The Lowdown: Quarterfinals of the 2015 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship
No. 13 Mid-America Christian University vs. Westmont (Calif.) College
Time: Saturday (Mar. 21) at 6 p.m.
Location: Municipal Auditorium, Kansas City, Mo.
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The Dish on the Evangels: The No. 13-ranked Mid-America Christian University Evangels jumped ahead early and withstood a furious rally by the Missouri Valley College Vikings to win 81-72 last night (Mar. 20) and advance to the quarterfinals of the 2015 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship tonight (Mar. 21) against Westmont (Calif.).
Brock Hunter hit 5-of-5 from three-point distance in the first half as the Evangels built a 17-point lead and increased the edge to 22 in the first five minutes of the second half. Missouri Valley then rallied within five, but Semar Farris answered with a clutch jumper and the Evangels closed out the win by hitting crucial free throws down the stretch.
The Evangels, the 2015 Sooner Athletic Conference regular season champions, are now 25-10 on the season and have won 10 of their past 12 games.
Semar Farris leads the Evangels in scoring (17.5 ppg), assists (171), steals (76) and threes (87). Farris now ranks fourth in the NAIA in both total steals and total assists. Jarius Wilson is second in scoring at 10.9 ppg, followed by Reggie Davis at 10.8 ppg. Brock Hunter is also scoring in double-figures with 10 ppg. Chris Runnels leads the team with 5.4 rebounds per game and has also swatted a team-best 49 shots on the season, which is 17th nationally.
As a team, the Evangels are first in the NAIA in total assists (557), second in total scoring offense (2846) and total rebounding offense (1454)
The Dish on the Warriors: The Westmont (Calif.) Warriors have won four of their last five games, including last night's 65-61 upset of No. 5-ranked Campbellsville (Ky.) to improve to 23-10 on the season and move on to the quarterfinals of the NAIA National Championship Tournament. The Warriors compete in the Golden State Athletic Conference and were tied for third in the league this season with a 12-4 conference record.
Cory Blau leads the Warriors in scoring (16.2 ppg) and has also hit a team-high 71 threes on the season, with a 46.1 shooting percentage from beyond the arc. Daniel Carlin is second on the team in scoring with 13.6 ppg and is pacing the team in rebounds (7.2 rpg) and blocks (37). Britton Williams has recorded a team-best 121 assists this season for Westmont.
The Series: This will be the first meeting between the two schools since MACU joined the NAIA in 2007.
The rest is history: Advancing to their first-ever 2015 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Men's Basketball National Championship and now the quarterfinal round is just one historic achievement in a season chock full of such moments for the Mid-America Christian University Evangels. Earlier this year, MACU head coach Willie Holley became just the 18th head coach in college basketball history to reach the milestone 800 career wins mark. The Evangels also captured their first Sooner Athletic Conference regular season championship with a 14-4 conference record.
Tournament History: The Evangels are now 2-0 all-time in the NAIA National Championship Tournament, defeating Xavier (La.) 84-70 in the opening round and holding off Missouri Valley College 81-72 last night (Mar. 20) in the second round. This is the 17th appearance for the Westmont College Warriors, who are now 18-16 overall after defeating Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) in the first round and then knocking off No. 5 Campbellsville (Ky.) last night.
The Coaches:
Willie Holley is in his 42nd and final season as head coach at Mid-America Christian University and became just the 18th coach in college basketball history with 800 victories with an 86-52 victory at Southwestern Christian University (1/17/15). Holley now has an astounding 813 career wins, good for second all-time in the NAIA.
This season he has guided the Evangels to their first Sooner Athletic Conference regular season championship and has MACU in its initial NAIA National Championship Tournament appearance.
Last season, he coached the Evangels to a tie for second place in the SAC with a 12-8 league record, their highest-finish as an NAIA school.
He also led MACU to its first-ever SAC Tournament victory last season and had the program within one spot of qualifying for their initial NAIA National Tournament berth.
After coming up just short for the NAIA Tournament, the Evangels qualified for their 23rd National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Tournament appearance.
The 2013-14 campaign also featured Holley coaching an NAIA All-America performer for the fourth straight season, as guard Semar Farris earned second-team NAIA All-America honors.
Holley has helped the Evangels become competitive in a short period of time in the Sooner Athletic Conference and broke through in 2012-13. Holley guided the Evangels to a finish of third in the SAC with a 9-7 league record. MACU made their first appearance in the NAIA Top 25 in school history, coming in as high as tied for 23rd. The Evangels went on to capture their 20th NCCAA Central Regional Championship and finished fifth at the NCCAA National Tournament.
The 2012-13 season also featured guard Charlie Shorter, who was named SAC Player of the Year, NCCAA National Player of the Year and was a first-team NAIA All-America selection. It's the third straight season Holley has coached an NAIA All-American, as Shorter and Brandon Williams were Honorable-Mention selections in 2011-12 and 2010-11, respectively.
Holley's coaching style is to establish in his players a "no quit" attitude. This style led to an improbable NCCAA National Championship in 2007. The title was the fourth of Holley's illustrious career as he previously won the championship in 1998, 2003, and 2004. This year the plan is to take that same attitude and improve on last season's effort.
During his time at Mid-America, Holley has become a fixture in the athletic program, as he served as Athletic Director from 1973-2012. In 1997, Holley was inducted into the NCCAA Hall of Fame, and he has been named the NCCAA Division II Coach of the Year four times - 1985, 1995, 2000 and 2004. Holley has also coached 18 All- Americans and won numerous conference and regional championships.
Holley earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from University of Louisiana - Monroe in 1970. He and his wife, Janet, have three daughters: Angela, Jessica and Stacey.
John Moore is in his 22nd season as head coach of the Westmont College Warriors. Moore has led the Warriors to one Golden State Athletic Conference regular season championship and now nine appearances in the NAIA National Championship Tournament, including an NAIA Fab Four berth in 1999. Before arriving at Westmont, Moore served for four seasons as head coach at Fresno Pacific University.
Up Next: With a win over Westmont College tonight, the Evangels would move on to the NAIA Fab Four and play the winner of No. 1 Hope International (Calif.) and No. 8 Martin Methodist (Tenn.) on Monday night (Mar. 23) at 8 p.m.
