The scene was familiar to Wofford fans: an opponent’s last second three went begging and Terrier fans stormed the court. But it wasn’t a replay of last year’s win over Western Carolina. The Wofford men’s basketball team won another Southern Conference tournament and was headed to the NCAA tournament again. With a 67 to 64 win, the Terriers punched their ticket to Jacksonville where they, as a 12 seed, will take on the 5 seed Arkansas Razorbacks of the SEC.
Head coach Mike Young was ecstatic for his team.
“We talk about not being a shooting star and instead leaving an athletic legacy here. That goes to the guys who win multiple championships,” says Young. “For this team, the seniors and the guys in this program who have won two, they will be held in high regard for years. It’s a tremendous achievement.”
The Furman team that Wofford beat was the 10th seed, having played their way to the worst record in the Southern Conference. But by the time the Terriers played Furman, the Paladins were on a hot streak, having beaten Chattanooga and Mercer, the 2nd and 3rd seeds in the tournament.
“[Furman] caught lightning in a bottle. I commend them. You could see their confidence grow over the weekend. In the end we had the better team and we made a few more plays than them,” Young says.
Senior Forward Lee Skinner was named Most Outstanding Player of the tournament and Karl Cochran and Spencer Collins joined him on the all-tournament team. Young was proud of the team’s effort.
“Skinner was just phenomenal. We had so many great contributions. That’s what makes a great team. It has been that way a lot this year. It is really hard to play us.”
Sunday evening, it was announced that the Terriers would play Arkansas, the runner-up of the SEC.
“That is where the real heavy lifting begins. Now you are in game mode,” Young says.
Young is confident because his whole team, with the exception of freshmen Derrick Brooks and Cam Jackson, has been to the tournament before.
“It is a big deal. It’s a different game – the environment and the atmosphere itself can be overwhelming. I have a great deal of comfort knowing that we have been there and experienced that and that we will go into whatever venue we play confident and better prepared to handle the task at hand.”
Whatever the outcome, Young’s team has certainly made its mark while establishing Wofford as the leader of the Southern Conference. The team’s repeated success has led some, like Charleston Post and Courier writer Gene Sapakoff, to speculate that the Terriers are the best program in South Carolina. Young is appreciative of the acknowledgment but doesn’t concern himself with speculation.
“Like my old dog at the house, it is nice to have your head scratched,” Young says. “But let’s not take things to heart very often when it comes to those kinds of comments.”
Regardless of the media’s opinions, Young is incredibly proud of this team.
“They have been great. What has been so rewarding to me is – a lot like in life – it hasn’t always been great. We’ve had some struggles. We’ve had to fight through some things. We weren’t very good two years ago. But they stayed the course and they fought through it as a team. They continued to get better and they saw something really special – a group becoming a team.”
Be sure to cheer on the Terriers this Thursday, March 19 at 9:50 p.m. Eastern Time on TNT.
