Time to Shine

McNeese teams ready for tournaments

By Jim Gazzolo

For the fourth straight year, the Southland Conference is coming to Lake Charles to crown its champions.

However, this is the first time in the last three seasons that both teams from host McNeese will be playing in both the men’s and women’s tournaments. 

“This is big for our university,” McNeese Athletic Director Heath Schroyer said. “This was our vision all along.”

And the McNeese teams aren’t just in the tournament as participants; they are likely the favorites of their tournaments. The Cowgirls are 27-4, regular-season champs, and on a 20-game winning streak. 

The Cowboys have won eight straight, 12 of their last 13, and finished second one game behind Stephen F. Austin for the title. The two teams split a pair of games, each winning tight battles on their home floor.

McNeese is 25-5 and open play Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. in the semifinals inside Townsley Law Arena. They have lost just once in the 48 games in Lake Charles over the last three seasons and are 34-0 at home against Southland teams.

“We love playing at home,” said McNeese guard DJ Richards, one of three members who have won back-to-back SLC championships with the Cowboys. “We want to reward our fans, and we want to win three in a row.”

However, this is a much tougher league this season, with five or maybe six teams with a chance to win the tourney and move on to an NCAA Regional. 

“This league has really gotten much better,” said McNeese men’s head coach Bill Armstrong. “You are going to have to play hard next week if you are going to win the championship.”

SFA is the likely other favorite on the men’s side, but Texas-Rio Grande Valley, New Orleans, and Corpus Christi are all capable of winning the event. So is likely Nicholls, though the Colonels would be considered a dark horse.

While there are not as many teams likely able to win on the women’s side, SFA and Rio Grande Valley are both more than talented enough to make a run. So is second-seeded Lamar.

“We expect to get everybody’s best, like we have all year,” said McNeese women’s head coach Ayla Guzzardo. 

If both McNeese teams can finish by taking their tournaments, it would be by far the best basketball season in school history, if it already isn’t that. 

Either way, local fans will get a chance to see two tournament tickets punched next week, and McNeese hopes both their teams get a chance to dance on the big stage. 

Jim Gazzolo is a freelance writer who covers sports in Southwest Louisiana. He is also the host of Poke Nation, which airs weekly on CBS-Lake Charles.