It will be the renewal of an old basketball rivalry when the Lee men face Georgia Southwestern in the opening round of the NCAA DII National South Region tournament on Saturday (8 :45 p.m.) in the Complex on the campus of Valdosta State University.
The Flames and Hurricanes staged battles during their days as members of the NAIA and Southern States Athletic Conference. Lee holds a 3-2 advantage in the series, with the last win coming on a 3-point shot by Sir Lee Mason giving the Flames a 72-69 (SSAC) tournament win on March 3, 2006.
"Georgia Southwestern is talented, athletic, and has a really nice team. We know it will take a complete forty minutes of basketball, and a great defensive effort to have a chance to extend our season. At this point, its win and advance, lose and go home, so the sense of urgency is there," commented Lee coach Bubba Smith before his team departed for Valdosta.
But Saturday will be a new evening. The Flames (15-5) are the No.3 seed in the tournament after losing to No.2 seed Alabama Huntsville in the semifinal round of the GSC Tournament. Georgia Southwestern (13-5) lost to Flagler in the Peach Belt Championship game. A win by Lee would pit the Flames against their old rival Huntsville (14-3) on Saturday. The Chargers received the other bye in the six-team tournament.
The NCAA DII divided the South Region into sixth teams this year rather than eight because the Sunshine State and SIAC conferences did not play enough games to be eligible, moving the Peach Belt into the South Region forcing the double bye.
Flagler College (St. Augustine, Fla.) is the No.1 seed (15-2) and drew a first-round bye. The Saints will face the winner of a GSC clash between 5th seeded Valdosta State and 6th seeded West Georgia. Valdosta won its first GSC tournament with a win over Huntsville this past weekend.
"I could not be prouder of our team for receiving an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament for the second straight year. Being selected as the No. 3 seed is a true testament to the strength of the GSC, our strength of schedule, and our ability to win on the road this season," noted Coach Smith.
"As our program continues to set new precedents, our expectations continue to grow. Last year we were excited to get to the NCAA tournament, and unfortunately, we never got to play (when the NCAA closed the doors on all sports due to COVID). This season we expected to be an NCAA tournament team, so getting there is great, but making a run in the tournament is something our team has envisioned since the fall.
"To be able to face a new opponent is exciting. Playing back-to-back and against the same opponents three and four times this season is not ideal, but it is what we had to do to have a season. I do think playing back-to-back has helped prepare our team for a run in the region. Our guys are used to what that feels like and have had to respond mentally and physically all season," coach Smith added.
The Hurricanes are paced by guard Donte Tatum who averages 18 points and 6.2 rebounds. Point guard Kahlon Whitley follows at 12.8 points. He averages over five assists per game. Devon Higgs is a 6-foot-5 guard who averages 10.6 points and is his team's top board man (7.9). Freshman Adderton Jarrett rounds out the double-digit scorers, averaging just over 10 points.
Quay Kennedy continues to pace the Lee scoring with a 17.3 average and rips downs 6.3 caroms. He has also converted a balanced team-leading 35 3-pointers. Beyuan Hendricks stands at 12.4 ppg and is by far the assist leader with 75. Jayce Willingham is coming on strong, 10.4 ppg. Michael McGuirk has returned from injury and averages 9.8 ppg, but also gives the Flames help on the glass (99), second only behind Kennedy.
