Box Score
FORT SMITH, Ark. — Students in the Arkansas-Fort Smith's cheering section spent better parts of Saturday night heckling St. Mary's
Moses Sundufu.
“We want Moses!” they chanted.
Well, they got him.
The St. Mary's senior guard erupted for a career-high 25 points in the Heartland Conference Tournament title game, leading the No. 2 seed Rattlers to their second-consecutive postseason championship in a 85-76 victory over top-seeded Arkansas-Fort Smith on the Lions' home floor.
Sundufu (Sr., Hopkins, Minn.) was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, while fellow sharpshooter
Daryell Taylor (Sr., Houston) made the All-Tournament Team after scoring 25 points and averaging 23.5 for the tournament as the Rattlers (21-7) clinched an automatic berth to go dancing in the NCAA Division II tournament.
“That's how fans are,” said Sundufu, who shot 3 for 5 from downtown and slashed to the basket with ease in the second half. “Fans like to find someone to pick on, and it was me tonight. I tried to stay focused.
“I was just trying not to lose, basically.”
The scenes that took place afterward were those of a team that had collectively accomplished that very feat.
The players cut down pieces of the net;
Kevin Kotzur (Sr., La Vernia, Texas), the league's Player of the Year, held on tightly to the championship plaque; head coach
Jim Zeleznak was doused with water in a locker-room celebration; and Taylor's celebratory scream seemingly wouldn't end.
St. Mary's will move on to play in next week's NCAA Division II South Central Regional, likely to be hosted by Metro State in Denver. Official pairings, dates and times will be released by the NCAA during its Selection Show on Sunday night.
Overcoming a four-point halftime deficit, St. Mary's took control of the game midway through the second half, leading by as many as 11 at the 9:53 mark.
Arkansas-Fort Smith (16-12) sliced that deficit to four, 77-73, with 2:34 remaining, sending the crowd of 1,221 into a frenzy. But the Rattlers yielded just three points the rest of the way to take control of the game — and the conference title.
“It feels good,” Sundufu said. “Really good.”
Kotzur recorded his 17th double-double of the season with 15 points and 12 rebounds, picking up career rebound No. 1,000 in the process. Point guard
Christian Bower (Jr., Chandler, Ariz.) added six points, while
Brad Hubenak (Sr., Kennedale, Texas) and
Bryce Smith (RS-Fr., Corpus Christi, Texas) chipped in five apiece.
The win marked the red-hot Rattlers' ninth in their last 10 games.
Afterward, the focus quickly turned to what lies ahead: regionals. Players and coaches took turns talking about the unfinished business that remains, reminding each other that this wasn't their ultimate goal.
Still, they couldn't help but enjoy the moment.
Long after the game had ended,
Joe Monroe (RS-So., San Antonio) sat alone in the visitors' locker room, staring blankly at the ground. Assistant coach
Bubba Meyer passed by and asked if everything was OK.
“We won,” he said, looking up briefly. “We won.”
St. Mary's University, as a Catholic Marianist University, fosters the formation of people in faith and educates leaders for the common good through community service, integrated liberal arts and professional education, and academic excellence. The University has six athletic national titles: men's basketball (1989–NAIA), baseball (2001–NCAA Div. II), softball (1986–NAIA and 2002–NCAA Div. II) and an individual national champion in men's golf (2006–NCAA Div. II) and a national academic championship in men's golf (2009–NCAA Div. II). St. Mary's also had more than 40 percent of its athletes named to conference, regional and/or national honor rolls this past year. St. Mary's student–athletes graduation rate is 65 percent, higher than the NCAA Division II average of 55 percent. To learn more about St. Mary's, visit www.rattlerathletics.com.
