Friday, March 11, 2011

MACON, Ga. - After completing the 2010-11 Atlantic Sun Conference Basketball season, several teams on the men's and women's side have positioned themselves for postseason play. Here is the body of work by Belmont men's team:

Belmont Bruins (30-4, 19-1 A-Sun – 1st)
Results | Stats | Home Page

Post-Season Event:
NCAA

Good Wins:

• at ETSU – Only team to win at ETSU (72-62 – Jan. 23) | Recap
• vs ETSU – Clinched A-Sun Regular-Season title (68-58 – Feb. 17) | Recap
• vs Lipscomb – Handed Bisons worst defeat in rivalry history on ESPN3 (88-52 (Jan. 13) | Recap
• vs Miami (OH) – Tied for Second in MAC regular-season (83-72 – Dec. 30) | Recap

Notable Losses:

• at Tennessee – Missed two chances to tie in final minute (85-76 – Nov. 16) | Recap
• at Vanderbilt – Led at halftime; withing 5 with a minute to go (85-76 – Dec. 4) | Recap
• at Tennessee – Scottie Hopson scores winning FG with 5.7 sec left  (66-65 (Dec. 23) | Recap

Key Players:

• Ian Clark – First team All-Atlantic Sun (12.4 ppg, 43.6 3-pt FG Pct)
• Mick Hedgepeth – 2011 A-Sun Tournament MVP and All-Atlantic Sun Second Team (10.6 ppg, 6.0 rpg)
• Scott Saunders – All-Atlantic Sun Second Team (10.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg off bench)
• Jordan Campbell - 2011 A-Sun All-Tournament Team (8.4 ppg, 46.0 3-pt FG Pct)

Notables

• Set A-Sun record with 30 wins in a season
• Defeated A-Sun opponents by the widest margin of victory in a conference since Duke in 1998-99
• Lead the nation in road/neutral wins with 18
• Became first A-Sun school since Georgia State in 2000-01 to post an undefeated home record (12-0)
• Enter NCAA Tournament with 12-game win streak - the second longest streak in the country
• Bench leads nation in PPG, RPG, APG, SPG, 3-pt FG/G - no school has led in PPG, RPG and APG since at least 1996
• Second in the nation in 3-pt FG/game with 9.4
• Ranked as high as No. 2 in CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll - First A-Sun school in top 5 since 2003-04
• Won conference tournament title game by 41 points - the 3rd largest margin in Division I history
• Scott Saunders: CoSIDA Academic All-American; 9th for Belmont since 2000-01 - most of any school in country 
• Rick Byrd: One of five coaches in Division I with 500 wins at current school
• Byrd: Earned 500th win at Belmont and 600th overall win during the season

Follow the Atlantic Sun Basketball Championships on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun stands for achievement with integrity in both the academic and athletic arenas, with a focus on the balance between the two for our student-athletes. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts five of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.