Our Daily Dive series is your daily rundown of what is happening around NAIA basketball. We feature game breakdowns, updates on players, coaches teams and leagues for both men’s and women’s basketball.
Another day where our Men’s Games of the Day lived up to the hype! While it gets harder and harder each day to pick games we view as GOTD, it’s always nice when they live up to the hype.
- In Game 1, #1 Shawnee State defeated RV Union, 62-57. The Defending National Champs found themselves down 10 at half, but locked in defensively and did what great teams do and found a way to win. Miles Thomas led the way for the Bears with 16pts, 12rebs. Markell Turner, the nations leading returning scorer, poured in a game high 26pts for Union.
- Game 2. RV MACU went on the road and knocked off #6 LSU-Shreveport 78-72. Shreveport did play without 3rd Team All-American, Leondre Washington, but that isn’t to take away from the MACU win, because this is still a loaded Pilot team who are so good at the Dock. Caleb Riggs used an 18pt first half on his way to a game high 21pts for MACU. Newcomer and D2 transfer, Royce Hunter, also tied for a game high 21pts for LSUS.
– That MACU Men’s win was actually part of a road sweep for MACU, as the Women’s team also got a big 74-67 OT road win.
– #9 Concordia (NE) women and Bellevue (NE) found themselves in a fun one last night as well.
– We got a few Head Coaches with their first wins last night.
- Coach Ian Holleran of Peru State
- New Morningside Head Coach, Trent Miller, also got his first win as a Head Coach as the Mustangs move to 1-0 with a 83-56 win over Peru State.
- Add in Louisiana College women, who like their men’s program, started off the season 1-0 to get their first win as new NAIA members. This one was a road win over a Langston program that made the NAIA Women’s Tournament last season.
– The NAIA almost had it’s first win of the year over a NCAA D1 as Mayville State came up just short against North Dakota.
– Eric Krus, of Benedictine (KS), is the newest member of the 1,000pt club. Krus is a wonderful story, who came back after tearing his ACL in the NAIA National Tournament as a Freshman.
– He is a former All-American, so this comes as no surprise, but Super Senior Christian Rodriguez is seriously putting up some serious numbers to start the season. Say what you want about the Covid eligibility year that players got back, but it’s guys like Christian where we are so pumped to have return to get to play another season after a chaotic one last year.
