2008 Woodie Awards
Tournament hopes dim for WSU
Ryan Hehr
Issue date: 3/12/08 Section: Sports
It was a season full of ups and downs for the Wright State basketball teams this season.
Both teams struggled early in the season. The women lost their first five games of the season and eight of their first ten. The men started out 4-3, a slow start considering they were coming off a 23-10 record the year prior.
Then things started heated up in the middle of the season.
The men had an 11 game winning streak this season - the longest in school history - and won 20 games. The women ended with an 11-7 league record, which was their best since the 2004-2005 season.
In the post season awards both Brad Brownell and Bridgett Williams were named co-coaches of the year. The women had three players named to all Horizon League teams and the men's Vaughn Duggins made the list too.
So is it possible for these two teams to miss out on tournament bid? Surprisingly, the answer for both is yes.
Men's basketball
Two things are killing the men's team right now: strength of schedule and the way they ended the season.
It's not much of a surprise to anyone that the Raiders will not get a bid to the NCAA Tournament. With the record they had the only chance of that happened was if they won the Horizon League Tournament.
Still, an at-large bid into the NIT seemed to be a lock, that is, until the past two weeks.
The men lost their last three regular season games. This was a killer because all of them were against tough teams: Illinois State, Butler and Valparaiso. Although they were in all three games until the end, a loss is still a loss.
There are two hopes left for the men. First, and most favorable, get a low seed in the NIT and pray the University Dayton gets a high one. If this happens, fans maybe happier than if they made the NCAA Tournament again. A cross-town match-up would be superb.
The other option is if they get invited to the College Basketball Invitational. It's a tournament in it's second year and would keep Wright State's season going, that is, if they still want to keep going.
Women's Basketball
Now I may be jumping the gun a little bit here since they haven't played the Horizon League Tournament, but here it goes.
Here's a team that has been overlooked big time this season because of a poor start. 2-8 is no way any team wants to start their season. A pretty poor start for a team who finished second in the Horizon League this past weekend.
In that ten game span they played Miami (OH), Boston College, and Wake Forest, all of which are established programs. But with the exception of two games, Wright State was it them until the end and lost by only a few points.
Now that the season is over though, those close losses are going to be killer. With a 14-15 record right now Wright State has to make it to the Horizon League Championship game just to finish .500. This is critical.
If Wright State does not finish .500 they will not be considered for the NIT. In essence, if the women don't win the Horizon League Tournament, then there's no NCAA Tournament bid. If they don't make the championship game, then there's no NIT bid.
Talk about being overseen and never heard.
Both teams struggled early in the season. The women lost their first five games of the season and eight of their first ten. The men started out 4-3, a slow start considering they were coming off a 23-10 record the year prior.
Then things started heated up in the middle of the season.
The men had an 11 game winning streak this season - the longest in school history - and won 20 games. The women ended with an 11-7 league record, which was their best since the 2004-2005 season.
In the post season awards both Brad Brownell and Bridgett Williams were named co-coaches of the year. The women had three players named to all Horizon League teams and the men's Vaughn Duggins made the list too.
So is it possible for these two teams to miss out on tournament bid? Surprisingly, the answer for both is yes.
Men's basketball
Two things are killing the men's team right now: strength of schedule and the way they ended the season.
It's not much of a surprise to anyone that the Raiders will not get a bid to the NCAA Tournament. With the record they had the only chance of that happened was if they won the Horizon League Tournament.
Still, an at-large bid into the NIT seemed to be a lock, that is, until the past two weeks.
The men lost their last three regular season games. This was a killer because all of them were against tough teams: Illinois State, Butler and Valparaiso. Although they were in all three games until the end, a loss is still a loss.
There are two hopes left for the men. First, and most favorable, get a low seed in the NIT and pray the University Dayton gets a high one. If this happens, fans maybe happier than if they made the NCAA Tournament again. A cross-town match-up would be superb.
The other option is if they get invited to the College Basketball Invitational. It's a tournament in it's second year and would keep Wright State's season going, that is, if they still want to keep going.
Women's Basketball
Now I may be jumping the gun a little bit here since they haven't played the Horizon League Tournament, but here it goes.
Here's a team that has been overlooked big time this season because of a poor start. 2-8 is no way any team wants to start their season. A pretty poor start for a team who finished second in the Horizon League this past weekend.
In that ten game span they played Miami (OH), Boston College, and Wake Forest, all of which are established programs. But with the exception of two games, Wright State was it them until the end and lost by only a few points.
Now that the season is over though, those close losses are going to be killer. With a 14-15 record right now Wright State has to make it to the Horizon League Championship game just to finish .500. This is critical.
If Wright State does not finish .500 they will not be considered for the NIT. In essence, if the women don't win the Horizon League Tournament, then there's no NCAA Tournament bid. If they don't make the championship game, then there's no NIT bid.
Talk about being overseen and never heard.
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