Feb. 28, 2008

ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - It's been a while since the Lewis University men's basketball team has had much to play for in late February. And if it's been a while since you've seen the Flyers live, this is the weekend to head to Lewis' Neil Carey Arena.

Under second-year coach Scott Trost, the Flyers enter this final weekend of the regular season with everything to play for, and that should make for some exciting NCAA Division II basketball -- not to mention the fact that two of the Flyers' last three games have gone to overtime, including a triple-overtime thriller at Indianapolis last week.

Behind their best record since the 2003-04 season, boosted by a perfect 11-0 mark at home, the Flyers head into their final two regular-season games just two games back of first place in the Great Lakes Valley Conference's East Division.

The Flyers host Bellarmine at 7:45 tonight and Northern Kentucky at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

Bellarmine is in a heated battle with Lewis for one of the eight regional bids, while Northern Kentucky currently resides in first in the division, tied with Kentucky Wesleyan, a team the Flyers beat in overtime back on Feb. 16.

Any number of tie-breaker scenarios could play out this weekend, but for the Flyers, the situation is clear. Win.

Lewis already has locked up its berth in the conference tournament, but the GLVC this season is granting first-round home games to the top two teams in each division. Lewis needs two wins this weekend for a chance for another home game on Tuesday, March 4.

This weekend's slate also figures to make or break the Flyers' shot for the NCAA tournament. Lewis this week is ranked seventh in the region. The top eight are invited to the tournament. Should Lewis remain in the top eight, the Flyers would make their first tournament appearance in four years.

The Flyers' turnaround over the past two seasons has been as quick as it is dramatic. After two straight seasons of losing basketball, Trost came in and immediately manufactured a winner.

The Flyers went 15-13 last season and made their return to the conference tournament. At 18-7 entering play this week, the Flyers now are a serious contender for a run for the GLVC title.

Trost's 33 wins with Lewis are the third-most by any coach in program history through the first two years on the job. If the Flyers reach 20 wins before season's end, Trost will become only the second coach in program history to accomplish the feat prior to their third season.

The Flyers starting five features three players who continue to move in the Lewis record books. Senior forward Stephan Bolt is one of just three players in the Flyers' Division II era to reach 1,000 career points and 700 career rebounds. Bolt this season is again amongst the conference leaders in both categories.

Juniors Brandon Dagans and Jason Genova also are among the most prolific scorers in school history. Dagans recently eclipsed 1,000 career points in a game in which he set a personal-high with 42. Genova, a 3-point marksman, already has climbed up to fourth on the school's 3-point list. Just in his second season with the Flyers, Genova is 83 points away from 1,000.

What the trio has in store for this weekend remains to be seen, but it's a safe bet that it's going to be fun to watch.