Bridgewater State ready for Sweet 16 matchup with Farmingdale State
March 13, 2009
By Jim Fenton, Enterprise Staff Writer
BRIDGEWATER - Eleven games into the season, the Bridgewater State College men's basketball team was barely above the .500 mark.
The Bears were 6-5 on Jan. 10 after losing back-to-back games at the Cactus Jam in Phoenix plus their Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference opener to Westfield State College at home.
What a difference two months can make.
Now, BSC is one of just 16 teams remaining in the NCAA Div. 3 tournament, two victories away from appearing in the Final Four in Salem, Va., next weekend.
The Bears (22-6) have set a school record for victories and have won 16 of 17 games since that loss to Westfield.
The best season in BSC history has taken the Bears to the Sweet 16 for the first time ever in what has turned out to be a memorable winter for the program.
"Sensational,'' said senior co-captain Roland Millien of Stoughton when asked about the run BSC is on. "That's the only way to describe it.''
With two tournament victories on their resume, the Bears will be in Pomona, N.J., tonight to face Farmingdale State College of New York (26-3) at 6 p.m.
The winner plays either host Richard Stockton or Saint Lawrence on Saturday at 7 p.m. with a trip to the Final Four on the line.
BSC's lone loss in the past two months came at home to Salem State College on Feb. 17, breaking an 11-game winning streak that tied a school record.
The Bears have been rolling like no other team in the program's history, and after being 1-3 in three previous trips to the NCAAs, BSC has broken new ground this season with wins over Saint Joseph's of Maine and Middlebury.
It is a long way from where the Bears were after opening the MASCAC season with a home loss. A road win over Salem State, which rarely loses at home, on Jan. 24 seemed to be a turning point.
"At first, we were a little skeptical once we came from Arizona because we had a tough road down there, but once we beat Salem at Salem, we knew,'' said Millien. "We were up by 18 and they made their little run and we still kept our composure and kept our game. That is when I realized for the first time this team was special.''
BSC shared the conference regular-season title with Salem State, then defeated the Vikings in their own gym for the MASCAC tournament crown on Feb. 28 for an automatic berth in the NCAAs.
The Bears opened with a convincing win over Saint Joseph's and stunned ninth-ranked Middlebury with a last-minute comeback.
"I think, at first, no one thought we'd get to the Sweet 16,'' said Millien. "They thought, OK, maybe you guys will win one game and that's it in the NCAA tournament.'
"But we knew we wanted to get more and we knew what it took to get more. We just kept at it and here we are today and I think we can go even further.''
Said senior forward Stace Garrick, "It's unreal. It's an experience you can tell your kids about. You don't want it to stop until we get to the national championship.''
Farmingdale State began its season 4-2 and has gone 22-1 since, losing only to Saint Joseph's of Long Island in the championship game of the Skyline Conference tourney on Feb. 28.
The Rams, who also set a school record for wins and are in the Sweet 16 for the first time, have held teams to 39 percent shooting while averaging 85 points themselves.
Mike Campbell leads the way, averaging 19.9 points and 9.7 rebounds while Damien Santana scores 19.6 points to go with 6.8 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 2.5 steals.
"They're a senior team,'' said BSC coach Joe Farroba. "They really offensive-rebound very well. This kid, Damian Santana, does it all for them. I think we match up OK. Physically, I think we'll be OK.''
The Bears departed for New Jersey on Thursday morning, and there will be a bus will fans making the trip south as well.
The most memorable season in the history of the BSC men's basketball program reaches new heights tonight.
"I've been doing this for 17 years, and you dream about this,'' said Farroba. "This is the big time for me. We're one of the 16 left. That's incredible for me. It's a great feeling.
"It's hats off to the players and the guys I coach with. We're all enjoying it. We just don't want it to stop now. It's like you've been running 100 miles an hour.''
Said Millien: "You can see we feel a sense of urgency, that we know this could be it, this could be one of the best rides we can go on, and we just want to keep it going.''