SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – The Chaminade University men's basketball team opens the 2014 West Regional against the top seed, Cal State San Bernardino Coyotes, on Friday at Coussoulis Arena. The Silverswords (19-12) are the No. 8 seed.
What: NCAA West Regional First Round
Who: No. 8 Chaminade vs. No. 1 Cal State San Bernardino
Where: Coussoulis Arena, San Bernardino, Calif.
Ticket Information: At the Coussoulis Arena Box Office; Prices are per session: $10 Reserved, $8 General, $5 Students (with ID), Seniors and children. Parking, $5.
Streaming Video: http://acm.csusb.edu/services/videoproduction/livewebcast.html (to access video, look for the "Quicktime" or "Flash Player" icons at the bottom of the screen and hit "Play Video")
Live Stats: http://www.ncaa.com/game/basketball-men/d2/2014/03/14/chaminade-cal-st-san-bdino
A Look at the Coyotes:
The Coyotes have four players averaging double-digit scoring, led by forward Andrew Young (15.3 ppg), followed by Jordan Burris at 15.0 ppg. Kirby Garnder checks in at 14.1 ppg and Lacy Haddock, who was named Daktronic All-West Region First Team on Thursday, averages 12.9 ppg and 6.2 apg while shooting at a 49 percent clip. Young also averages 6.3 rpg.
Common Foes:
The teams did not play any common foes this season. This will be the Coyotes' first game against a PacWest foe this season. The Coyotes' last game against a member of the PacWest was last March when they defeated Dixie State in the first round of the 2013 NCAA Regionals.
Post-Season Honors:
Guard
Lee Bailey was honored as a member of the PacWest First Team after averaing 17.3 ppg and 4.6 apg. Guard
Kuany Kuany earned second team kudos after a fantastic freshman campaign that saw him average 13.8 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. His 22 rebounds on Feb. 3 against Azusa Pacific broke the school record, which stood for 37 years.
Up Next:
The winner of the Chaminade-Cal State San Bernardino game will move on to the regional semifinals against the winner of the Chico State-Dixie State game. That contest will be played on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time.
Running Men:
The 99 points by the Silverswords against Dominican in the PacWest championship game is the 18
th contest of 90 or more points under
Eric Bovaird through the first 86 contests of his head coaching career. In the five years prior to Bovaird's arrival, the 'Swords had 20 games of 90-or-more points; however it required 119 games to accomplish that feat.
Bailey Ballin':
Guard
Lee Bailey has certainly earned his All-PacWest First Team honor this season. The junior from Detroit, who was the PacWest Freshman of the Year in 2012 and third team all-conference in 2013, is having a career year, averaging 17.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg and 4.6 apg, all career-bests. On Jan. 14, he set his career-high with 32 points in a win at BYU-Hawai'i, including the game-winning 3-pointer. He also wants the ball in crunch time with three game-winning or game-tying shots this year. Bailey also became the 13
th Silversword in program history to score 1,000 career points on Feb. 15 at Dominican. He's currently 10
th in career scoring with 1,157 points. Off the court, Bailey is also the president of Chaminade's SAAC and is a two-time member of the PacWest All-Academic Team. On Thursday, Bailey was named to the Daktronics All-West Region Second Team.
Three-Point Mania:
The Silverswords are among the top 3-point shooting teams in the nation, averaging 9.3 made treys per game, ranking 20
th nationally. West Liberty, where Chaminade head coach
Eric Bovaird was an assistant and which is also his alma mater, currently leads Division II in 3-pointers made at 13.3 per game.
Three for Shastri:
Freshman guard
Kiran Shastri is making an impact for the Silverswords beyond the 3-point arc. The Orinda, Calif., native leads the PacWest Conference in made 3-pointers with 91, 16 more than California Baptist's Ryan Berg, the 2013-14 PacWest Player and Freshman of the Year. He's also averaging 3.2 triples per game, ranking 11
th in the country, making them at a 44 percent clip. His eight made 3-balls on Dec. 7 against Hawai'i Pacific is the third-most on the team this season, trailing only
Christophe Varidel's 10 against Baylor on Nov. 25 and nine by
James Harper in the PacWest championship on March 8.
Varidel Shines on ESPN:
Guard
Christophe Varidel became a national sensation on the opening night of the EA Sports Maui Invitational on Nov. 25. Varidel, who was a part of the "Dunk City" phenomenon during Florida Gulf Coast's improbable run through last season's NCAA Tournament and is the Eagles' second-leading 3-point shooter in program history with 177, torched No. 18 Baylor for 42 points, falling shy of the Invitational's scoring record by a point, set by Gonzaga's Adam Morrison in 2005. Varidel also hit 10 3-pointers, tying both the school record as well as the EA Sports Maui Invitational record. The Geneva, Switzerland, native became a trending topic of Twitter with his 31 points in the first half.
Happy To Be Home:
The Silverswords have enjoyed the comforts of McCabe Gym over the years. Since 2006, the 'Swords are 64-31 (.610) overall and 38-21 (.644) in the PacWest at home. Under
Eric Bovaird, Chaminade is 27-16 (.628) overall and 19-9 (.679) in the conference. Since the start of the 2012-13 season, CUH owns an 18-7 (.720) mark overall at home with two of the losses coming to a pair of 2012 national champions: Western Washington, the NCAA Division II champs; and Cedarville, which captured the National Christian College Athletic Association national title that year. The 'Swords are also 15-4 (.789) in PacWest home games during the same stretch.
Great Starts:
Chaminade has a history of starting the season off on the right foot. With an 82-73 win over Western Oregon at the PacWest/GNAC Challenge at McCabe Gym, the Silverswords won their season opener for the fourth straight season. CUH is also 6-0 in openers since 2004 against non-Division I foes.
