minutemen, the competition this year has grown. With the teams I mentioned earlier, anything can happen and bubbles can burst. The Minutemen, in order to get into the "Big Dance," have to at least make it to the A-10 final in order to have a shot. They might even have to win the A-10 Championship.

     And guess who could be waiting for them in the A-10 final if they stay solid? None other than Xavier. Even though they are the A-10 Co-Champions, Xavier will most likely get into the tournament because of the teams they've beaten like Virginia Commonwealth (VCU), Villanova, Illinois and Kansas State. It all comes down to strength of schedule. Even if the Musketeers lose in the A-10 tournament, they can still get in as an at-large even if they make it to the final because of those impressive wins.

     UMass is slowly improving their odds, but if they do not win the final, will it be enough? I've followed the Minutemen for more than a decade (I live only 15 minutes away from the campus), and I can say that this team is not like the one that made it to the Final Four over a decade ago. But I would be happy just to see them make it into the NCAA Tournament. Time will tell as Championship week comes and goes.