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March 5, 2010

Southwest creates blueprint for beating MSU

By Chad Courrier Free Press Staff Writer

The most frequently asked question after Wednesday’s shocking loss to Southwest Minnesota State in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference tournament is: Will Minnesota State host the Central Region men’s basketball tournament?

The answer: Does it matter?

Over the last two weeks, it’s become obvious that the Mavericks can beat most teams and get beaten by almost every opponent that they’ll face in the national tournament. The Mavericks are not bulletproof at home, nor are they overmatched on the road.

Wednesday’s game provided the perfect plan for defeating the Mavericks. Run when you can, but don’t get into a full-court, 40-minute blitz. Work the clock when prudent, get the ball into the lane and attack the basket. Make sure you contest every offensive rebound.

On the defensive end, pack the middle and force the Mavericks to shoot from the perimeter. Bump any interior player and be physical with cutters.

And get on the floor.

The Mavericks have not played many close games this season, but in those that were decided in the final minutes, execution has been poor. Very poor.

On Wednesday, in the final 30 seconds, there was a forced shot, a turnover and a final attempt that was slapped away at the buzzer.

On the other end, the Mustangs got nearly every shot they wanted and made more than 60 percent of them. You can’t win playoff games when opponents shoot that well, especially when that team also controls the rebounds.

From now until the end of the season, whenever that occurs, opponents will try to replicate what Southwest was able to do on Wednesday, and most of the teams remaining are capable of playing that way.

Will the Mavericks get more home games in the regional tournament? It’s possible.

While the top-ranked Mavericks were losing, No. 2 Mesa State and No. 3 Augustana also were taken down by teams they should have beaten. That leaves St. Cloud State, the No. 4-ranked team in the region, to jump ahead of Minnesota State, and the Huskies are hosting the conference tournament final four this weekend. It might be unprecedented to make that kind of jump, but it doesn’t seem like any other team is overly deserving.

Given that Minnesota State has lost its last two games at Bresnan Arena, it might be better for this team to go on the road. It might be what shocks this group into playing as it did early in the season.



Chad Courrier is a Free Press staff writer. To contact him, call 507-344-6353 or e-mail at ccourrier@mankatofreepress.com or check out his local sports blog at www.mankatofreepress.com.

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