Wofford reaping rewards in NCAA tourney

The Terriers' first trip the the big dance in a culmination of years of hard work by coaches as well as current and former players.

Wofford junior Tim Johnson cradled the Southern Conference championship trophy with both arms after the Terriers beat Appalachian State and earned their first berth in the NCAA men's basketball tournament.

"This is my baby right here," Johnson said, his piece of the championship net dangling behind his ear. "It began in the summer with two-a-days and weights. That's when we began.

"It was touch-and-go during delivery, but I'm so happy right now."

Wofford's first SoCon championship is the culmination of decades of work by a community of Terrier lovers who have nurtured the program from its NAIA infancy to membership in the SoCon to becoming its champion.

The Terriers received a No. 13 seed in the NCAA tournament and will face fourth-seeded Wisconsin at 2:50 p.m. Friday in Jacksonville, Fla.

"I know the sweat equity that went into making that happen," said Danny Morrison, a former Wofford player and athletic director and former SoCon commissioner. "It was a lot of fun sitting there (last) Monday because of the people involved.

"It's an important time for Wofford, an exciting time for Wofford, and from a basketball perspective it's a great moment."

Perhaps the most exciting in the history of the Spartanburg, S.C., institution. Assuredly the most exciting on the hardwood in its Division I era, which began with the 1997-98 season. The football team reached the FCS semifinals in 2003, but that's a different sport.

This is Wofford's first flirtation with success on the hardwood. Coach Mike Young's Terriers won a must-win game against College of Charleston for the South Division championship and handled the pressure of expectations in each of their three SoCon tournament games.

"Sheer fun. There's no other way to describe it," said Young, who has been with the program for 20 years. "I'm having the best time, and I'm doing that because they are the nicest boys that do it the right way.

"To see the sheer joy and smiles on their faces is priceless. It's the best. We're having a great time."

Wofford's move from the NAIA ranks to the SoCon came with plenty of lumps. Richard Johnson, now the school's athletic director, was the head coach. Young and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga coach John Shulman were assistants.

They took their lumps then, and Young has endured some as the boss the last seven years.

"You go from playing Newberry and Erskine to Missouri and Vanderbilt," Young recalled. "We were down 26-love at Clemson and they were coming off a loss at Duke, and we had a couple guys sick. If I would have had a shovel, I would have dug a hole under my chair and jumped in.

"We had a couple first-round losses in the (SoCon) tournament. We've had injuries to key guys when I thought we were on the cusp of turning it around.

"You just hang in there and believe. Those are really good players in our locker room, and when they decided to come, things weren't so good."

And with only two seniors on the team facing Wisconsin, the Terriers could be poised to remain atop the SoCon.

But why wonder about next year when this year has been Wofford's best?

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