If you're a fan of local small college basketball, it doesn't get much better than today.
The Washington & Jefferson men's team will play for the Presidents' Athletic Conference tournament championship and an automatic berth in next week's NCAA Division III tournament. The Presidents (14-13), however, have the difficult task of playing top-seeded Bethany (16-10) on the road. Tip-off is 7:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, the men's and women's teams at California will play for PSAC West Division titles of various sorts in an afternoon doubleheader at Edinboro. California (11-0, 22-4) has clinched at least a share of the men's title and can win the championship outright by defeating the Fighting Scots (10-1, 21-5).
The Cal women (8-3, 21-5) earn at least a share of the West crown with a victory. A California win combined with an Indiana loss to Lock Haven will give the Vulcans the outright title heading into next week's PSAC tournament.
PAC
Visiting teams will tell you that the strongest home-court advantage on the men's side belongs to Bethany. The Bison are 8-1 at Hummel Field House in conference tournaments and 47-11 at home overall the last five seasons.
Those numbers, however, have meant little to W&J, which has won its last two games at Bethany, including a 73-70 come-from-behind victory last Saturday in the regular-season finale. The Presidents also won at Bethany in last year's semifinals.
"That these teams played only a week ago will make the game even more intense," said Bethany coach Aaron Huffman, a Waynesburg native. "It's going to be another tight game in front of a packed house."
The Presidents had a victory for the ages last Saturday, rallying from a 16-point second-half deficit behind the play of 6-8 Josip Lucic-Jozak and 6-4 Wahab Owolabi. Both have presented major problems for Bethany. Lucic-Jozak averages 21.1 points in seven career games against the Bison and Owolabi scores at a 20.8 clip.
"We're still trying to figure out how to stop those two," Huffman said. "They've dominated us. And another problem is W&J's guards have gotten better from last year."
Bethany might be without point guard Marcus Adams, who was suspended for the last three games. Adams leads the PAC in assists. His absence has given more playing time and scoring opportunities to players like Trinity graduate Joe Testa (9.0 ppg) and sophomore Jonas Ankrom (7.6), a Canon-McMillan product. The latter drew high praise from Huffman.
"In all my years as a coach, I've never seen a player improve as much as Jonas has," Huffman said. "He was marginally recruited, and last year dressed only for every other practice and game. When he wasn't in uniform, he was our video guy, taping the games.
"I always felt there was something special about Jonas' potential, but that's all it was last year, potential. He hit the weights hard in the offseason and has become a main contributor off the bench. He's averaging double figures over the last 10 games and is one of the best three-point shooters in the PAC. He's getting better every week."
In the semifinals, W&J won at second-seeded and defending champion Grove City, 64-63. Bethany outlasted Thomas More, 105-98, in the second-highest-scoring game in PAC tournament history.
PSAC
California is the top-ranked men's team in the Division II East Region, but Edinboro has been looking forward to this game ever since a 71-64 loss to the Vulcans at Hamer Hall on Feb. 6. California forged an early eight-point lead and then let its defense do the rest. Edinboro shot only 27 percent in the first half.
California is 19-1 when giving up fewer than 70 points.
The California women received help Wednesday when Indiana was upset by Shippensburg and fell into a first-place tie with the Vulcans. That California can win the West is somewhat amazing considering the Vulcans lost three straight games early last month.
"I'm not a sharing-the-title person, but I am for this team," Cal coach Darcie Vincent said. "What this team had to battle back from, and after not winning the West last year, a title would be big."