Moccasins Set to Open South Regional Tournament With North Alabama

LAKELAND - Florida Southern will begin its quest for a national championship here Saturday evening as the eighth-ranked and No. 1 seeded Moccasins will face eighth-seeded North Alabama in the first round of the NCAA Division II South Regional Tournament at Jenkins Field House on the FSC campus. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. and will be third of four quarterfinal games on Saturday.

Printable South Regional bracket
South Regional Tournament homepage

Along with FSC's game against North Alabama, other quarterfinal match-ups are No. 3 seed Eckerd (20-7) facing No. 6 seed and 12th-ranked Benedict (23-6) at 12 p.m., while No. 2 seed and ninth-ranked Alabama-Huntsville (23-5) will meet No. 7 seed Christian Brothers (21-8) at 2:30 p.m. and No. 4 seed Saint Leo (21-7) will meet No. 5 seed Rollins (19-10) at 8:30 p.m. The regional semifinals are scheduled for Sunday, March 17 at 5 and 7:30 p.m., while the championship game is slated for Tuesday, March 19 at 7 p.m.  

The Moccasins, who are hosting the South Regional for the third time in the last six years and the 10th overall since 1979, enter the NCAA Tournament having won five straight games, including posting three victories in less than 48 hours last weekend en route to taking home its 21st Sunshine State Conference Tournament Championship. In the championship game, the Mocs trailed by 16 points early in the game and then by 13 points midway through the second half before rallying to post a 72-66 win over Rollins at the Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee.

FSC, who shared the regular season SSC title with 17th-ranked Saint Leo, is sporting a 24-5 overall record and is looking to win its ninth regional title and its first since 2000 when the Mocs defeated Delta State (81-55) and Tampa (67-53) in Lakeland, before losing in the Elite Eight to Missouri Southern, 76-65, while UNA enters the NCAA Tournament having lost four of its last six games, including falling to West Florida (82-78) in the first round of last weekend's Gulf South Conference Tournament.

UNA and the Mocs have a shared history of meetings in the NCAA Tournament as Saturday's match-up will be the fourth between the two schools in the NCAA Tournament as they both first met in the NCAA Tournament in 1979 in Lakeland as the Lions picked up a 75-67 win in the first round on their way to claiming the first of its two national championships. In 1980, the two teams met in the third place game at the Final Four in Springfield, Mass., as the Mocs picked up a 68-67 win and the third meeting in the NCAA Tournament came in 1988 as the Mocs defeated UNA 99-76 in the first round of the South Regional in Lakeland. The Mocs won the region and advanced to the Elite Eight. 

FSC has posted a 35-28 record all-time in the NCAA Tournament and is making its 27th all-time appearance, which is tied for third-most in NCAA Division II. In addition, the 35 NCAA Tournament wins is tied for fifth-most in NCAA Division II history.

The last time UNA played in the NCAA Tournament was in 2008 and they played the South Regional in Lakeland. The Lions won all three games in the South Regional to advance to the Elite Eight. Overall, UNA is making its 12th appearance in the NCAA Tournament this season and is 30-11 all-time in NCAA Tournament and has won two national titles (1979 and 1991).

Saturday's game with North Alabama will mark just the sixth meeting all-time between the two schools and the first since the Mocs earned a 91-62 win in a neutral site game at Valdosta State on Nov. 13, 2010. FSC leads the series 4-1, including being 1-1 in Lakeland.

Judging by the statistics, Saturday's game will be a match-up between two teams that play similar as the Lions, who finished third in the GSC with a 12-6 record, average 77.9 points per game and outscore its foes by nearly seven points per contest. On the season, UNA has scored over 75 points in 15 games, including three games of scoring over 75 points entering the NCAA Tournament and they shoot 41 percent from the field and 32 percent from long distance. On defense, UNA allows 71.1 points per game and is second in the GSC and 46th nationally in 3-point field goal defense (32.0 percent) and they are second in the GSC in both steals (9.6) and turnover margin (+4.4).

On the flip side, the Mocs are ninth in the Division II in scoring as they average 84.5 points per game and are 15th nationally in scoring margin (+11.1) and are tied for second in the SSC in field goal percentage as they shoot 45.3 percent from the floor and averages 8.4 made 3-pointers per game. FSC also leads the SSC in assists (17.4), turnover margin (+6.8), assist/turnover ratio (1.3) and is second in the league and sixth nationally in steals as they average 10.8 per game. On defense, FSC allows 73.9 points per game and is second in the SSC in 3-point field goal defense (33.1 percent).

Two of the biggest strengths for the Lions are its ability to make treys as they average 7.0 made treys per game and they are strong at the free throw line as they are shooting 72.3 percent from the charity stripe.

Leading the way for the Lions is junior forward Bruce Adams. Adams, who is as transfer from Independence Community College, is averaging 14.4 points and 8.2 rebounds per game and is shooting 44 percent from the floor, 33 percent from the 3-point line and 74 percent at the free throw line and had had six double-doubles and 20 double-digit scoring games. In addition to Adams, junior guard Rashaun Claiborne, who was named a Second-Team All-GSC selection, is averaging 13.6 points and 6.4 rebounds per game and is shooting 38 percent from the field and 74 percent at the foul line and has posted five double-doubles.

Meanwhile, the Mocs enter Saturday's action with four players averaging in double figures led by senior guard Seth Evans (Marseilles, Ill.). Evans, who was a named a First-Team Daktronics All-South Region selection and repeated as the SSC Tournament MVP this season, is averaging 16.1 points, 3.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.9 steals per game and is shooting 42 percent from the field, 41 percent from the 3-point line and 89 percent at the foul line, which is second in the SSC and 13th nationally. Evans has scored in double figures in 25 games, including 13 straight heading into the NCAA Tournament and has had eight 20-plus point games and averages 3.2 made treys per game. Along with Evans, junior guard Dominic Lane (St. Petersburg, Fla.) is averaging 13.8 points and 6.1 rebounds per game and has tallied double figures in 23 games and has a team-best three double-doubles, while sophomore guard Kevin Capers (Winter Haven, Fla.) is averaging 12.3 points per game and has reached double figures in 20 games, including scoring an FSC season-high 28 points in the Mocs SSC tournament semifinal overtime win over Eckerd.

The other Moc averaging in double figures is senior forward Brett Bailey (Davie, Fla.), who is averaging 10.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game and is shooting an SSC-best 58 percent from the field. Bailey, who is one of two Mocs this season to reach the 1,000 Point Club, has scored in double figures in 13 games and has had three 20-plus point games.
 
Complete Moccasin NCAA South Regional Tournament Game Notes

Live stats for all games of the NCAA Division II South Regional will be available here: http://fscmocs.athleticsite.net/livestats/mb/xlive.htm

Live video broadcast of the NCAA Division II South Regional will be available here: http://www.fscmocs.com/page.asp?articleID=3927