WOLFPACK MEN ARE ON A ROLL
Since returning from Arizona the team has won 11 of their last 12
By CHARLES KURTH
Clarion Sports Editor
Maybe it was the warm desert air that lit a spark for this team; or the camaraderie
that is inevitably gained by taking such an eventful trip out there. Perhaps it was the high level of competition that they faced out in the desert. Whatever the reason, the men seem to be putting things together at just the right time as they roll into the tournament season. But don’t think that it’s been all roses for the squad since they returned from out west.
They dropped a tough game against an MATC-Milwaukee team who just happened to be playing lights-out basketball
that night, giving the WolfPack the only blemish on their 7-1 conference mark. They’ve battled their bitter conference
rival Mid-State Tech (as of press time) three times already this season, with two of those contests being a whole lot closer than they would prefer.
But through it all the men have prevailed, and in the process have managed to win the onference crown, put themselves in position to win the state title*, and have earned the right to play in Minnesota for the chance to qualify for the national tournament. And despite all of this, according to Coach Scott Vesterdahl there’s still plenty of room for improvement.
At the very least the team has made things interesting, if not fun to watch. With their sights set high, the team is playing pretty good basketball right now, and has the potential to make a legitimate
run towards a national championship.
MATC 93 - Mid-State 88 OT
Facing the visiting Cougars for the third time in less than two months, this time with national tournament hopes on the line, the host WolfPack didn’t do themselves any favors as they came out sluggish and found themselves down by as many as 16 points midway through the first half.
Poor defense and cold shooting contributed to the early deficit
and Coach Vesterdahl turned to his bench for a spark before the intermission.
The depth of this squad showed their true colors on this night, as David Nelson, Patrick Macki and others stimulated
the squad with tenacious defense and good shot selection to close the gap to just seven points by halftime.
Coach V. is known for his words of wisdom, and on this night whatever he said to his players at the intermission
must have struck a chord with his players, because the second half was a completely different story for the host team. MATC exploded for 49 points in the period, led by first year star Chris Davis and fellow big man Jason King who finished with 29 and 16 points, respectively. Davis in particular caught fire in the second period as he connected on several huge 3’s to keep the game close, finishing with three field goals from behind the arc. But the hero of the day would be second year point guard Patrick Macki, who saved the day for the WolfPack with his late game heroics. It has long been rumored in the Madison area that Macki, who is known more for his ball handling and precision passing than his scoring, has ice water flowing through his veins.
Any skeptics in the crowd were sure to change their mind as on this night as the floor general took matters into his own hands late in the game and didn’t disappoint the masses. After Mid-State made a basket to go up by three with under 20 seconds left, Macki calmly drove the ball up the court. After passing
to a teammate, Macki soon got the ball back and dribbled to the left side of the key with a defender in hot pursuit. With time winding down Macki surprised
everyone in the gym by hoisting an off-balanced three high into the air. The ball slowly fell towards its target and grabbed nothing but twine, rippling
through the net to tie the game at 79. With less than 10 seconds left the team made a critical defensive stop to send the game into overtime and never looked back. Momentum was clearly on the ‘Packs side, and they hit their free throws down the stretch to earn themselves a trip to the next level of the tournament and send their not-so-well liked opponent home with an agonizing loss that is sure to haunt them for sometime to come.
MATC 101 – Western Tech 60
Umm… so what can be said about a game in which the WolfPack led by more than 40 points at halftime? Not a whole lot, as the host team flexed their muscles against their inferior opponent en route to a 41-point victory in the opening round of the state tournament (not to be confused with the previously mentioned national tournament). The men put five players in double figures as Chris Davis and Mark “Big Daddy” Smallwood led the onslaught with 22 and 19 points, respectively. David Nelson recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 boards, while Ryan Schernecker and Andy Nelson chimed in with 10 points each.
MATC 103 – UW-Richland 70
The second round of the WJCAA tournament proved to be more of the same for the host team, as they jumped out to a modest 30 point lead and then put the wrecking crew on cruise control on their way to earning a spot in the semi-finals of the state tournament. In a game that was not nearly as close as the final score would indicate, MATC dominated
every aspect of the game, sending a message to the rest of the state that they are a force to be reckoned with. The win set up a showdown with UW-Marathon in the semi-final match-up, with the winner
likely facing the all-too familiar Mid-State Tech in the finals of the WJCAA tournament.
MATC will travel to face the No. 1 ranked team in Minnesota’s North region on Feb. 29. The winner of that game plays on Saturday for a region title, and a ticket to the national tournament in Delhi, NY as a prize.
*Editor’s note: At the time of the press deadline, MATC had not yet played in the WJCAA semis or finals which were held on Feb. 23 - 24. For up-to-date information,
scores and highlights, log onto the MATC athletics website at: http://matcmadison.
edu/athletics/ |
