Mount Union men's basketball seniors hope a deep postseason run is in the cards this time

ALLIANCE — Logan Hill didn't want to treat Mount Union's senior night as a time to say good-bye.

Under a best-case scenario, Hill and his Purple Raiders teammates will have several more games on their court. In NCAA Division III, 22 wins creates hope for league titles and March Madness home games.

This year's Mount Union team brings back memories of the great 2019-20 squad Hill played on. The Purple Raiders won the Ohio Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament championships. They won two NCAA Division III Tournament games. They won 19 games in a row.

Then everything Mount Union worked for was destroyed when the COVID-19 outbreak canceled the rest of the postseason. Citing low participation numbers among member schools, the NCAA also canceled the 2021 Division III winter sports postseason.

"With some of us being on that team and still being here, we're looking to get that (postseason run) back since it was taken away from us," Hill said after Mount Union's 94-63 win over Muskingum.

Surrounding Hill prior to Wednesday's game against Muskingum were fellow seniors Collen Gurley and Braedon Poole. All three played their part three years ago when the Purple Raiders had the look of a national champion. All three hope a deeper postseason run is in the cards this time.

"I know a lot of the guys on that team who are no longer here are keeping in touch," Hill said. "They want to make sure we go out there and give it our all."

Jeffery Mansfield, Chris Painter Jr., Darrell Newsom and twins Ben and Alec Broscheid were the other seniors honored before the game. The large number is a result of the extra year of eligibility awarded by the NCAA to players who had seasons cut short by the pandemic.

"Our paths kind of lined up in the right way where some of us were here a little bit longer than we thought we would be," Hill said. "It worked out nice. The bonds, the chemistry, everything is completely there. It's just fun, family basketball."

Head coach Mike Fuline always wants his seniors to savor the moment. Their time on the court together will be over by April.

But ...

"I told them before the game this is not really an emotional night because there's more basketball to be played," Fuline said. "We always want to keep playing."

Hill's role is not as large as it was on the 2019-20 team. The 6-foot-7 forward out of Jackson who started his collegiate career at Toledo averages under 10 minutes and 1.5 points a game off the bench.

HIll, labled "Dad" by his teammates because of his veteran status, made the most of his final senior night. He scored a season-high nine points on 4-of-4 shooting for the Purple Raiders (22-2, 15-2), who moved into a first-place tie with John Carroll with one game remaining.

"Basketball-wise, I just have to get in there, pick up whatever we're lacking and just fill in my role," Hill said.

Fuline loves having Hill on the team regardless of his role.

"He has a different role now, and he's one of the best human beings I have ever coached," Fuline said. "We're all fortunate he chose to come to Mount Union and got to spend time with him."

Reach Mike at mike.popovich@cantonrep.com

On Twitter: @mpopovichREP

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Mount Union wins senior night game, ties John Carroll for OAC lead