March 5 is a special day to me. Not only is it my birthday, it’s also the day that Longwood was founded about 174 years ago. I’ve had my share of good birthdays over the years, but none like the one that I had over Spring Break.
It’s no secret that the men’s basketball team here had a rough season – a fact that has been documented in this publication for the better part of four months. A 14-game losing streak that lasted for almost two months ended with an upset on the road at Winthrop on Feb. 9 and was followed by big wins over Radford, Liberty and Campbell. Even with the strong finish, LU wasn’t expected to make much noise, if any, in the Big South Tournament a couple weeks ago. A 12-point halftime lead for the Lancers was plenty, as the team sank their free throws at the end to triumph over the two-time defending conference champions UNC-Asheville, 87-72. The team that was generally seen as the conference’s worst knocked off a powerhouse, and everyone wearing Longwood blue and white down at Coastal Carolina University could dream.
The dream abruptly ended to in-state rival VMI two days later, 90-86. A hot start didn’t stick around for long, though, and VMI stretched the lead to 17 early in the second half. Lucas Woodhouse’s jumper with 14 seconds left cut the lead to two, but that’s as close as the Lancers would get, and the season was over moments later. Foul trouble for Woodhouse, Michael Kessens and TT Carey doomed Longwood in the final game of the season, a season that ended 8-25. Kessens had a single-game tournament record 36 points and 16 rebounds in the contest. Afterward, he said, “I’m happy for myself and the school ... [but] I’d rather score zero points and win the game.”
Although the men were done, the women were just getting started. After beating Charleston Southern by seven, the seventh-seeded Lancers upset second-seeded Winthrop by 12, and the dream of dancing that seemed so possible in January was becoming a reality. A three-point win over Radford ensured a matchup for the ages in the “Southside Showdown:” Liberty and Longwood for the Big South Championship. The epitomical David vs. Goliath matchup was at hand – the powerhouse Flames, gunning for another NCAA Tournament experience against the new kid on the block, the Longwood team that went a month without winning midway through the conference slate.
Chelsea Coward led the way, scoring 14 points in her 40 minutes on the floor, but it wasn’t enough as the team fell to Liberty, 54-45. The core of the team is now gone, with Coward, Crystal Smith, Erin Neal and Mieke Elkington graduating in May. While the Cinderella run ended a game too early, there’s reason to be excited about the future of this team. Considering that they doubled their win total from last season (and the one before), not to mention the corps of freshmen that developed over the course of the season, it’s not a stretch to say that this year was the last time that Longwood’s making a tournament final for the foreseeable future.
There’s plenty of reason to be excited about the men’s team too. With all five starters returning and only one letter winner graduating, there’s every reason for Longwood to succeed next season, even with what took place on Thursday.
Of course, I’m speaking of the resignation of Mike Gillian from the helm of the program, a program that he brought to the ranks of Division I. Speaking from my personal perspective here as someone who has little, if any, inside knowledge of the workings of the program, I’m surprised at what happened. Although I'm hardly an apologist of the now-former head coach, I was impressed – and proud – that he’d turned the season around with the help of his assistants and, certainly, his players.
I woke up Thursday morning to a text from my good friend (thanks Travis) and immediately got on the phone, finding it hard to believe. It was true, and the flagship sport at this school is now looking for its eighth leader. Gillian won 93 games in his 10 years as coach and lost 214 of them. His circumstances were awful at best, and he tried to make the best of a bad situation. I have little to no doubt that he will be working in some level of basketball again and probably during the 2013-14 season. While his record certainly could have been better, he’s earned his place in the annals of Longwood athletics for bringing the men’s basketball team from the lowest depths of Division I to a potential Big South winner.
On that note, here are four predictions for this year’s NCAA Tournament. Davidson will beat Marquette, VCU will make the Final Four, two No. 1 seeds will meet in the national championship game and Indiana will beat Louisville in that game.
*** This editorial is an opinion stated by the writer and does not represent the views of The Rotunda or Longwood University.
