SELINSGROVE, Pa. – While the scenarios are seemingly endless for the Susquehanna University men's and women's basketball teams in their quest to make the Middle Atlantic Conference playoffs – the teams and the coaches know they clinch playoff berths with wins in their regular season finales Saturday at Albright.
Both Crusader teams are 13-10 overall, with the women at 7-6 and in fourth-place in the Commonwealth Conference, and the men at 6-7 and tied for fourth in the conference. The top four teams in both the Commonwealth and Freedom Conference qualify for the MAC playoffs, which begin with the quarterfinals next Tuesday, February 22.
The women and 13th-year head coach Mark Hribar have the best prospects of making the conference post-season for an 11th-straight year. The Crusaders clinch a playoff spot with either a win Saturday, or a loss by fifth-place Lebanon Valley (14-7, 6-6 MAC CC) in either of its two remaining conference games – hosting seventh-place Albright (8-14, 2-10 MAC CC) tonight and playing at sixth-place Widener (10-13, 5-8 MAC CC) Saturday.
Despite dropping a tough 61-60 home decision to Juniata (16-7, 8-5) in a battle for sole-possession of third-place last night, Susquehanna could still finish third. For that to happen, the Crusaders need to win Saturday, see Juniata lose at second-place Elizabethtown (19-4, 11-2 MAC CC) Saturday afternoon, and have Lebanon Valley win both of its remaining conference games. If that happens, there will be a three-way tie for positions three through five between Susquehanna, Juniata and Lebanon Valley. The first tie-breaking criteria is comparing the records against the other teams involved in that tie. Since all three teams would be 2-2 against each other, the next tie-breaker is to compare records against teams at the top of the standings and work down. Susquehanna has the lone win over Commonwealth champion Messiah, giving the Crusaders the tie-breaking advantage and third-place. Fourth-place would then be determined by the head-to-head record of the two remaining teams. Since Lebanon Valley swept Juniata, the Flying Dutchwomen would earn the final playoff spot and Juniata would be out.
Susquehanna would fail to make the playoffs only if it lost Saturday and the other two teams won their remaining games.
If the Crusaders finish third, they would play a MAC quarterfinal playoff game next Tuesday, February 26, at Freedom Conference runner-up Allentown (20-3, 10-3 MAC FC) – a team presently ranked second in the latest NCAA Division III Mid-Atlantic Region poll which beat the Crusaders at Allentown, 79-54, on December 11. Ironically, Susquehanna scored a 82-71 overtime win over Allentown in Selinsgrove in a MAC quarterfinal last year.
A fourth-place finish would send the Crusaders to the number-one team in the region and defending MAC champion Scranton (22-1, 13-0 MAC FC), which has won at least a share of the Freedom title all seven years of its existence. Susquehanna has never beaten Scranton under Hribar, dropping all 16 games including a MAC semifinal, 82-65, last season at Scranton.
The Crusader men of 11th-year head coach Frank Marcinek would clinch fourth-place in the conference and the final playoff spot with a win Saturday, but that won't come easy at second-place Albright (18-5, 10-3 MAC CC) – which still has hopes of winning the Common-wealth title and getting the automatic NCAA Division III Tournament bid which comes with it. The Crusaders upset Albright, 60-58, in Selinsgrove on January 22, but have gone just 2-6 since.
Susquehanna would also finish fourth and make the playoffs, in spite of Saturday's outcome, if both Juniata (3-20, 1-12 MAC CC) pulls the upset at Elizabethtown (12-11, 5-8 MAC CC) and Messiah (10-13, 5-8 MAC CC) wins at home over Moravian (10-13, 6-7 MAC CC). Both of those games are Saturday afternoon. The Crusaders would finish tied with Moravian and Messiah for fourth, but since all three teams would have 2-2 records against one another, Susquehanna would have the tie-breaker because it has the lone victory in that group over Albright.
If the Crusaders make the playoffs for the ninth time in 11 years under Marcinek, it would play at MAC quarterfinal playoff game Tuesday at the Freedom Conference champion. The Freedom Conference could end in a five-way tie for first depending on Saturday's outcome.
Scranton (14-8, 9-4 MAC FC) presently has a one-game lead and claims the title if it wins at King's (13-10, 8-5 MAC FC) Saturday afternoon. The Crusaders last win before their six-game losing streak came over Scranton with a 73-65 decision in Selinsgrove on January 24.
In the Royals falter, Wilkes (16-7, 8-5 MAC FC) would appear to be the likely champion if it can win at home Saturday afternoon against Drew (8-15, 3-10 MAC FC). Ironically, Susquehanna's last trip to the MAC playoffs two seasons ago saw it drop an 80-78 quarterfinal at Wilkes on a controversial last-second shot. #msf/1540#
