The NCAA Tournament is starting to take shape ahead of championship week, as Liberty made it into the postseason with a win over Charleston Southern after wining the Big South conference title despite having 20 losses.
According to the Associated Press, Liberty took down CSU on Sunday to clinch a spot in the NCAA tournament, winning 87-76 to become just the second 20-loss team to make it to March Madness. Liberty started off the season poorly after dropping their first eight games and now is the first team since 2008 to make it with that many losses.
The report says that the winning percentage of .429 is the lowest for an NCAA tournament team since Oakland (Michigan) had a 12-18 record (.400) in 2005.
"That's awesome," Laney said of his team. "We've got the hats, right?"
The Flames played their best basketball when it counted the most, as they won three games in a row this past week and then took home the championship. The team look out a CSU team that was first in the conference with a 12-4 record, but now they will likely be on the outside looking in when it comes to the tournament.
John Sanders scored 27 points to lead the team, while the MVP of the tournament, Davon Marshall, scored 20 points, including six 3-pointers. Liberty beat all the biggest teams in the conference, taking down Coastal Carolina 78-61.
Liberty will be ranked low in the postseason tournament, but they know that they can fight with the best of the nation.
"I feel like if we do us, we can give them a game," he said.
Charleston Southern was the top team in the conference and now have to wait and see if there will an invitation for them.
"I think they're lying in wait," Buccaneers coach Barclay Radebaugh said. "That's a scary team. They've got size, they've got depth. They're guards are good. They're strong."
