Loyalty Isn’t Dead: Small-School Stars Stay Put--
Watch Stadium
Loudon Love was the Player of the Year in the Horizon League. Javion
Hamlet earned POY honors in Conference USA. Loren Cristian Jackson
claimed the award in the MAC.
All three could have been grad transfers, being wooed by no shortage
of high-major programs, some of which have been compiling a list of
mid-major standouts eligible to grad transfer since before the season
even began.
Instead, all three players stayed loyal.
They didn’t even peek around to see who was waiting in the wings, who
was ready to pounce if they decided to go the route of what is certain
to be at least 200 grad transfers from around the country.
In a day and age in which it’s common to bolt for what so many
believe might be greener pastures, Love, Hamlet and Jackson turned down
the glitz and glamour of high-major hoops to become the exception in
today’s college basketball.
“There are no guarantees if I leave and go somewhere else,” Love
said. “But I know what I have here, and I don’t see any reason to
change.”
When the now 6-foot-8, 255-pound Love arrived on campus, he was
overweight at 325 pounds and many figured he’d be better-served to go
the football route. He got serious college football looks back in high
school, but his passion was on the hardwood, and Love wound up following
Scott Nagy to Wright State after initially committing to Nagy’s former
school, South Dakota State.
Love was still recovering from a torn ACL his senior year of high
school and agreed with Nagy that it was best for him to sit out his
freshman season to get into shape. After dropping some weight, Love has
been one of the best players over the past three seasons for Nagy in the
Horizon and was considered the best player in the league this season
after averaging 15.9 points and 9.7 rebounds per game.
But he never really gave heading somewhere else for his final college
season any thought until an elderly woman implored him not to leave
Wright State at an autograph session prior to the season.
“Loyalty is a big thing and has always been a big character trait for
me,” Love said. “A lot of schools told me to play football, but Coach
Nagy saw my potential. I trust him and the bond I have with the staff
and the players. I’m happy at Wright State and am not going anywhere.”
“He’s one of the best I’ve ever coached,” said Nagy, whose coaching
career began nearly 30 years ago as an assistant at Illinois. “Super
loyal. I can’t even explain the connection we’ve had, but I honestly
wish he was more selfish. He’s just a great teammate, and we were never
worried about him leaving as a grad transfer.”
Catching Up With Junior Emma VanZanten--
ysu.prestosports.com
March Madness immortalized: The 101 greatest NCAA Tournament games in modern college basketball history--
CBS Sports
1986
4. East first round: No. 14 Cleveland State 83, No. 3 Indiana 79
Being that this is just the second year of a 64-team bracket, Cleveland State becomes the first true Cinderella of the modern era. Behind the heroics of Ken "Mouse" McFadden, the Vikings are the first small-conference team to make the Sweet 16, and of course the lowest-seeded to do it as well. This game is also the first time a Bob Knight-coached team loses in the first round. Oh by the way, the '86 tourney had two No. 14-over-No. 3 seeds: Arkansas-Little Rock over Notre Dame was the other.
6. East Sweet 16: No. 7 Navy 71, No. 14 Cleveland State 70
Imagine if the NCAA Tournament delivered Navy vs. Cleveland State in today's age? Great as this bracket has remained for decades, that just doesn't seem possible anymore. Of course, Navy made it so far because it had a unique star: David Robinson. Here he scores 22 points -- including the winner with four seconds to go -- grabs 14 rebounds and blocks nine shots (second best in tournament history) in one of the all-time Cinderella Sweet 16 matchups, which was hosted by New Jersey's Brendan Byrne Arena. Robinson boasts tournament-bests -- 27.5 points and 11.8 rebounds on average -- but Duke's Johnny Dawkins (26.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg) wins the East's MOP.
Norse MBB Pick Up Top 100 JUCO Recruit Darius Harding Amidst Roster Shakeup--
Norse Report
Oakland County's top NCAA Tournament performances the last 30 years--
Oakland Press
Oakland County has been able to leave a mark on the NCAA Tournament
over recent years. Here’s 15 notable performances from Oakland County
athletes in March Madness over the last 30 years.
March 19, 2010 – Keith Benson
(Oakland University) was the lone bright spot in Oakland University’s
89-66 loss to 3-seed Pittsburgh in the first round of tourney action,
notching an impressive double-double of 28 points and 10 rebounds.
Benson took OU back to the Big Dance the next year, where they played
tough in an 85-81 defeat at the hands of 4-seed Texas. A two-time Summit
League MVP, Benson played a year in the NBA and is currently playing
overseas.
March 15, 2005
– Brandon Cassise (Orchard Lake St. Mary’s-Walled Lake Central) came
off the bench to score 14 points in Oakland University’s first NCAA
Tournament contest and win, a 79-69 victory over Alabama A&M in a
play-in game. OU lost 96-68 to top-seeded North Carolina.
March 11, 1999
– Rashad Phillips (Ferndale) sheeted 16 points and five assists in
12th-seeded U-D Mercy’s 56-53 dispatching of fifth-seeded UCLA and its
future NBA backcourt of Baron Davis and Earl Watson. Phillips is one of
the greatest point guards to ever play in the Horizon League and left
UDM in 2001 as the program’s all-time leading scorer (2,319 points).
Luke Yaklich named UIC men’s basketball head coach--
UIC News
