by Russell Vannozzi | Mar 18, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
After being left out of the NCAA tournament, the Lipscomb men’s basketball team learned its postseason fate Sunday night. No. 5 Lipscomb will travel to No. 4 Davidson on Tuesday. Tipoff time is set for 6 p.m. CT at John M. Belk Arena. The winner will play the victor of UNC Greensboro-Campbell on either March 21 or 25. The announcement was made during the NIT Selection Show on ESPNU. It’s Lipscomb’s second NIT appearance. The Bisons lost to UTEP 85-66 in the first round of the 2006 NIT. Lipscomb (25-7) earned an automatic bid to the NIT by being the co-champion of the ASUN in the regular season. Liberty earned the league’s automatic bid to the Big Dance by handing the Bisons a 74-68 defeat in last Sunday’s ASUN championship game. Davidson finished the regular season 24-9 overall and 14-4 in the Atlantic 10. The Wildcats are currently No. 75 in the NET rankings, while the Bisons are No. 49. Eventual champion Saint Louis knocked Davidson out of the A-10 tournament with a resounding 67-44 victory on Saturday in Brooklyn, New York. Lipscomb Athletics did not apply to host NIT first or second round games due to the school’s spring break and a possible venue conflict in Allen Arena. Due to their No. 5 seed, the Bisons are likely to play on the road for the entirety of their NIT run. Tickets for Tuesday’s game are available through Davidson’s official website. Lumination will be sending a coverage team to Davidson. Stay tuned for more NIT...
by Russell Vannozzi | Mar 16, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
The Lipscomb men’s basketball team likely missed its chance to advance to the NCAA tournament when it dropped last Sunday’s ASUN title game to Liberty, 74-68. However, Lipscomb has remained in the at-large bid conversation for much of the past week. That’s partially thanks to the team’s “Bisons vs. the Bubble” campaign on Twitter, which compared Lipscomb to other bubble teams like Indiana, Texas, St. John’s, Alabama, TCU, Ohio State and Arizona State. Media personalities including Dick Vitale, Jeff Goodman, Clark Kellogg and Scott Van Pelt have all mentioned Lipscomb as a possible at-large team since Sunday’s ASUN title loss. But it appears the Bisons are on the outside looking in as the Power 5 conferences complete their tournaments this weekend. Lipscomb is expected to be in the NIT field when it’s announced on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. CT on ESPNU. ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi has Lipscomb ranked as the sixth team left of the bracket as of Saturday morning. Belmont is listed as the first team out. CBS analyst Jerry Palm sees the Bisons as a bubble team and the Bruins as the third team left out. SB Nation has Belmont as its last team in and Lipscomb among the next four out. Bleacher Report lists Belmont as its second-to-last team in and the Bisons as its third team out. Bisons likely traveling for NIT Multiple sources told Lumination that Lipscomb did not apply to host NIT first or second round games. The school is on spring break this week, and there is a possible venue conflict in Allen Arena for the second round date. That means the Bisons will...
by Russell Vannozzi | Mar 11, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
Lipscomb’s basketball season wasn’t supposed to turn out like this. Not after rolling through the ASUN and taking the league’s No. 1 seed. Not with five seniors, three of which are 1,000-point scorers. Not with the conference Player of the Year on its roster. Not with road victories at TCU, SMU and Liberty. No, no, no. Absolutely not. 2019 was supposed to be Lipscomb’s year. The Bisons were to be everyone’s NCAA tournament darling – the team that was built to potentially ruin brackets. Every major bracketologist had Lipscomb in the field of 68. But in sports, and especially in March, there are no guarantees. And that’s exactly why we watch with such anticipation, even though there’s always a chance for heartbreak. And there was plenty of heartbreak to go around Sunday in Allen Arena, where Lipscomb dropped a 74-68 loss to Liberty in the ASUN championship. The Flames get to go dancing, the Bisons get to go to the NIT. “It’s disappointing,” Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander said. “One of the hats you wear when you’re the head coach…you’re responsible for making a lot of people happy. Personally, I hate that we couldn’t deliver the final result that would have kind of put the whole thing over the top.” The Flames earned it. They made shots when it mattered most, including Scottie James’ go-ahead layup with 56 seconds left and a dagger three-pointer from Georgie Pacheco-Ortiz 40 seconds later. Meanwhile, Lipscomb’s stars faded at the end. Mathews committed the turnover that led to James’ layup and later missed a three-pointer with four ticks remaining. Rob Marberry missed a layup...
by Russell Vannozzi | Mar 10, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
The Lipscomb men’s basketball team had a chance to earn a return trip to the NCAA tournament if it could win Sunday’s ASUN championship game. But Liberty (28-6) stood in the way, and most of the record crowd of 5,607 in Allen Arena went home in disappointment. The Flames used a 45-point outburst in the second half to squeeze past the No. 1 Bisons, 74-68. That gave the No. 2 Flames the ASUN championship and an automatic berth to the Big Dance. “It certainly stings,” Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander said. “It’s a real privilege to be part of a game like that. I loved the Lipscomb people that showed up and made it a great day for us.” Despite an impressive regular season that included 11 road wins and a No. 42 NET ranking, Lipscomb (25-7) is likely heading to the NIT. Seeds and pairings for both tournaments will be announced next Sunday, March 17. Liberty forward Scottie James made a layup with 56 seconds remaining to give his team the lead for good, and Georgie Pacheco-Ortiz hit a three on the next possession to extend that advantage to 70-66. Lipscomb senior Rob Marberry then converted a jumper and drew a foul, but he missed the free throw, and James hit two freebies to ice the title for Liberty. “They’re a resilient team, a tough team,” Lipscomb junior Kenny Cooper said. “They know what they’re running, and they run it well. Kudos to them for sticking to their plan and pulling it out.” Liberty went on a 9-0 run to end the first half and took a 29-28 lead...
by Russell Vannozzi | Mar 10, 2019 | News Slider, Sports
The scenarios for Sunday’s ASUN championship game are simple: winner goes to the NCAA tournament, loser goes to the NIT. It’s the rubber match for No. 1 Lipscomb and No. 2 Liberty, and this time, the teams will battle on a national stage. The game will be televised by ESPN, and a sellout crowd is expected in Allen Arena. “I would almost say it’ll be a similar feeling to when we went to March Madness last year, but it’ll be on our home floor,” Lipscomb senior Garrison Mathews said. “It’s going to be crazy to play in front of that many fans that are going for [us].” Lipscomb (25-6) knocked off Kennesaw State and NJIT to reach its second-straight title game. The Bisons beat Florida Gulf Coast 108-96 to advance to the NCAA tournament for the first time in program history. Meanwhile, Liberty (27-6) beat Jacksonville and North Florida to earn a trip to Nashville and a chance for a title in its first season as a member of the ASUN. On Jan. 29, Lipscomb crushed Liberty on its home-court, 77-55. The Flames then returned the favor by handing the Bisons a 74-66 loss two weeks later. The two teams play different styles, but something must give this time. “The styles were what was so different,” Lipscomb coach Casey Alexander said. “The first game better reflected how we like to play, the second one better reflected how they like to play. It’s not always that simple, but that will go a long way toward who wins this game.” BREAKING DOWN THE FLAMES: Liberty had a clear path to the...
