A tale of two teams: Gauchos knock out Coyotes in first round, get run out by Bears two days later
By Matt PetersenManaging Editor, The Voice
For the 2007-08 Gauchos, the playoffs were a microism of their entire season.
There were high highs and low lows.
After squeaking into the ACCAC Division II playoffs in the season's final week, the Gauchos handled Chandler-Gilbert in the first round 96-84 before getting waxed in the division semi-finals by Phoenix, 95-65.
Nick Sorensen / Photographer
(From left to right) David Beale, Deric Davis, Lukas Hamsch and Jeremiah Branson look on dejectedly as Glendale gets eliminated by the Phoenix Bears 95-65 on Friday, March 7. The Gauchos qualified for the playoffs in the last week of the regular season and defeated Chandler-Gilbert in the first round before falling to Phoenix.
After starting the season on fire, the Gauchos were derailed by eight forfeits due to erroneous paperwork filed for one of their players. This dropped Glendale like a rock, and they struggled to regain their swagger even as they sneaked into the playoffs.
They faced the Coyotes from Chandler-Gilber at home on Wednesday, March 5, a team they had beaten just four days previous at the season's end.
High from making the playoffs after a season of turmoil and facing an opponent they had already beaten, Glendale played the game with the confidence that the game called for. The Gauchos made runs of 9-0 and 12-0 in the first half, pushing the pace throughout.
Playing in his first game back from a broken wrist, guard David Beale came off the bench to score 8 points on 2-2 3-point shooting and a couple free throws. Both threes came at crucial times for the Gauchos, as the Coyotes refused to go away quietly.
Nick Sorensen / Photographer
T.J. Campbell tries to block a shot against Phoenix College. On the season, Campbell lead the team in points, assists, steals, 3-pt percentage, and free-throw percentage.
Guard T.J. Campbell said of Beale's return, "Both his shots were huge. Asking him to come in like that was just great for us."
Campbell himself was huge for Glendale, scoring the final seven points of the first half to keep the Coyotes at bay. Campbell said, "Coach needs me to be a leader and tonight I was able to do that."
Beale declared, "We just need to keep playing like this and no one can beat us."
The feel-good atmosphere wouldn't last long. The Division II semifinals pitted the Gauchos against the Phoenix Bears two nights later at PC campus, where the Gauchos hadn't played since winning 88-76 on December 12, 2007.
Starting center Lance Fite scored the first two buckets for Glendale to give them a 4-3 lead. It would be their only lead of the night.
Phoenix put some distance between themselves and Glendale with a 9-0 run to go up by nine before blowing the game open later in the first half with a 16-0 run.
They led 50-27 by halftime. Phoenix connected on a whopping eight three-pointers in that half alone.
It appeared that Campbell had used his best stuff in the first round, as he shot mostly blanks on the way to a 3-13 shooting night, finishing with 14 points gained mostly on free throws.
The rest of the night was the same, if not worse for Glendale. They shot 22-58 overall (3-20 from beyond the arc). Four Phoenix College players scored in double-figures and the Gauchos were outrebounded 40-26. The Bears led by as many as 35 before the final score read 95-65.
Glendale forward James Green said glumly after the game, "We didn't come out and play our game today. Our defense played like [expletive]."
It's a bittersweet end for the Gauchos, who felt that their forfeit-affected record didn't reflect the talent or effort the team had displayed during the season. Center Lance Fite will be the only returning starter next season.
Division I schools will undoubtedly be giving Campbell a look after a stellar season in which he ranked among the league leaders in several categories.
Campbell ranked 10th in the conference in scoring (16.3ppg), first in free-throw percentage (87.2%), third in assists (5.2apg), ninth in 3-point percentage (45.3%), and second in steals (2.7spg). Freshmen Wilson Bibleheimer (torn ACL) and Nick Sheffield (torn miniscus) expect to return next season after being key players off the bench before suffering their respective injuries.
