The CollegeInsider.com Postseason Basketball Tournament is heading
into an exciting final stretch with the semifinals set for
Wednesday night, March 24th 2010 at 8pm ET on FCS Broadband.
Appalachian State (24-10) will host Pacific (22-11) in one
semifinal. Both teams won on the road in which ASU surprised
Marshall, while Pacific slipped past Northern Colorado.
The other semifinal game will be an all-Missouri Valley
Conference clash as Missouri State (22-12) will entertain Creighton
(18-15). The winner of this game will host the CIT championship
game next Tuesday, which will air live on Fox College Sports.
Pacific (22-11) at Appalachian State (24-10), Wednesday at
8pm ET
The Appalachian State Mountaineers have advanced to the CIT
semifinals with a 22-point (93-71) first-round home win over
Harvard last Wednesday and on Monday they defeated top-seeded
Marshall in an impressive road triumph. The Mountaineers dealt
Marshall just its fourth home loss of the season with an 80-72 win
in Huntington, W. Va. The win was ASU’s 24th of the season,
moving the squad within one of the program record, set in 2006-07.
Junior Donald Sims has been shooting lights out in the
tourney, connecting on 10 of 21 three-point attempts and not
missing a single free throw going 8 for 8 at the line. Through two
games in the CIT, Sims is averaging 26 ppg for the Mountaineers.
ASU is 13-3 at home and has not lost a game at the Holmes Center
since Feb. 1, however that loss was to Division II King College.
Pacific, the Big West co-Regular Season Champions, held on
for a 63-59 victory at Northern Colorado on Monday to advance to
the CIT semifinal. In the tournament’s first round, Pacific
defeated Loyola Marymount on the road, 86-76. Junior Sam Willard
scored 23 points and grabbed 17 boards in the win over LMU. Willard
leads the team in scoring (11.4) and rebounding (8.3 rpg) while
shooting 48.8% from the field.
The Pacific Tigers are particularly dominant on the road
(9-6) having won their last six road games. The Tigers have won
5-of-6 with the lone loss coming against Long Beach State. This
will be the first ever meeting between the teams as Pacific and
Appalachian State have never met on the hardwood.
Creighton (18-15) at Missouri State (22-12), Wednesday at 8pm
ET
Creighton made its Missouri Valley Conference-record 13th
straight postseason appearance earning a berth to the CIT. Although
they had one of the worst records among the CIT teams, they
haven’t faltered with impressive home wins over South Dakota
(89-78) last Tuesday and Fairfield (73-55) on Monday to advance to
the CIT Semifinals to face league rival Missouri State.
Center Kenny Lawson Jr. leads Creighton in scoring (12.9
ppg), rebounding (6.8 rpg) and blocks (1.4) per game while also
knocking down 53.7 percent of his shots from the floor and 81.9
percent at the line. Creighton is guided by coach Dana Altman, who
has over 325 wins through 16 seasons as head coach of the Bluejays.
Creighton is 3-9 on the road but has won five of its last six
games.
After struggling through an 11-20 season last year, Missouri
State opened this campaign with 10 straight wins and is 22-12 after
CIT victories at home over Middle Tennessee (87-79) and Louisiana
Tech (69-40). Sophomore Kyle Weems leads the team in scoring (14.0
ppg), rebounding (6.1) and steals (1.4) per game, while also making
41.3 percent of his three-point shots. Backcourt duo Adam Leonard
and Jermaine Mallet combine to average 23.6 ppg.
The Bears are quite impressive at home going 15-2 with its
only losses at the JQH Arena being to Northern Iowa (55-54) on Jan.
30 and Wichita State (65-62) on Jan. 6. Creighton has won eight of
the last nine meetings to claim a 30-23 lead over Missouri State in
the series. Though Creighton has won three of its past four trips
to Springfield, Missouri State still leads 16-7 in games played in
Springfield.
Don’t forget to catch the CIT Championship Game live next
Tuesday night on FCS Pacific.
