After a busy week of play that saw the Eagles finish 1-2, the Benedictine University men's basketball team will take on nationally-ranked North Central and Northern Athletics Conference foe Edgewood this week.
Benedictine won its final game of the weekend, prevailing 91-70 over Alma on Saturday afternoon in the Carthage Classic consolation match. With senior
Michael Woolf in foul trouble, junior post player
Tim McGinty and freshman point guard
Tahron Harvey stepped up in a big way. McGinty had a career day with 32 points and seven rebounds, and Harvey tallied 21 points, six rebounds, and five assists in the first start of his college career. It was also the 1,000th win in the history of the men's basketball program.
In the two losses against Elmhurst and Dubuque, the Eagles showed that despite a young roster, the team can compete against tough opponents. In the season opener against Elmhurst, a half-court shot by Woolf that would have tied the game with just four seconds remaining was waved off, resulting in a one-point win for Elmhurst. In Friday's game against Dubuque at the Carthage College Classic, BenU fell by just three after leading by nine.
Those tight games against good opponents can play in handy on Tuesday at North Central, as the Cardinals have won 50 games over the last two seasons. After finishing 28-4 and reaching the National Semifinals a season ago, North Central entered the season ranked sixth in the d3hoops.com pre-season poll. However, the team is off to a 2-2 start this season, with one of those two losses coming on Saturday at defending NACC champion Aurora.
Through the first three games, BenU is allowing 75.3 points per game. On Tuesday night, BenU will face a NCC team that's scoring 83.3 points per game and has hit the century mark once this season. With the Cardinals boasting a high-scoring offense, turning the game into a defensive struggle may benefit BenU. The Eagles were able to do that last season against NCC, but fell 61-55 at the Dan and Ada Rice Center. BenU hasn't defeated NCC since the 2010-2011 season, when 20 points from Nate Green propelled the Eagles to a 70-61 win at home.
The matchup against Edgewood on Saturday will be an important early season contest, as it's the team's first NACC game of the season. With the league moving to a 20-game conference schedule this season, it's important that teams are well-prepared earlier in the season. Benedictine hopes that playing a tough first four games will allow the team to hit its stride early.
Edgewood is off to a 2-1 start this season, falling to Wisconsin-Stevens Point and defeating Fontbonne and Westminister (Mo.). Last season, Edgewood just missed the conference tournament, finishing 7-18 overall and 6-10 in the conference. One of those six wins for Edgewood was over BenU, as Edgewood prevailed 57-51 at the Dan and Ada Rice Center. Benedictine hasn't defeated Edgewood since 2010-11, winning 70-59 at home in the championship game of the conference tournament.
