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Mar. 13—A third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance is going to have a slightly different feel for the USC Aiken men's basketball team.
These Pacers are no newcomers to the big dance, but this weekend they head to the Southeast Region Tournament with momentum.
They're carrying with them the good vibes from winning the Peach Belt Conference Tournament after back-to-back years of regular-season conference titles followed by early departures from the league tournament.
USCA (23-8) has won six consecutive games heading into Saturday's 2:30 p.m. tip-off against No. 7 seed Catawba (18-12) at Columbus State, site of the Southeast Region and the same court where USCA won the PBC tourney.
The teams have history, albeit not very recent. They played way back on Nov. 10, with USCA escaping with an 81-79 win at the Convocation Center, and the Pacers beat the Indians in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
That November meeting, however, was marked by big-time performances by players who have since earned all-conference recognition.
Jalen McCoy, a first-team All-PBC pick and USCA's all-time leading scorer, had a team-high 18 points in that game, third-team all-PBC pick Davion Cunningham had nine points and six steals in just his second game and first start as a Pacer, and PBC Defensive Player of the Year Simeon German had 11 points, seven rebounds and two steals.
Catawba countered with Kris Robinson, a second-team All-South Atlantic Conference selection who had 19 points, and also got 12 points and nine rebounds from third-team All-SAC pick Nick Walker.
McCoy leads a trio of double-digit Pacer scorers, averaging a team-best 19.9 points per game and adding six rebounds a night. Cunningham is scoring 14.9 per game with 5.6 boards, and Rhyjon Blackwell averages 12.9 points per game. German pulls down 8.3 rebounds per game to go with his 7.5 points, and he's averaging just under two blocks per game.
Catawba also has three players averaging 10 or more points per game. Robinson leads the way at 15.1 points and is the Indians' designated 3-point bomber, averaging 8.1 attempts per game. Walker is averaging 14.1 points and 6.7 rebounds, and Ibra Athie averages 10.4 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds.
The teams took different routes to make their third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. Catawba was on the outside looking in once the March 2 region rankings were released after finishing sixth in the SAC during the regular season, but a run to the tournament semifinals was just enough to crack the top eight.
USCA was going to the dance regardless — it was just a matter of where the Pacers would be seeded. They were No. 3 in the final region rankings, and now No. 24 in the final regular-season national poll, then moved up a spot after beating Flagler, North Georgia and USC Beaufort in succession to bring home the PBC Tournament title.
It wasn't enough to leapfrog Columbus State, which swept USCA on its way to the PBC's regular-season title, but moving up to the No. 2 seed with a conference tournament title feels a lot better than settling for a lesser seed after a disappointing loss.
Saturday's other Southeast Region quarterfinals are: No. 3 seed Lenoir-Rhyne vs. No. 6 Augusta at noon, No. 1 Columbus State vs. No. 8 Carson-Newman at 5 p.m. and No. 4 Lincoln Memorial vs. No. 5 UNC Pembroke at 7:30 p.m.
The semifinals are scheduled for Sunday evening, and the region final is Monday night — with the winner moving on to the Elite Eight.
Continue reading...
These Pacers are no newcomers to the big dance, but this weekend they head to the Southeast Region Tournament with momentum.
They're carrying with them the good vibes from winning the Peach Belt Conference Tournament after back-to-back years of regular-season conference titles followed by early departures from the league tournament.
USCA (23-8) has won six consecutive games heading into Saturday's 2:30 p.m. tip-off against No. 7 seed Catawba (18-12) at Columbus State, site of the Southeast Region and the same court where USCA won the PBC tourney.
The teams have history, albeit not very recent. They played way back on Nov. 10, with USCA escaping with an 81-79 win at the Convocation Center, and the Pacers beat the Indians in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
That November meeting, however, was marked by big-time performances by players who have since earned all-conference recognition.
Jalen McCoy, a first-team All-PBC pick and USCA's all-time leading scorer, had a team-high 18 points in that game, third-team all-PBC pick Davion Cunningham had nine points and six steals in just his second game and first start as a Pacer, and PBC Defensive Player of the Year Simeon German had 11 points, seven rebounds and two steals.
Catawba countered with Kris Robinson, a second-team All-South Atlantic Conference selection who had 19 points, and also got 12 points and nine rebounds from third-team All-SAC pick Nick Walker.
McCoy leads a trio of double-digit Pacer scorers, averaging a team-best 19.9 points per game and adding six rebounds a night. Cunningham is scoring 14.9 per game with 5.6 boards, and Rhyjon Blackwell averages 12.9 points per game. German pulls down 8.3 rebounds per game to go with his 7.5 points, and he's averaging just under two blocks per game.
Catawba also has three players averaging 10 or more points per game. Robinson leads the way at 15.1 points and is the Indians' designated 3-point bomber, averaging 8.1 attempts per game. Walker is averaging 14.1 points and 6.7 rebounds, and Ibra Athie averages 10.4 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds.
The teams took different routes to make their third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. Catawba was on the outside looking in once the March 2 region rankings were released after finishing sixth in the SAC during the regular season, but a run to the tournament semifinals was just enough to crack the top eight.
USCA was going to the dance regardless — it was just a matter of where the Pacers would be seeded. They were No. 3 in the final region rankings, and now No. 24 in the final regular-season national poll, then moved up a spot after beating Flagler, North Georgia and USC Beaufort in succession to bring home the PBC Tournament title.
It wasn't enough to leapfrog Columbus State, which swept USCA on its way to the PBC's regular-season title, but moving up to the No. 2 seed with a conference tournament title feels a lot better than settling for a lesser seed after a disappointing loss.
Saturday's other Southeast Region quarterfinals are: No. 3 seed Lenoir-Rhyne vs. No. 6 Augusta at noon, No. 1 Columbus State vs. No. 8 Carson-Newman at 5 p.m. and No. 4 Lincoln Memorial vs. No. 5 UNC Pembroke at 7:30 p.m.
The semifinals are scheduled for Sunday evening, and the region final is Monday night — with the winner moving on to the Elite Eight.
Continue reading...
