Wesleyan women in prime postseason position
Feb. 14—The Kentucky Wesleyan College women's basketball team has put itself in a tremendous position for the postseason.
The Panthers, sitting at 19-5 overall and 15-2 in Great Midwest Athletic Conference play, have cemented themselves home-court advantage in the first round of the conference tournament in two weeks.
The only thing standing in KWC's way of another league championship is top-ranked and undefeated Ashland, which beat the Panthers 68-47 on Dec. 17 in Ashland, Ohio — the only regular-season meeting between the two programs this year.
Of course, Wesleyan still needs to close out the regular season on a strong note to stay second in the G-MAC standings. They hold a 1.5-game advantage over Trevecca Nazarene, which upset KWC on Jan. 31 in Nashville. A win over the visiting Trojans this Thursday at the Sportscenter would split the season series and just about solidify the second seed for Wesleyan.
As far as the conference tournament goes, the eight teams moving on to the postseason have pretty much been decided — but the rest of the regular season should break up the logjam in the fifth-through-eighth spots. KWC will likely play Northwood (11-12, 8-8 G-MAC), Hillsdale (15-12, 8-9), Ursuline (12-13, 8-9) or Walsh (10-14, 8-9). Luckily for the Panthers, they're 6-0 against those squads this year.
Though the NCAA Division II's official regional rankings haven't been revealed yet, the Wesleyan women have also been gaining notoriety throughout the region.
In this week's D2SIDA Women's Basketball Poll, KWC is considered the No. 5 team in the Midwest — trailing Ashland, Drury, Grand Valley State and Michigan Tech. Trevecca is the only other G-MAC mentioned, at No. 8.
If those rankings resemble the final regional picture at season's end, Wesleyan should be considered a lock for the NCAA Tournament, whether the Panthers can win the conference tournament or receive an at-large bid.
Led by co-head coaches Caleb and Nicole Nieman, it's been yet another top-notch campaign for KWC. At this point, it isn't a surprise when the Panthers perform well — the current standard of play has become the norm around the program.
Wesleyan plays a selfless brand a basketball, and the Panthers' coaches offer them, perhaps, the longest leash of any team in the conference — and maybe even the nation.
That trust, obviously, goes a long way.
The culture is set, and players clearly love playing with one another. Their mindset is infectious throughout the squad, so that by the time they take the floor, nobody wants to let their teammates down.
That's not uncommon in college basketball, but the level to which KWC actually cares for one another is certainly an exception. And, quite simply, it's not something that's easily replicated — and it definitely can't be forced. It's a natural, organic feature of the team that begins when new players arrive on campus. They see the senior leadership and the way the older players on the team approach each practice, film study and game, and they see the importance of continuing that tradition.
Wesleyan's culture is second to none, and it's apparent by the way they play the game.
Selflessness prevails over bad shots. Mistakes are forgiven and forgotten. And the Panthers on the bench are just as excited as the players on the floor.
With Wesleyan's swarming, opportunistic defense keeping the Panthers in most games, even if their offense isn't clicking, there's no reason to think their success won't carry over into the postseason.
Their path after that remains to be seen. Ashland is the natural favorite to win the conference tournament, and understandably so, but Wesleyan will be right there nipping on the Eagles' heels.
