Evangel to Face Menlo College in First Round of NAIA II National Tournament
March 5, 2008
Contact: Evangel University Athletics 865-2815, Ext. 7282
Game 34
Evangel "Crusaders" vs. Menlo College "Oaks"
Thursday | Mar. 13 | 9:15 p.m. | Keeter Gymnasium | Pt. Lookout, Mo.
First Round - NAIA II National Championship
The Evangel men' basketball team will play Menlo College (Calif.) on Thursday, Mar. 13, at 9:15 p.m. in the first round of the 2007-08 NAIA II National tournament. The tournament is held in Keeter Gymnasium on the campus of College of the Ozarks in Pt. Lookout, Mo.
Evangel (27-6) is ranked No. 6 on the final NAIA national poll and is seeded No. 6 in the national tournament. Menlo (18-9) is not seeded. The Menlo Oaks won the California Pacific Conference (CPC) tournament to secure a berth in the national tourney. Menlo defeated William Jessup University, 61-49, in the CPC tournament championship game.
Evangel is making its seventh appearance in the national tournament and its third consecutive trip since winning the NAIA II national championship in 2002 (1997, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2008). Menlo Oaks are making their third appearance in the national event (2000, 2002, 2008). Evangel and Menlo have never met on the hardwood.
Menlo was in the national tournament that Evangel won in 2002. The Oaks lost 80-66 in the first round to Robert Morris, the team Evangel played in the championship game. Menlo lost to Mount Vernon Nazarene (Ohio), 91-64, in a first round game of the 2000 tournament.
The winner of the Evangel/Menlo game will meet the winner of the Oregon Tech/Mount Vernon Nazarene game (Thursday, Mar. 13, 7:30 p.m.) on Friday, Mar. 14, at 9:15. Oregon Tech (26-6) is the No. 11 seed. Mount Vernon Nazarene (23-7) is not seeded.
Game Capsule
Records
- EU: 27-6 overall, 17-3 Heart of America Athletic Conference (tied with MidAmerica Nazarne), No. 6 NAIA II, seeded No. 6 in tourney
- Menlo: 18-9 overall, 13-3 California Pacific Conference (2nd), received votes on NAIA II final national poll (No. 29), unseeded in tournament, has won 9 in a row
Coaches
- EU: Steve Jenkins (Evangel, 1974 26th year, 470-353 record)
- Menlo: Brandon Laird (University of California, Davis in 2001 2nd year 33-21 record)
Conference Memberships
- EU: Heart of America Athletic Conference
- Menlo: California Pacific Conference
Qualification for NAIA II Tourn.
- Evangel: won conference tournament, 82-67, vs. William Jewell at home on Mar. 3
- Menlo: won conference tournament, 61-49, vs. William Jessup at California State-East Bay on Feb. 23
The Next Opponent
The winner of the Evangel/Menlo game will face the Oregon Tech (26-6, No. 11 seed)/Mount Vernon Nazarene (23-7, Ohio) winner on Friday, Mar. 14, at 9:15 p.m. in the second round.
Tournament Appearances
EU: Evangel is making its seventh appearance (2008, 2007, 2006, 2002, 2001, 1999, 1997). The Crusaders are 8-5 (.614) in their six previous appearances. Evangel won the national championship in 2002.
Menlo: Menlo is making its third appearance to the national affair (2002, 2000). Menlo has an 0-2 record in its previous two trips to Pt. Lookout.
A Note of Interest: In 2002, Menlo lost in the first round to Robert Morris, 80-66. Evangel and Robert Morris met in the championship game, which EU won 84-61.
For more information concerning the tournament please see the official tournament web site at www.cofo.edu/naia and also the NAIA web site, www.naia.org.
| Year | Round | EU Seed | Opponent, Seed | Site | W/L | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-07 | First | not seeded | Cedarville (Ohio) University | Pt. Lookout, Mo. | Lost | 83-97 |
| 2005-06 | First | 15 | Bellevue (Neb.) University | Pt. Lookout, Mo. | Won | 82-74 |
| Second | 15 | Huntington (Ind.) University, 2 | Pt. Lookout, Mo. | Lost | 93-104 | |
| 2001-02 | First | 1 | College of St. Joseph (Vt.) | Pt. Lookout, Mo. | Won | 79-49 |
| Second | 1 | Black Hills State University (S.D.) | Pt. Lookout, Mo. | Won | 83-66 | |
| Quarterfinal | 1 | Holy Family College (Pa.) | Pt. Lookout, Mo. | Won | 86-57 | |
| Semifinal | 1 | Northwestern College (Iowa), 4 | Pt. Lookout, Mo. | Won | 81-79 | |
| *Championship | 1 | Robert Morris College (Ill.), 7 | Pt. Lookout, Mo. | Won | 84-61 | |
| 2000-01 | First | 6 | Grand View College (Iowa) | Pt. Lookout, Mo. | Won | 73-67 |
| Second | 6 | University of Rio Grande (Ohio), 11 | Pt. Lookout, Mo. | Lost | 75-81 | |
| 1998-99 | First | not seeded | Northwestern College (Iowa), 11 | Nampa, Idaho | Lost | 64-72 |
| 1996-97 | First | 8 | Howard Payne University (Texas) | Nampa, Idaho | Won | 95-94 |
| Second | 8 | Northwest Nazarene University (Idaho), 9 | Nampa, Idaho | Lost | 81-99 |
*National championship is first won by any Heart of America Athletic Conference team
Download the bracket - PDF
NAIA II National Stats
Evangel Individual Top-20
- Jackson Capel ranks No. 6 in 3-point field goals made (3.82), No. 8 in 3-point pct. (47.2), and No. 9 in points per game (21.5)
- Jordan Chapman ranks No. 18 in assist/turnover ratio (2.6)
- Shane Nicholson ranks No. 9 in assists (5.6), No. 13 in free throw pct. (.863)
Evangel Team Top -10
No. 3 in 3-point field goal pct. (42.6), No. 6 in assists (19.2), No. 9 in assist/turnover ratio (1.25)
Menlo Individual - Top 20
Cody Christensen ranks No. 18 in 3-point field goal pct. (.457)
Menlo Team - Top 10
No. 2 in field goal defense pct. (39.1), No. 3 in scoring defense (60.4), No. 7 in total rebound defense (29.8)
Talking Crusader Stats
- Todd Simon has scored in every game but one - Southwestern Assemblies of God on Nov. 10.
- Joel Brown has dished out at least one assist in 31 of 33 games. The all-purpose guard has averaged 9.5 points and 2.5 rebounds the last two outings and made all seven of his field goals.
- Shane Nicholson, EU' starting point guard, ranks No. 9 in the nation in assists per game (5.6).
- Over the last 14 games, Spud Harbour has scored at a 9.3 points per game clip. He has made 26 of 45 3-pointers (.578) and 28 of 29 free throws (.966) during the 14 games.
- As a team, EU is No. 3 in NAIA II 3-point field goal pct. (.426), No. 6 in assists (19.2), and No. 9 in assist/turnover ratio (1.25).
- Shane Nicholson has registered at least one assist and one rebound in every game.
- Austin Brewer has averaged 7.0 points over the last eight games. He has had at least one rebound in every game but two - Biola on Dec. 28 and Baker on Feb. 23.
- Ten more rebounds and EU' Todd Simon will have accumulated 800 career rebounds. He will be the third Crusader ever to total 800 rebounds in a career.
- Jackson Capel has pulled down at least one rebound in every game.
- Chad Simon is ready to return to form. During the first 19 games, he averaged 6.7 points and 4.5 rebounds. He connected on 58 of 75 field goals (.773). Over the last 14 games, C.Simon has averaged 3.1 points and 3.8 rebounds and has made 20 of 50 field goals (.400).
- Jackson Capel has scored in double figures in all but one game this season - a six point outing vs. Bethany on Dec. 29. Capel has now scored 10 or more points in 20 straight games and has totaled 30 or more points in eight games this year.
- Shane Nicholson has dished out 10 or more assists twice this year and both were vs. Missouri Valley. He had 14 on Jan. 12 and 11 on Feb. 16 versus Missouri Valley.
- Over the last 10 games, Todd Simon has averaged 12. 1 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 blocks. During that span, Simon has knocked down 46 of 76 field goals for a 60.5 percentage, including 5 of 7 shooting from 3-point range.
- During the first 22 games of the season, Jackson Capel made 90 of 182 treys (.495). Over the last 11 he has made 36 of 85 (.424).
- Tim Dial missed 34 days of practice and five games and due to mononucleosis (Dec. 2 to Jan. 3). Dial has now returned to the form that made him an All-America pick last season. Over the last four games, Dial has made 60.0 percent of his field goals (15-25) and has averaged 9.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.0 blocks.
- Tim Dial tied the EU free throw record just four games after coming back from a 34-day bout with mononucleosis. He made 11 of 11 charity tosses vs. William Jewell on Jan. 17 and also tied his career high with 25 points in that game.
Stat Leaders (7.0 ppg or better)
Evangel
- Jackson Capel --21.5 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 1.7 spg, 47.2 3FG% (126-267), 83.7 FT% (123-147)
- Todd Simon -- 10.5 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 24 blocks, 2.1 apg, 60.2 FG% (133-221), 59.1 3FG% (13-22)
- Shane Nicholson -- 9.7 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 5.6 apg, 1.4 spg, 48.7 FG% (109-224), 86.3 FT% (88-102)
- Tim Dial -- 9.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 49.1 FG% (104-212)
- Spud Harbour -- 7.5 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 44.2 3FG% (46-104), 90.0 FT% (45-50)
Menlo
- Bryon Wesley -- 13.0 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.8 spg, 41.8 FGT (120-287)
- Brandon Cochran -- 9.7 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 75.3 FT% (70-93)
- Cody Christensen -- 8.5 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 45.7 3FG% (63-138)
- Kyle Adams -- 7.8 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 54.6 FG% (89-163)
- Chris Funke -- 7.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 33 blocks, 55.7 FG% (83-149)
- Tim Kees -- 7.3 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 72.5 FT% (74-102)
- Chris Cobb -- 7.2 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.4 apg, 39.8 3FG% (45-113), 72.9 FT% (35-48)
About Menlo
Menlo College is located in the San Francisco Bay area in the Silicon Valley. The college is in Atherton, Calif. Menlo was founded in 1927 as a two-year school and was an all-male institution until 1971. In 1986, Menlo became a 4-year college. Menlo specializes in business leadership and management. The enrollment is approximately 700 and the students come from all around the world to attend.
Menlo athletics date back to 1928. The school fielded athletic teams at the junior college level from 1928 to 1986. In 1986, the Oaks became NAIA members. Menlo holds the distinction of being the smallest NAIA school that fields a football team and sponsors 12 sports.
Common Opponent
Both Evangel and Menlo played Bethany University, a member of Menlo’s conference. Evangel defeated 90-63 on Dec. 29 in the Bethany tournament. During the regular season, Menlo won 76-59 at Bethany on Dec. 13 and won 77-73 in OT at home on Jan. 24.
EU’s 1,000 Point Scorers
The following four Evangel players have scored over 1,000 points in their career. It is the first time Evangel has had four 1000-point scorers on the same team. The players are listed in the order they achieved the 1000-point plateau.
- Tim Dial - 1,580 points; 1000th point scored vs. Univ. of Indiana South Bend on Dec. 29, 2006 - scored 6 points
- Todd Simon - 1,383 points; 1000th point scored vs. Benedictine College on Feb. 24, 2007 - scored 11 points
- Jackson Capel - 1,583 points; 1000th point scored vs. Central Methodist University on Nov. 29, 2007 - scored 11 points
- Shane Nicholson - 1,081; 1000th point scored vs. Graceland University on Feb. 9, 2008 - scored 15 points