Paul Payne: ‘McKenzie Magic’ Energizes Mocs To NIT Win Over Dayton

Moc Nation, take a bow.

For the first time in 40 years, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga won a postseason basketball game inside of McKenzie Arena, throttling top-seeded Dayton in wire-to-wire fashion, 87-72, in the second-round of the National Invitation Tournament.

While the Mocs put together their most complete performance of the season against the talented Flyers, much of that had to do with the energy delivered by the Chattanooga faithful who showed up for a Saturday morning tip.

It was a beautiful sight to witness as McKenzie Arena sprung to life reminiscent of the ‘80s when it was commonplace for crowds of 8,000 fans to cheer on the Mocs. There was a palpable sense of vigor from the opening tip, with the UTC supporters roaring their approval of what they saw unfolding on the court.

“A shout out to the crowd,” UTC head coach Dan Earl said. “I mean, I thought that was awesome. We really appreciate everybody coming out in full effect. The Roundhouse got loud, and I know our guys appreciated it and fed off their energy. I think they deserve it, but we are so thankful that everyone came out to support us.”

Given the short notice given that UTC was selected to host the game only two days earlier coupled with the early start and many being away for spring break, doubts existed if the Mocs would truly benefit from a home court advantage. But the community stepped forward in impressive fashion to get one final chance to support this squad that delivered a Southern Conference regular season championship and now stands at 26-9 on the year.

While the official attendance was listed at 2,633, it felt and sounded like at least twice that many. They spent much of the first half urging the Mocs to an 11-point advantage, and then reached a deafening crescendo late in the second half when Dayton head coach Anthony Grant stormed onto the court resulting in a technical foul.

“I can't tell you how much fun it is to have the place as loud as it was, especially when it was scheduled at the last minute,” Earl said. “They were yelling at the officials, cheering for us, and booing them. They were really into it, which was awesome.”

The last time UTC won a home postseason game was in the opening round of the 1985 NIT, the second of four straight years the Mocs competed in the event. Chattanooga defeated Clemson, 67-65, in front of 8,132 in attendance that evening, then went on the road to win in overtime over Lamar before being eliminated in a quarterfinal loss at Louisville.

Saturday’s win was meaningful in different ways as well. It provided an opportunity to show appreciation for the five seniors one last time as the Mocs will travel to Peoria, Ill. on Tuesday to face Bradley – a 75-67 winner at George Mason - in the next round. It was also a cathartic salve to help heal the disappointment from the overtime loss to Furman in the SoCon tournament semifinals, quashing the dreams of UTC making it into the NCAA Tournament that they seemed destined to achieve.

“We were all upset or disappointed - whatever descriptive word you want to use - that we weren't able to go to the NCAA tournament,” Earl said. “I wish we could have won the Southern Conference tournament, but we'll roll with this. As you can see, the competition has been awesome. We’ve had two great basketball games, starting with triple overtime against a really good MTSU game team and then beating a great Dayton team. I'm thrilled to be continuing to play.”

This has been masterful coaching job by Earl this season, meshing two returning starters in Trey Bonham and Honor Huff with five transfers – Bash Wieland, Frank Champion, Garrison Keeslar, Jack Kostel and Makai Richards – along with a couple of unproven returners who sat out last season in Sean Cusano and Collin Mulholland plus true freshmen Latif Diouf and Parker Robison.

With Champion out with injury the first eight games and then sidelined again heading into the SoCon tournament, the Mocs have experienced their share of adversity. But Earl never panicked, seeming to find the right formula that enabled UTC to win 14 of its last 15 games.

The Mocs find themselves among a handful of teams still playing basketball deep into March, something that Earl doesn’t take for granted in being able to coach this particular group of players.

“I said to the guys before the game – and I don’t say this a lot – but I was like, ‘Look, this is the favorite group I've been around as a coach. That doesn't mean I didn’t like other teams that we've had, but we've got a really special thing and I don't want it to end. So, if you guys can go out and play your tails off, let's keep it rolling,’” Earl said. “And sure enough, they did, and we're going live to play another day. I’m just thrilled to be around these guys, and we'll see what we can do in the next round.”

Regardless of what happens throughout the remainder of UTC’s journey in this year’s NIT, Saturday was a special day. No doubt, the loss of the one-year rental players that have become fan favorites along with Bonham’s departure will be hard to replace. Plus, past history has proven that the transfer portal both giveth and taketh, so there’s no way of knowing what next year’s roster will look like.

But Mocs fans should find comfort in the fact Earl will remain at the helm. After arriving three years ago from VMI where he spent seven seasons, he has steadily built the program the right way with the right type of players, increasing the number of wins each season.

In doing so, he has delivered a winning product on the floor that has started to capture the attention of the community, prompting fans to once again make the trek to Mocs games. In what could be considered as Earl’s biggest win as a head coach, Saturday’s thrashing of Dayton will hopefully serve as a springboard in bringing back the ‘McKenzie Magic’ of years past.

Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com