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Storyline
The No. 12 Lindenwood men's basketball team will compete in the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) Tournament championship game for the second straight year on Tuesday. The Lions will travel to Evangel for a 7 p.m. contest between the two regular season co-champions. Lindenwood is looking for its first HAAC Tournament title.
The Lions and Crusaders split their two regular season meetings, with both teams winning on the road.
Lindenwood reached the championship game after defeating Avila in the first round and William Jewell in the semifinals. The win over William Jewell was one of the team's top wins of the year, as it avenged a team that has handed it two losses.
Lindenwood is having its best season in school history including a school record 28 wins. The program has also already earned a spot in the 2011 NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. The Lions will be making their third national tournament appearance, including the first at the NAIA Division I level.
HAAC Tournament
Lindenwood beat Avila 85-65 in the first round of the HAAC Tournament.
Lindenwood won the game behind the arc. It hit 14 three-pointers, including nine in the first half when it jumped out to a 46-21 lead. Avila, the top team in the NAIA in three-pointers made, was 0 for 12 in the first half from behind the arc, and most of its six three-pointers came after the game was decided.
Lindenwood's guard trio of Alex Bazzell, Kramer Soderberg, and Richard Rose combined for 60 of the Lions' 85 points.
The Lions won its semifinal contest over William Jewell by a 76-66 margin.
Lindenwood held the Cardinals to just 38.5 percent shooting and outrebounded them by five boards. The Lions also went to the free throw line 11 more times and made 14 more free throws.
All five starters scored in double figures, led by Soderberg with 18 points. Bazzell added 16 and Rose had 15. Alfred Nelson had 11 points and eight rebounds, and Brett Thompson collected 10 points and nine boards.
All-Conference
Three Lindenwood players were named to the 2011 all-conference teams. Kramer Soderberg was a first-team selection, and was also named the HAAC Newcomer of the Year. Richard Rose was a second-team pick, and Alex Bazzell earned third-team honors.
NAIA Statistics Leader
Lindenwood is among the NAIA statistical leaders in several categories. The Lions are second in three-point percentage, third in free throw percentage, ninth in assist-to-turnover ratio, 14th in field goal percentage, 15th in three-pointers made, and 17th in scoring defense. Among the others in the top 50 are being 26th in scoring offense and 30th in field goal percentage defense.
Individually, Richard Rose is first in the NAIA in three-point field goal percentage and 18th in three-pointers made per game. Rose, Kramer Soderberg and Alex Bazzell are all in the top 20 in free throw percentage. Soderberg is also in the top 50 in assists, points, and field goal percentage.
Protecting the Ball
Lindenwood is one of the top teams in the NAIA in protecting the ball. The Lions rank fifth nationally by turning the ball over just 12.1 times a game.
In the 20 games since Christmas break, the Lions have not turned the ball over more than 15 times in a game. In that span, the Lions are averaging just 11.5 turnovers.
Road Record
Lindenwood is 13-1 away from St. Charles this season. That is an improvement over a 10-9 mark last year.
Slow Starts
One common theme in all of Lindenwood's losses this year has been starting slow offensively. In the first half of its four losses, the Lions are averaging just 27.5 points, and shooting 35.8 percent from the field and 21.9 percent from three-point range.
Free Throw Shooting
Lindenwood is the top free throw shooting team in the HAAC, making 74.4 percent of its shots. Over the last 10 games, the Lions have been even better, making 75.6 percent. In that span, it has shot 75 percent or better in every game but three.
Rebounding Numbers
Over the last ten games, Lindenwood is 7-0 when winning the rebounding battle, and 1-2 when losing it.
Leading Scorer
Kramer Soderberg has had a strong finish to his first season as a Lion. Over the last nine games, he is averaging 18.6 points a game. In that span, he has scored 20 or more points five times. He has made 21 three-pointers in those nine games and is shooting 51.2 percent from beyond the arc.
Soderberg currently ranks first in the HAAC in assist-to-turnover ratio and free throw percentage, second in assists, third, and fifth in scoring.
Thompson in the Paint
In the final three regular season games, Brett Thompson averaged 15.0 points a game, and shot 73.9 percent from the field.
Versus William Jewell, he was five of seven from the field and scored 10 points.
Scouting the Crusaders
Evangel enters the HAAC Tournament on a nine-game winning streak. That streak helped the team tie Lindenwood for the HAAC Championship, and it is currently 24-8 on the year and ranked 20th in the national poll.
In the team's current winning streak, Evangel is averaging nearly 80 points a game, while allowing just 63.7.
Evangel is the top team in the HAAC in field goal percentage defense, rebounding, and blocks.
Chad Gillaspy was a first-team All-HAAC selection after averaging 12.2 points and 8.2 rebounds, and shooting 51.8 percent from the field. Spud Harbour leads the team with 15.3 points a game and Mike Storey averages 11.0. Both players were third-team all-conference picks. Cale Ramsey and Jonathan Huskisson were honorable mention picks, and Ramsey was the HAAC Defensive Player of the Year.
Head coach of Evangel is Steven Jenkens. The 2011 HAAC Coach of the Year is in his 29th season and has 534 career wins.
Earlier This Year
Lindenwood won the first meeting between the two by a 67-50 score in Springfield.
The Lions defense frustrated the Crusaders for the majority of the game. Evangel shot just 35.6 percent from the field, including 15.4 percent from three-point range. The Crusaders were even cold from the free throw line, making just six of 21. Lindenwood shot 45.7 percent for the game, including 55 percent in the second half. The Lions also pulled away in the final 20 minutes by hitting 17 of 21 free throws.
Efkan Eren gave Lindenwood a huge spark off the bench, scoring a season-high 10 points. Richard Rose led the team with 17 points, including knocking down four of five three-pointers. Kramer Soderberg chipped in with 14 points and made nine of nine from the free throw line. Brett Thompson had nine points and a team-high seven rebounds.
The second meeting needed overtime before Evangel escaped with a 76-74 win. Lindenwood missed three-pointers in both regulation and overtime that would have won the game.
Rose had a season-high 26 points and also recorded two rebounds, two assists, and three steals. Thompson collected 11 points and a game-high eight rebounds. Alex Bazzell and Michael Boos also scored 11 apiece, and Kramer Soderberg had 10 points and four assists.
NAIA Tournament
The NAIA Division I National Tournament will run from March 16-22 in Kansas City, Mo. The Lions will be making their first appearance at the Division I tournament.
Lindenwood did make two appearances in the NAIA Division II tournament and is 4-2 at nationals. In 2000, the Lions advanced to the second round. In 2006, Lindenwood made it to the semifinals.
