On Thursday evening in Jacksonville, Florida, Liberty (19-1, 5-0) and North Florida (11-9, 4-1) will meet in a battle for first place in the ASUN. The Ospreys are attempting to steal a page out of Liberty’s book from a season ago and be this year’s ASUN team to make a run to the NCAA Tournament.
One year ago, Lipscomb was the favorite to win the ASUN and advance to the Big Dance. The Bisons were receiving all the national attention and had top 50 computer rankings across the board that merited such attention. They were being projected by every bracketologist as the ASUN representative. Meanwhile, a very good Liberty team waited in the wings. We all know how that story ended.
This season, it’s Liberty that is the ASUN favorite receiving national attention and being projected by everyone to represent the conference in the NCAA Tournament. North Florida is hoping to steal some of Liberty’s shine and they have the pieces to do it.
“We would be unwise to think because bracket matrix says this, or Joe Lunardi or Jerry Palm says that, that’s a seduction that I hope we don’t bite out of,” Liberty head coach Ritchie McKay said this week. “North Florida is as good as any team in the league or any team that’s been on our schedule.”
The Ospreys were expected to contend for the ASUN title with the Flames, but a tough non-conference schedule that included 6 games against top 50 opponents has left their record at 11-9, much less sexy than Liberty’s 19-1. UNF also had a surprising loss at home to NJIT early in ASUN play, or they would be sitting atop the conference standings right beside Liberty at 5-0. Still, a win Thursday night and the Ospreys will forge a tie atop the league standings and own the early tiebreaker with the Flames.
“I do think that North Florida gets a little bit of the spotlight off of them because they don’t have a NET that is at-large considerate,” McKay stated. “But I don’t pay any respector to that because I know how good they are and how difficult this matchup will be.”
