Southwestern College Collegian

Issue date: 2/13/08 Section: Sports

Ashley Holloway/Collegian photographerJarrett Tyler, junior guard, slashes past a Sterling defender en route to the basket. The Builders defeated the Warriors 48-46 Feb. 9 in Stewart Field House. The win was the third straight for the men. [Click to enlarge]

When the ball is tipped to begin the game, Rodney Jackson isn't worried about whether or not he'll hit his free throws during the second

half. He doesn't think about the fact that another loss will put his team completely

out of the running for regular season conference champions. The senior forward

is simply playing his favorite song in his head in an attempt to stay relaxed.

Staying relaxed is an important

concept for the Builders. They're stuck in a three-way tie for third in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference, two wins behind first-ranked Ottawa University.

With four conference games left, Southwestern's only chance of being regular season champions includes the men losing no more games and the two teams ranked above them losing unexpectedly.

"It's possible especially in this conference," Jackson said. "We can't worry about the other teams. We've got to worry about our own stuff. If we take care of us we'll be alright."

The men will travel to Tabor

tomorrow to take on the seventh-ranked Bluejays at 8 p.m. and to ninth-ranked Bethany on Saturday, where the Swedes look to officially end any shot of Southwestern becoming KCAC champions.

The men climbed out of a three-game slump last week, winning against Bethel on the road 75-68. They then pulled off a nail-biting victory in a low-scoring game over Sterling

College on Saturday 48-46.

"We were really good defensively,"

Doug Hall, head men's basketball coach said. "It was a battle between two of the best defensive teams in the league, and that made it hard to score, but it was a good win and we put ourselves

in a position to win the conference race." Attribution for getting back on track went to starting off right at practice.

Continued...

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