STEVENS POINT, Wis. (WSAW) - The UWSP women's basketball team will play in an NCAA Tournament game for the first time in nine years on Friday night. For head coach Matt Hockett, the opportunity is a privilege.
"We're going to enjoy this journey," said Hockett. "I could not be prouder of the young women in our program and the opportunity that we have in front of us."
The Pointers were picked to finish last in the WIAC in the preseason. Now, they will play in the NCAA Tournament. Having proved many people wrong, the Pointers continue to focus on what they can control.
"There's a quote by Winston Churchill that I shared with the team and he said, 'History will be kind to me because I intend to write its pages," said Hockett. "This group didn't listen to anything outside of our locker room, didn't listen to anything outside our gym. They grabbed the pen. They wanted to write their own script and that's what I'm so proud of. They created a culture that drove winning."
Hockett feels good about the Pointers' preparedness, saying the fact they've played three separate times in back-to-back situations has given them a leg up on this weekend. It also helps that the Pointers have been playing de facto tournament games for the last several weeks of the season. A late three-game win streak helped give UWSP the resume to make the NCAA Tournament.
"If we don't win our last three games in that final week, we're not in this position," said Hockett. "We've been used to playing tournament basketball, dating back to mid-February. I honestly believe there's no team better than us to go attack a weekend like we have ahead of us."
UWSP will play Wartburg in their opening round game on Friday. Tip off is at 5:00 p.m.