Foresters Finish a Great Season at 32-6
EXCELLENT SEASON
The Foresters had an outstanding season on the court, and we can be equally proud of the outstanding character and attitude of these fine young men off the court.
They say it comes from senior leadership, and Huntington had a couple of the best in Steve Snider and Chase Verba. Those two had great careers at Huntington; both scored over 1,200 points and they did all they could to make their team successful.
And successful they were. They not only ended with a 32-6 record, but they didn’t lose a Home game (16-0), didn't lose a game on a neutral court (6-0), won the 2005-06 MCC Conference Title, won the MCC Conference Tournament, and finished as Runners-Up at the 2006 NAIA National Tournament.
NON-CONFERENCE (12-2)
The Foresters developed throughout the 2005-06 season, losing a couple games in November they would not have lost later. They opened with a rout of Urbana (102-57) and then an upset of IPFW in Fort Wayne (72-64) an NCAA Division 1 school.
The non-conference schedule also featured two wins over a highly regarded NAIA Division 1 opponent Georgetown (KY) both at home and away. They also took apart Kentucky Wesleyan, a NCAA Division 2 school, on their floor (74-54) with Alex Kock and Steve Snider out with the flu.
In a four day stretch, the Foresters beat Indiana Tech by 44, Lincoln Christian by 48 and Georgetown by 24. Huntington lost just two games outside the MCC this season by an average of 3 points. Their average margin of victory was 21 points.
MCC CONFERENCE (13-3)
In MCC Conference action, they met somewhat stiffer competition from most teams, especially on the road. The Foresters were marked men, predicted to win the MCC this year, and teams rose to the occasion when HU came to town.
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The Foresters at the
2006 NAIA NAtional Tournament
Nevertheless, the Foresters went 5-3 on the road, went 8-0 at home, and that was enough for the Title. In fact, no men’s basketball team has won the MCC title the past six seasons with less than 3 losses.
MCC Tournament (3-0)
At tournament time, the Foresters really stepped it up. They beat Grace by 12, St Francis by 13, and Taylor by 24 points to win the MCC Tournament Championship.
They left no doubt as to who was the best team in the MCC Conference this year.
NAIA Tournament (4-1)
In their sixth NAIA National Tournament in seven years, HU advanced to the 2006 Championship game by defeating Fisher College (MA) 99-58, Evangel University (MO) 104-93, Morningside College (IA) 82-70, and MidAmerica Nazarene (KS) 78-68.
The Foresters averaged 55% from the field and 51% from three-point land in those four games, but experienced the lowest offensive production of the year in their final game. They scored just 56 points and hit only 29.7% from the field and 18.2% from long range.
While their opponent in the last game enjoyed home court advantage and "living at home" the entire tournament, the Foresters wore down after a week of living in hotels, buses, restaurants and unfamiliar gyms. Their health gave out (three got ER treatment Sunday), but they finished as the 2006 NAIA National Tournament Runners-Up!
- by Paul Harrington ('64)
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