Built on Respect and Humility, Lander’s Bearcats Roar into Championship Spotlight

In a season defined by trust, sacrifice and belief, Lander University’s Men’s Basketball team has done something they’ve never done before. With a roster shaped by second chances, fresh starts and unlikely paths, Lander is heading to the NCAA Division II National Championship on Sunday, April 5 – united not by individual stardom, but by the power of playing as one.

After the Bearcats did the unthinkable – beating the No. 1 seed Nova Southeastern University in the Final Four game last Friday – it’s been a time of hugs and high-fives from Lander students and friends, mixed with the demands of practice games… and that University “requirement” known as classes.

But on Wednesday, amid cheers from hundreds of fans, Bearcat players and coaches left campus fortheir last game of the season – the biggest game of all. Under spring’s blue skies, the crowd celebrated the March tournament play that had given way to April’s reality that only one game remained as they sent the team off to the “Natty,” the NCAA tournament final and the biggest game of the Bearcats’ lives to date.

Lander President Richard Cosentino said the University was sending its athletes to “the men’s biggest stage, the NCAA Division II Basketball National Championship. This is not just a big day for us, but a big day for South Carolina.”

The Potential for Success

The day was months in the making. Basketball Coach Omar Wattad saw the potential early, but he knew it would take intention and discipline to bring it to life. This is not a team that has played for a couple of years as a unit. Some players transferred to Lander after playing at several other schools. A couple of the players arefreshmen. The team is a composite of different experiences and backgrounds.

Alongside his assistant coaches, Wattad spent the early months of November and December building the foundation of the team to refine skills, define roles and help players understand not just how to compete, but how to compete together. Those early practices, far removed from the spotlight of game-day energy, were designed with the long season in mind, preparing the Bearcats for the demanding stretch of January and February and the intensity of March, he said.

At the heart of that preparation was the team’s two core values: respect and humility. The players are “grounded in mental toughness and strong character … they hold themselves and each other accountable,” said Wattad. “As coaches, we build the potential in the early months for the potential of success in the latter part of the season. We discovered that this is a team of high character, but a team that’s tough as nails.”

The realization that the Bearcats had the skills for the NCAA Division II basketball championship came in January when two weeks of snow and ice brought games to a halt, leading to a rigorous schedule to make up games. Lander players faced a grueling schedule of five games in nine days.

They won all those games.

“Our guys never faltered. This is what tournament play is like,” said Wattad, who played professional basketball after college. “I knew then that our players were ready.”

Dreams of ‘Madness’

For the players themselves, dreams of March Madness began years ago.

“This is a dream come true,” said guard Greyson Pritzl, a junior from West Allis, Wisconsin. “I have dreamed of playing in March Madness since I was a kid.”

Pritzl, whose family and friends are coming from Wisconsin for the game, said that when the team entered the game against Nova Southeastern “none of us thought we were playing the No. 1 team. They’re basketball players. We’re basketball players. We could play against them. Now that we’ve won, that gives us the confidence that we can beat anyone.”

Players echoed Pritzl’s dreams, saying March Madness is a dream that began in high school when they hoped to play on a college team or in childhood when they held a basketball for the first time.

For freshman Jacob Daniels of St. Petersburg, Florida, March Madness is a dream of unexpected opportunity– one he never imagined in his first year of college. Daniels had committed to playing at another university when an upheaval in the coaching staff left him uncertain about his future. “One of the coaches I was close toput me in touch with Coach Wattad,” he said. “I came on a visit and met the players. It felt like home to me. I’m really blessed to be on this team.”

At the final practice on campus this week, Daniels wore a jersey with the word “humility” on the back. The shirtreflects the closeness he feels with the team. “At one of the practices, I needed a shirt. [Fellow player] Tommy Moore gave me this one and said ‘no one else has this shirt. You take it.’ Humility is a big part of our success. We look out for each other, and we hold each other accountable.”

Support from the Heart of Campus

Being the mother of a college basketball player, Dr. Amanda Darden praised the team for their willingness to eschew the spotlight of success for themselves and remaining focused on the success of the team as a whole.

“We love our men in blue,” said Darden, Lander’s vice president for student experience and quality assurance,as she referred to the Bearcats’ team colors. “I’m a basketball mom. I’ve watched a lot of games. This is the most unselfish team. They are a humble set of guys. They genuinely celebrate each other and are happy to share the spotlight.”

Braylon Barbour also was a transfer student, who like some of the basketball players found Lander to be his home. “This has been so exciting, not just for me but for everybody on campus. Seeing the team excel is amazing.”

A senior business major, Barbour said, “To see these guys thrive makes my heart happy. We’ll be waiting for the game with a lot of joy and nervousness. I’ll be at the front of the cheers. Go, Bearcats. I’ll see you Sunday.”

As the team bus pulled away from campus, leaving behind the soft colors of spring – azaleas in bloom and dogwoods lining the streets of Greenwood – it began the journey toward the bright lights of Indianapolis. Ahead of the team awaits a national stage and the promise of basketball glory; behind them is a community filled with pride.

And as the Bearcats make that journey, they carry with them more than a chance at a championship – they carry the belief, the bond and the heart of a team that has already made history.

Photos provided by Lander University