LAKELAND - And then there were two. After two days and six action-packed games, only two teams and one game remain to determine who will represent the South Region in the 2013 NCAA Division II Elite Eight and those two teams will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday evening at Jenkins Field House in the championship game of the South Regional Tournament.
Tuesday's regional championship game will pit eighth-ranked and region top seed Florida Southern against ninth-ranked and region No. 2 seed Alabama-Huntsville for the right to advance to next weekend's Elite Eight at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Ky. The men's D-II National Championship game will be played on Sunday, April 7 at Phillips Arena in Atlanta, Ga.
The Mocs, who have won seven straight games and are sporting a 26-5 overall record, earned its 10th appearance in a regional championship game with its 84-65 semifinal win on Sunday over 17th-ranked and No. 4 seeded Saint Leo is seeking its ninth regional title and first since 2000, while Alabama-Huntsville, who is sporting a 25-5 record, earned its third consecutive trip to the regional final after rallying late in the second half to post a 64-60 win over 12th-ranked and No. 6 seeded Benedict in Sunday's other regional semifinal.
"UAH is really good. They have three guys that have played in the Elite Eight the past two years," Mocs head coach Linc Darner said. "They've played in a lot of big games at this time of year. It should be a great game against two good teams."
Tuesday's game will mark just the third ever meeting between the two teams as the series is tied at 1-1. The Mocs won the first meeting, 96-61 on Jan. 2, 1991 in Lakeland, while UAH won the most recent meeting, 87-82 in Valdosta, Ga., to open the 2010-11 season. It will the first-ever meeting between the two South Region powers in the postseason.
The Chargers, who have hosted the South Regional Tournament the past two seasons, are looking to advance to the Elite Eight for the third consecutive season as they are two-time defending South Regional Champions. Over the past two-plus seasons, UAH is 8-2 in the NCAA Tournament, with its two losses coming in the national quarterfinals. UAH has won eight straight South Region tournament games since falling to Rollins (59-57) in the first round of the 2010 South Regional Tournament in Russellville, Ark.
Meanwhile, FSC is looking to become the first team from the SSC to advance to the Elite Eight since Lynn won the South Region title and advanced to the national semifinals in 2005. In fact, since FSC last went to the Elite Eight in 2000, four league schools have won South Region titles as Tampa won in 2001, Eckerd won in 2003, Rollins won in 2004 and Lynn in 2005.
The Gulf South Conference has won the past seven regional championships, as UAH has claimed the last two crowns, while Valdosta State won in 2010, Christian Brothers in 2009, North Alabama in 2008 and Montevallo in both 2006 and 2007. UNA and CBU both won their region titles in Lakeland.
Tuesday's game will feature a match-up of two teams with contrasting styles as UAH plays an uptempo version of the Princeton offense under the guidance of 16th-year head coach Lennie Acuff, while FSC is a high octane engine on offense and looks to create easy baskets with its defense as they lead D-II in turnover margin at (+6.8).
UAH is one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the country as they are shooting 39 percent from the 3-point line, including connecting on 38 percent of its treys in its two NCAA Tournament games. On the season, UAH is averaging 72.8 points per game and is shooting 46 percent from the field and 77 percent at the free throw line and is allowing just 65.6 points per game. In its two NCAA Tournament games, the Chargers are allowing just 59 points per game as they have held each of its first two foes to 60 points or less.
"The three-point shot is a big part of UAH's offense. They shoot the ball well from outside," the Mocs coach added. "They can all shoot the three-pointer. We are going to have to do a good job of guarding them on the perimeter."
The Mocs, on the hand, enter the game sporting one the top offenses in the country as they average almost 85 points per game and have scored over 75 points in all but three games this season, including scoring 94 and 84 points in its first two NCAA Tournament contest respectively. Along with averaging 84.8 points per game, the Mocs also shoot 45 percent from the field and 35 percent from the 3-point line and are outscoring its foes by 11.5 points per game, including 16.5 points per game in the NCAA Tournament. In the NCAA Tournament, FSC is shooting 45 percent from the field and 37 percent from long distance and is holding its foes to 38 percent field goal shooting and 27 percent shooting from the 3-point line.
"Florida Southern is a very good basketball team. We are going to have to play well against them to have a shot," UAH head coach Lenny Acuff said following his team's win Sunday against Benedict. "It should be a great championship game against two of the top teams in the nation."
Leading the way for the Chargers are senior guard Jaime Smith and forward Zane Campbell. Smith, who was named both the GSC and Daktronics South Region Player of the Year this season, is averaging 18.7 points, 2.6 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game and is the No. 3 scorer in UAH history. He opened the NCAA Tournament with 31 points in UAH's victory over Christian Brothers and is averaging 23.5 points per game in the NCAA Tournament, while Campbell, who was named a First-Team Daktronics All-South Region selection, is averaging 12.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game and is shooting 54 percent from the field and has blocked a team-best 31 shots. The third Charger in double figures is freshman guard Wayne Dedrick as he is averaging 12.5 points per game and is shooting 43 percent from the field and 41 percent from the 3-point line.
For FSC, the Mocs have four players averaging in double figures and six players that average over nine points per game or better. Leading the way offensively for the Mocs is senior guard Seth Evans (Marseilles, Ill.). Evans, who was named a First-Team Daktronics All-South Region selection and earned SSC Tournament MVP honors, is averaging 16.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.4 assists and has an assist/turnover ratio of (2.2). On the season, he is shooting 43 percent from the field, 42 percent from the 3-point line and 88 percent at the foul line and has scored in double figures in 15 consecutive games, including scoring 20 or more points in four times in his last six games and is averaging 20.0 points per game and is shooting 54 percent from long distance in the NCAA Tournament. In addition to Evans, junior guard Dominic Lane (St. Petersburg, Fla.) is averaging 13.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game and has scored 20 points and had seven boards in two NCAA Tournament games.ÂÂ
FSC's other two double-digit scorers are sophomore guard Kevin Capers (Winter Haven, Fla.) and senior forward Brett Bailey (Davie, Fla.). Capers is averaging 13.1 points per game and is shooting 49 percent from the field and 76 percent from the line, while Bailey is averaging 10.1 points and 5.1 boards per game and is shooting an SSC-best 58 percent from the floor. In two NCAA Tournament games, Capers has exploded as he is averaging 24.5 points per game, including scoring a South Regional tournament best 32 points in the Mocs first round game against North Alabama.
The winner of the South Regional will meet the winner of the West Regional in one of four national quarterfinal games at Freedom Hall on March 28. The D-II Final Four will be held on March 30.
Complete Alabama-Huntsville Game Notes
Live stats will Tuesday's region championship game will be available here: http://fscmocs.athleticsite.net/livestats/mb/xlive.htm
Live video/audio broadcast of the region championship will be available here: http://www.fscmocs.com/page.asp?articleID=3927
