| Matt Moses leads a Pointers crew that protects the
basketball. D3sports.com file photo by Ryan Coleman |
By Matt Florjancic
D3sports.com
The opening page on the UW-Stevens Point athletics Web site says it all in two words: "Salem Bound!!!"
It has only been five years since UW-Stevens Point men's basketball team won the second of back-to-back NCAA Tournament championships, but for the Pointers, it seems like an eternity.
After the title runs in 2004 and 2005, UW-Stevens Point did not make the tournament field in 2006. Including this season's run to the Final Four, the Pointers have made four straight appearances in the tournament, but have lost in the second round twice and made it beyond the second weekend only once.
"For me, this is really a great opportunity," said Bob Semling, now in his fifth year as the Pointers' head coach. "I just wanted at some point to be able to get a group of guys back down there. As an assistant coach, we were there in '04 and '05 and you realize just what a memorable lifetime experience this is for the young men.
"I just can't be more pleased that we've got another group of guys that get to go down there and experience this and have a chance to play for a national title," he added. "It doesn't get much better than this."
Stevens Point finds itself back in the Final Four due in large part to the play of senior guard Matt Moses and junior forward Louis Hurd.
They are two of the three Pointers' captains for the 2009-10 season and the top scorers on the team. Moses leads the way with 14.6 points per game and a 39.3 shooting percentage from three-point range. In 31 games this season, Moses has just 40 turnovers. As a team, the Pointers have committed 305 turnovers while forcing 401.
"Ever since I've been here, we've really prided ourselves on taking care of the ball," Moses said. "A couple years, we have led the NCAA and I think a lot of it has to do with our sureness drills that we do every day in practice."
"Matt played significant minutes off the bench as a freshman and continued as a sophomore and stepped in and started last year as a junior," said Semling. "This year, he's really taken it upon himself to be aggressive and to really stay aggressive on the offensive end consistently every trip down the floor. That's really helped us."
Hurd scores 12.5 points per game and shoots 49.2 percent from inside the three-point arc. Hurd and Moses each average 4.2 rebounds per game.
"With losing Pete (Rortvedt) and Khalifa (El-Amin), two guys that hit a lot of threes for us, I just try to come in every game and really start hunting my shot along with Matt," said Hurd. "When we start Nick (Krull) and Scott (Hoelzel), they're not really the shooting type, so I'm just trying to get out there, help move the ball around and then hunt my shot out of the post. I get a lot of good looks, a lot of open looks off double-teams and things. It's just worked out for me this year pretty well."
"Louis is very analytical and he's a deep thinker," Semling said. "He's a real intelligent kid, plus he's well-respected by his teammates. He's been an integral part of what we've done since his freshman year. He'll be vocal. I think that goes back to (the fact that) his dad was a high school coach at Portage and so I think Louis has grown up around the game."
Perhaps more important than the statistics they bring to the table, Hurd and Moses bring experience when they are on the floor for the Pointers. "We got off to a great start and I attribute that to our veterans," said Semling. "We played a tough schedule. We were fortunate enough to win some games early, but we've taken some bumps.
"With each loss, we've gained so much," Semling continued. "We've learned a lot about ourselves and it's allowed us to shore up our weaknesses. We think we're getting better since we hit the postseason. Our WIAC (Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) tournament and the NCAA Tournament has really brought out the best in us." UW-Stevens Point will need to be at their best because the Randolph-Macon Yellow Jackets (26-6) are waiting for them in Salem. Randolph-Macon shoots 47.7 percent from the floor, including 37 percent from three-point range. The Yellow Jackets outscore their opponents by 10.5 points per game and have forced 530 turnovers this season.
"Everything we've learned, we're getting more deeply concerned, so I don't know if I want to learn too much more," said Semling. "Nathan (Davis) has done an amazing job in a short time. I have great respect for their athleticism, their size. They're deep. They have a lot of guys that can play. In some ways, they're very similar to us where a different guy can rise up on any night and really hurt you. It's going to be a great battle between two good leagues and we're excited about the challenge.
"I really want to represent our league," Semling concluded. "I want to represent the state of Wisconsin and I know the other teams will represent their areas. We want to put on a great show, showcase just how good Division III basketball is at this Final Four."