On Sunday, Liberty will play for a conference tournament championship for a fourth consecutive season, but this time it will feel a little different. For the first time in program history, the Flames already have their NCAA Tournament appearance locked up regardless of how the championship game unfolds.
That’s not a usual circumstance for a one-bid league, obviously, but it is where Liberty finds itself as the team prepares to face North Alabama Sunday afternoon at 2 pm on ESPN. The Lions, in their third season of a four-year transition period from the Division II ranks, are ineligible for the NCAA Tournament. The Flames will win the ASUN’s automatic bid to the Big Dance win or lose Sunday, as the conference’s regular season champion.
Ask head coach Ritchie McKay or any of the players and they will tell you that having the NCAA Tournament appearance solidified doesn’t take any luster off Sunday’s game. The Flames are still playing for a championship, after all.
“It’s a championship game,” Liberty forward Blake Preston said. “It’s something we worked all season for. We set our sights at the beginning of the season as this is one of the goals we have as a team and as a program. We are here in a position to play it, and we’re going to give it our all.”
“There’s a little bit of that burden taken off your shoulders,” McKay said. “But what you do every day is more important than what you do every once in a while. We want to keep improving. So, we know we’re going to the (NCAA) Tournament, which is great, it’s a blessing, but we’re grateful to have a chance to win another conference tournament championship.”
In addition to playing for a championship, Liberty also has a current 11-game winning streak they don’t want to see come to an end. The Flames can also improve their standing with the NCAA Selection Committee for next Sunday’s bracket reveal.
“I don’t think you’re the competitor you need to be if you take it lightly,” McKay said of the championship game against North Alabama. “This is a chance for us to keep getting better. To win both our regular season and our conference championship, which in past history has meant more to the selection committee than just winning one or the other. I feel like there are opportunities for us still that afforded to us in this game. Hopefully we have a sense of urgency in our approach that warrants our standard being adhered to.”
Liberty, currently sitting at 22-5 overall and having already won a third straight regular season ASUN championship, will be looking to improve to 9-0 all-time in the ASUN Tournament and win a third straight conference tournament championship. This year’s team was picked third in the ASUN preseason poll by the coaches and media after losing seniors Caleb Homesley, Scottie James, Georgie Pacheco-Ortiz, and Myo Baxter-Bell. All four of them have since signed professional basketball contracts.
“I try and never put a ceiling on our group,” McKay said. “I’ve done that in the past. I think once you’ve hit that mark, then you kind of relax. Did I envision (this success)? No, but I don’t really ever predict how many games we’re going to win. Our goal is always going to be to compete for championships. I think that’s kind of been the mindset this group has had all year long.”
Only three players that played in last year’s conference tournament championship game against Lipscomb are still on the Flames’ roster – ASUN Defensive Player of the Year Elijah Cuffee, ASUN Player of the Year Darius McGhee, and Shiloh Robinson. This group, despite already having the NCAA Tournament bid sealed, wants to prove it can win a championship and keep that streak alive.
“It’s a championship game,” Preston said. “A lot of guys haven’t played these before. Only three of the guys on our roster played on it last year. The rest of the guys we were there but none of us were in the game. A lot of new faces, a lot of new players, a lot of excitement around the opportunity to play in it.”
Preston sat behind James and Baxter-Bell the past two seasons without seeing much playing time. He has played a critical role on this year’s squad and its accomplishments. In Friday’s semifinal win over Stetson, Preston recorded a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
“The accomplishment of winning the regular season championship was really good, but I think you can see that our guys weren’t satisfied with. I think they will show up tomorrow and give a great effort. (Then), we will get to Indianapolis with a desire to see if we can compete and do our very best.”
Elijah Cuffee, the winningest player in program history with 102 career wins and the only player on the roster that will play in all four conference championship games, is ready for the opportunity Sunday presents.
“A championship is a championship at the end of the day.”
