Just two months ago, a winning record seemed like too lofty of a goal for the Washington & Jefferson men's basketball team.

The Presidents were 1-10.

But look at W&J now.

The Presidents are finally at .500, 13-13, and in contention for a conference championship.

A 67-49 victory Tuesday over Thomas More in the first round of the Presidents' Athletic Conference tournament was W&J's 12th in 15 games. The Presidents will try to climb above the .500 mark and earn a spot in Saturday's championship game when they play at Bethany (19-7) in tonight's semifinals. Tip-off is 7 p.m.

"It's do-or-die time for us," says W&J senior guard Brandon Studer.

When W&J has played Bethany in recent seasons, it has been mostly die for the Presidents. Bethany has beaten W&J six times in a row and won 13 of the last 15 meetings. The Bison defeated W&J twice this season, 82-73 at Hummel Field House in January and 79-76 in Washington 12 days ago.

Bethany has a huge edge in postseason experience. The Bison are the two-time defending PAC champions and have a 9-2 record in the conference tournament since its inception in 2002. This is only the second time W&J has reached the semifinals, the other being 2004 when the Presidents lost in the title game to, you guessed it, Bethany.

"They've had our number this year and they've had it for a while," said W&J's first-year head coach Glenn Gutierrez. "We love competing against them. Bethany makes you come with your best or you don't have a chance. It will be a huge challenge because Bethany has the heart of a champion."

Bethany, coached by Waynesburg native Aaron Huffman, is coming off a 94-80 victory over Thiel in the first round. The Bison made a season high 16 three-pointers, including five by Brody Jackson, who had 22 points. Five Bison scored in double figures, which offset a 36-point performance by Thiel's Joe Herrmann.

The Presidents, meanwhile, pulled away against Thomas More, holding the Saints to two field goals and six points in the first nine minutes of second half.

"At this time of year, you have to play with a sense of urgency, especially on the defensive end," Gutierrez said.

Stopping Bethany's perimeter game for be key for W&J, while the Bison must find a way to neutralize the Presidents' low-post sophomores, 6-5 Wahab Owolabi and 6-8 Josip Lucic-Jozak, who have combined for 75 points and 34 rebounds against the Bison this season.

The winner plays either top-seeded Westminster (19-7) or fourth-seeded Grove City (14-12).

W&J women vs. Westminster

The rules call for five players at a time but winning often requires more. That's why the W&J women like their chances of capturing their third PAC title in five years.

The Presidents (19-7) face Westminster (21-5) in a semifinal game 6 p.m., Friday at Thomas More in Crestview Hills, Ky. Top-seeded Thomas More (20-4) plays Bethany (9-17) in the other semifinal.

While Westminster has one of the best and most exciting players in the PAC in guard Desiree Sterling (15.4 ppg), W&J has strength in numbers. The youthful Presidents have won 13 of their last 14 games and they've done it by wearing down opponents with its size in the low post and deep bench.

Though freshman guard Keenan Killeen (10.7) is the only player averaging in double figures, W&J has five at 7.3 or better. In a 73-48 first-round win over Thiel, the Presidents received 31 points from their bench.

"Our bench has been enormous," said head coach Jina DeRubbo. "We've been getting 28 to 30 points each game from our bench. We're deep in the post. We can play four people there without losing anything, and the players are different styles."

The only team to beat W&J since Jan. 4 is Westminster, which rallied late to win at Henry Memorial Center 55-48. The Titans also had a come-from-behind win over W&J in December, 64-54.

The Presidents, who start three sophomores and two freshmen, hope the third game against Westminster, on the third court, will be a charm.

"Playing them on a neutral court is better than playing in New Wilmington," DeRubbo said. "If we can take anything from the first two games against Westminster, it's knowing that we played 80 minutes and led for 77 of those. We just have to finish it off.

"Our kids are having a great time and playing their best basketball of the season. We have nothing to lose. People - a lot of people - didn't think we would win 10 games."

PAC TOURNAMENTS

SEMIFINALS

MEN

THURSDAY, FEB. 22

GROVE CITY at WESTMINSTER, 7p.m.

W&J at BETHANY, 7 p.m.

WOMEN

FRIDAY, FEB. 23

at CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky.

W&J at WESTMINSTER, 6 p.m.

BETHANY at THOMAS MORE, 8 p.m.

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