The Observer, March 7, 2008
Volume XL, Issue 20
Spartans clip Eagles' feathers at home
This past Saturday marked the 87th day since the men's basketball team's last win. With nothing to lose, and only one game remaining, the Spartan's came out and scored 96 points, defeating Emory University at home. Not only was it the team's first win in over two months, it was also the team's first and only University Athletic Association victory.
The play was back and forth almost the entire game. Neither team held higher than a seven-point lead after the 13 minute mark in the first half. The Spartans were led by seniors Mason Conrad and Brandon Bradford, who appeared in their last game for the team. Conrad was, the driving force behind the Spartans victory. He scored 26 points and was one rebound shy of a double-double. Bradford also shined in his swan song as a Spartan, scoring 16 points and dishing out seven assists.
"We had two great performances from our seniors," said head coach Sean McDonnell. "Brandon in particular made some huge plays inside down the stretch and Mason shot extremely well from the floor." In total, Case Western had four players score in double digits, as guards Steve Young and Kevin Herring accounted for 15 and 18 points, respectively.
In the second half, the Spartans looked to be fading with eight and a half minutes to play when Emory took a seven-point lead. The team was having difficulty keeping Emory's own senior guard, Spiros Ferderigos, under wraps as he scored 23 points in the second half. However, with 1:17 left in the game, the home team took the lead for good. Bradford sealed the victory with two free throws with 21 seconds left.
This was not the season many were expecting, injuries really hurt the team. Several players, including Conrad, played through injuries the majority of the season, while others, such as Brad Sutton, were forced to stop playing altogether. Yet, the younger players on the team have been producing solid performances all year long, bringing hope for the future.
The team will hold a meeting after spring break to decide what direction the team needs to go in for next year. "After that meeting, the coaches are not allowed to be actively involved with the players' training," explained McDonnell. "We are going to look to our rising seniors to really get the team ready for next year."
As for this year's recruiting class, the team will really start to gear up. "Prospects are done with their games now," said McDonnell. "They will be coming for visits very soon." While the coaches have been on the phones and going to see high school games all through the season, the official visits are the most critical part of getting student athletes to Case. If McDonnell and assistant coach Todd McGuinness can put together another freshman class like this year's, which saw instant contributions from Herring, Colin Mulholland, Eric Duerr, and Alex Hildebrandt, fans can definitely expect big things from the Spartans next season, as they will also return five upperclassmen that recorded starts this year.
