The Thomas More men’s and women’s basketball teams will make their way down to Bowling Green this weekend for the Mid-South conference basketball tournament.
Thomas More women (26-2, 20-2)
The women begin play on Friday in the quarterfinals at 5 p.m., taking on Shawnee State. The Saints received a first round bye and enter the tournament as the No. 2 seed after a loss to Pikeville on Saturday that gave Campbellsville the No. 1 seed. Thomas More defeated Shawnee State twice during the regular season, 77-63 on Dec. 10 and 81-54 on Feb. 16.
The defending national champs started the season 22-0 before a loss at Campbellsville on Jan. 28. They then won four in a row before a setback to Pikeville on Feb. 18. If Thomas More wins in the quarters, they’d then be potentially looking at a rematch with Pikeville in the semifinals on Sunday at 2:30 p.m.
The championship game is slated for Monday at 5 p.m.
Thomas More lost in the quarterfinals last season before winning the national title with six straight victories.
They’re at this point led by three seniors in double figures, Zoie Barth averaging 14.1 points per game, Courtney Hurst at 11.0 points per game and Emily Simon at 10.4 and pulling down a team-high 6.9 rebounds per contest.
The team shoots 36% from three and averages nearly 10 makes from deep a game with 9.9 a contest. They’re a 79% free throw shooting team and have outscored the opponent by an average of 21 points per game.
Jeff Hans goes pretty deep with his rotations, nine players averaging at least 10 minutes per game and they share the ball well, averaging 15.9 assists per game. They’ve had to deal without one of their top reserves missing the final six games of the regular season, Alex Smith averaging 8.8 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. Smith is expected back for the postseason.
In their final season in the Mid-South as they transition to Division II next season, the Saints will look to win the conference tournament for the second time in their fourth year in the league. They went 65-12 in the four seasons in conference regular season action.
It was announced on Thursday that Thomas More will be a first and second round host for the NAIA national tournament that starts on March 7. The Saints will host games on the 7th and again on the 8th if they win. Four teams will play at the Connor Convocation Center in the single elimination tournament and advance to the National Championship final site in Sioux City, Iowa.
In the final regular season NAIA Coaches poll, the Saints sit at No. 3.
Thomas More men (21-7, 15-7)
The men open up postseason play on Saturday in the quarterfinals at 7:30 p.m., taking on Lindsey Wilson. The Saints are the No. 3 seed in the tournament and earned a first round bye. They went 2-0 against Lindsey Wilson with a 78-72 victory on Jan. 7 and a 72-64 victory on Jan. 26.
The Saints started the season 9-0, but have gone 12-7 since. If they win on Saturday, they’d then be looking at a potential matchup with No. 2 seed Freed-Hardeman on Sunday at 7:30 p.m.
The championship will take place Monday at 7:30 p.m.
Reid Jolly leads the Saints with 17.4 points and pulls down 6.0 rebounds per game. The Saints have been down two starters the last couple weeks as Noah Pack has missed the last seven games and Casey George missing the last four. Pack averages 10.9 points and 6.1 rebounds, George is at 12 points per game and 4.7 rebounds.
Kyle Ross and Wyatt Vieth have stepped up in their absence, Ross hitting double-figure scoring in six of the Saints last eight games while Vieth is averaging 14 points per game over the last eight, including a season-high 24 on Saturday against Pikeville.
The Saints have been efficient on the offensive end, shooting 48% from the field and 35% from three. They’ve had their struggles from the free throw line at 66% and outrebound the opponent by nearly five per game.
In their fourth season in the Mid-South they’ve finished runner-up in the conference tournament in back-to-back years. They’re hoping to build on strong performances in the postseason the last two years, ending last year in the national semifinals.
The Saints finished No. 24 in the final NAIA Coaches Poll.
