Posted: Feb 25, 2014

2014 SLIAC Men's Tournament Preview

The Tournament
Spalding University, the defending champion, headlines this year's tournament field. This weekend Spalding, MacMurray, Webster and Westminster will compete in the SLIAC Men's Basketball Tournament held Thursday and Saturday in Louisville, Ky.

Both semi-final games are set however the seeding for one game is still to be determined based on Tuesday night's final regular season games. Spalding is the #1 seed and will face #4 seed Westminster in one semi-final contest. The other semi-final matchup is between MacMurray and Webster.

Broadcast Info
You can watch live video and listen to both semi-final games and the championship game HERE Broadcasts provided by Jorianna Able, Reid Gross, Ryan Ritchey and Kayla Payne.

Tournament Tidbits

The SLIAC Preseason poll was spot on in picking the preseason favorites. Spalding was picked first with MacMurray picked second, Westminster third and Webster fourth.
Spalding won the SLIAC Tournament last season and will be looking to become the first repeat champion since Fonbonne won three straight tournaments from 2007-09.
All four members of this year's tournament have previously won a championship. Spalding won in 2013, MacMurray won in 1993 and 1999, Webster won in 2011 and Westminster won in 1995, 2010 and 2012.
MacMurray is making their 14th tournament appearance and are 14-11 all-time.
Spalding is making their second tournament appearance and are 2-0 all-time.
Webster is making their league high 17th tournament appearance and is 6-15 all-time.
Westminster is making their 16th appearance and is 16-12 all-time.
MacMurray, Spalding and Webster all went 4-2 against the tournament field this season while Westminster was 0-6 against the field.

MacMurray College Highlanders
MacMurray starts the week with an 18-6 overall record and are currently 14-3 in the SLIAC. The Highlanders conclude the regular season on Tuesday night against Iowa Wesleyan. In their last game they suffered a loss to Fontbonne, snapping a three game winning streak.

The Highlanders are averaging a league leading 78.7 points per game this season, shooting 48.1 percent from the field as a team. The also average a league low 10.5 turnovers per game and a league high 16.1 assists per game. They are led by Brady Slagle who leads the team in scoring, rebounding and assists. Slagle is averaging 16.2 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. He is shooting 54.3 percent from the field and ranks 10th in the SLIAC in steals with 31. Spencer Pratt is second on the team in scoring at 10.5 points per game.

Spalding University Golden Eagles
Spalding University captured their second consecutive SLIAC regular season championship this year after going 16-2 in conference play. After an 0-5 start to the season Spalding finished with a an 18-7 overall record and went 9-0 at home this year. Spalding is averaging 70.8 points per game this season, fifth in the SLIAC.

The Golden Eagles are the league's best three-point shooting team, knocking down 38.6 percent of their shots. William Barber is the team's leading scorer at 14.0 points per game. Thomas Blakemore and Brandon Goeing are each averaging 10.8 points per game. The Golden Eagles have a total of six players averaging at least 7.5 points per game.

Webster University Gorloks
Webster begins the week with a 17-7 overall record and 14-3 mark in the SLIAC. They have one regular season game remaining, Tuesday night against Fontbonne. The Gorloks have won seven of their last eight games and are averaging 74.5 points per game, third most in the SLIAC.

The Gorloks feature a strong inside-outside combination of Ahmad Smith and Kevin Miller. Smith, a guard, is averaging 16.9 points and 2.4 assists per game this season. He has a pair of 30 point contests this year. Miller, a forward, is averaging 14.4 points and 8.3 rebounds per game while shooting 54.4 percent from the field. Point guard Hollis Edwards is a game-changer at both ends, averaging 6.4 points, 3.7 assists and a league high 2.8 steals per game.

Westminster College Blue Jays
Westminster finished the season with a 14-11 overall record and a 11-7 conference record. The Blue Jays have lost three straight games as they enter the tournament. They are averaging 70.3 points per game, sixth in the conference, and knock down 7.2 three's per game.

The Blue Jays feature a trio of players in Joe James, Verdis Lee Jr. and Brandon Moore that lead their attack. James is averaging 15.2 points, 2.8 assists and 2.0 steals per game. Lee Jr. is averaging 14.8 points and 5.0 rebounds per game while Moore is averaging 14.0 points per game and is the team's top outside threat having knocked down 56 three's this season.