By Cody Stark
Assistant Sports Editor
HUNTSVILLE — As each NCAA tournament regional was announced Sunday, the Bearkats were full of anticipation.
Junior forward Gilberto Clavell thought for sure that Sam Houston State was going to play fifth-seeded Temple in Jacksonville, Fla. when the Owls popped up on the television screen at Fat Boys during the selection-show party. He screamed out just as Temple’s opponent was announced, but the 13th seed happened to go to Cornell.
Slowly but surely, the Bearkats finally found out their fate and for one player, it couldn’t have worked out any better.
Senior point guard Ashton Mitchell will get to play the game he has been working four years for in front of his family and friends when 14th-seeded Sam Houston State plays third-seeded Baylor in New Orleans on Thursday in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
“It should be a fun experience for me, going back home in front of my family and friends,” the New Orleans native said Sunday. “My friend Tweety Carter also plays for Baylor. This should be a good experience for me.”
This is the second trip to the NCAA tournament for Sam Houston. The Bearkats were a No. 15 seed in 2003 and played the second-seeded Florida Gators in Tampa, Fla.
Sam Houston (25-7) thumped Stephen F. Austin 64-48 in the championship game of the Southland Conference tournament at the Merrell Center in Katy on Saturday to earn the league’s automatic berth to the NCAA tournament.
As soon as CBS sports anchor Greg Gumbel announced Sam Houston would be facing Baylor on Sunday, all the Bearkat players immediately jumped to their feet in celebration.
After winning the SLC regular-season championship as well, the Kats were pumped to get a better seed this time around.
“We were excited to go to New Orleans, obviously, for Ashton Mitchell so he could return home,” SHSU head coach Bob Marlin said. “We were anxious to see where we fell as either a 13 (seed) or a 14. We are excited that we don’t have to travel across the country and look forward to playing in the NCAA tournament.”
The Bearkats are 3-6 all-time against the Bears, but things didn’t go well for Baylor in the last meeting. Sam Houston marched into Waco and came away with 81-64 victory during the 1999-2000 season.
But this is a different Bears squad under head coach Scott Drew. Baylor (25-7) finished third in the Big 12 with an 11-5 mark and advanced to the semifinals of the league’s postseason tournament before falling to Kansas State 82-75.
Baylor has three players averaging double figures in scoring with junior guard LaceDarius Dunn leading the way at 19.4. Carter adds 15.7 points per game and 6-foot-10 center Ekpe Udoh chips in 13.9.
“They have a lot of length and size. They have done a good job this year defensively,” Marlin added. “They lost two very good guards from last year and people thought they might take a step back. But they picked it right up.
“The Udoh kid, a transfer from Michigan, has made a huge impact on their club. They have had a great year in the Big 12 and are certainly deserving of their seed as well.”
There will be three other first-round games in New Orleans on Thursday. In the South bracket with SHSU and Baylor, sixth-seeded Notre Dame will face 11th-seeded Old Dominion.
The other two matchups are out of the East. Kentucky, which earned a No. 1 seed, will battle 16th-seeded East Tennessee State and eighth-seeded Texas will play ninth-seeded Wake Forest.
Ticket info
NCAA Regional tournament ticket allotment for the Sam Houston State and Baylor game at the New Orleans Arena will be made available for sale to the general public at 11 a.m. today at the SHSU Athletic Department Ticket Office, via phone at (936) 294-1729 or at www.gobearkats.com. Bearkat fans may purchase tickets to the two-game sessions in which SHSU plays. Tickets for each session are $66 each.
