1. SPORTS SECTION
B
NEWS-JOURNAL
TUESDAY, MARCH 17, 2015
SIBLING RIVALRY
Matanzas’ Drummonds sisters
are dominating the area in the
pole vault. PAGE 3B
Associated Press file/STEVE HELBER
Willie Cauley-Stein said it will be tough
for Kentucky to go 40-0.
By ROBBIE ANDREU
Gainesville Sun
GAINESVILLE — The Jim McElwain
era began Monday with the start of
spring practice. The first practice
featured a lot of tempo and energy,
plenty of competition and low num-
bers on both lines of scrimmage.
But the head coach was happy at
the end.
“(It was a) fun first day. Gotta say
this, finally, it seems
like it’s taken forever
to get out on the field
and do what the heck
we’re here to do and
that’s coach some
ball,” McElwain
said. “I like the way
the guys have come
together, the compe-
tition between the
units, understanding
that each and every
play is an opportuni-
ty to get better. They
probably took a lot more reps than
what they had been used to in the
past and yet we’ve got to increase
our pace. But it was pretty good for
the first day.
“Defensively, they’re obviously
ahead. There’s a lot of carryover
from what they were doing. ”
Although McElwain knows his
players (and their level of talent)
better than he did when he first
arrived a few months ago, he said
he’s still not sure what direction
he’s going to go with his first UF
offense in terms of what the Gators
will and won’t run.
“That’ll be definitely ongoing,”
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Gators
begin spring
practice
NFL
Associated Press file/MATT ROURKE
Tim Tebow got back on the field
on Monday in Philadelphia.
By KEN WILLIS
ken.willis@news-jrnl.com
POINT LOOKOUT, MISSOURI — There
was no comeback this time for the
Embry-Riddle Eagles, who also
won’t be coming back this way
again.
The late-game rally fell short as
ERAU fell, 91-81, to Cornerstone
University in a semifinal Monday in
the NAIA Division II National Tour-
nament at the College of the Ozarks.
It’s Embry-Riddle’s final trip to the
NAIA Tournament — the school’s
athletic program moves to NCAA
Division II next season.
“I knew this was the matchup to
win the title,” said Embry-Riddle
coach Steve Ridder, whose team
trimmed a 12-point deficit to 7 late
in the second half but got no closer
to the Golden Eagles from Grand
Rapids, Michigan. “Give them cred-
it. Heckuva basketball team, very
prepared.”
ERAU finished the season with a
35-2 record.
Cornerstone (32-5) will face Dakota
Wesleyan in tonight’s champion-
ship game. Dakota Wesleyan routed
Davenport in the first game of the
night, 80-51.
Cornerstone hit 14 of 25 3-point
attempts against Embry-Riddle
and, just as importantly down the
stretch, the Golden Eagles were 23
of 30 from the free-throw line. Six
players scored in double figures.
“That’s high-level basketball
out there,” ERAU senior DeForest
Carter said. “Cornerstone is a great
team, very efficient.”
Cesar Pastrana (22 points) and
Dalton Barnes (20) paced ERAU’s
offense. Carter had 13 and Daniel
Kiesling added 10.
Carter, in his final college game,
led a furious defensive effort in the
closing minutes. But after several
successful comeback rallies during
the regular season and postseason,
this one never gained traction.
“We always tell each other, if we
can just make three stops, we’ll win.
(We) just couldn’t get the stops,”
Carter said. “We were there — just
one bounce here, one bounce there.”
Ridder said he felt the sliver of mo-
mentum as his team clawed within 7
points at the 2-minute mark, but also
knew, in the Final Four, the level of
RUN IS DONEERAU’s magical ride comes to an end against Cornerstone
For the News-Journal/PAT DAILEY
Embry-Riddle’s DeForest Carter drives on Cornerstone’s Michael McLaughlin during Monday’s NAIA Division II
Final Four game in Point Lookout, Missouri.
NAIA DIVISION II NATIONAL MEN’S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
Want More College Basketball Tournament Action?
WHAT: NCAA Men’s Division I Tournament
ON TAP TODAY: (At Dayton, Ohio) Hampton (16-17) vs. Manhattan (19-13), 6:40
p.m.; BYU (25-9) vs. Mississippi (20-12), 9:10 p.m.
OTHER FIRST-ROUND GAMES: (Wednesday, at Dayton, Ohio) North Florida (23-11,
pictured right) vs. Robert Morris (19-14), 6:40 p.m.; Boise State (25-8) vs. Dayton
(25-8), 9:10 p.m.
INSIDE: NCAA brackets; tourney glances; Top 25 polls. PAGE 5B
Associated Press/BOB MACK
BY DAVE SKRETTA
Associated Press
March Madness can be a bit of sensory
overload. Games are happening at sites
all around the country, often several at a
time, and keeping track of everything can
be impossible.
Fear not. Here is your NCAA Tourna-
ment primer:
The big boys
The tournament’s top seeds were never really
in question, especially after Wisconsin took
care of Michigan State in the Big Ten title
game Sunday.
The biggest is overall No. 1 seed Kentucky,
which is trying to become the first team since
Indiana in 1976 to cap a perfect season with
a national title. The Wildcats open against
Hampton or Manhattan But the road to 40-0
won’t be easy — Notre Dame and Kansas are
among the schools in the Midwest Region.
“Regardless if we were perfect or not, it’s still
we’re only guaranteed one game,” Kentucky
forward Willie Cauley-Stein said.
The Badgers earned the top seed in the West.
Villanova is tops in the East, and Duke tops in
the South.
Star power
Sure, there’s no superstar like Andrew Wig-
gins. But that hardly means this year’s dance
is devoid of big-time scorers and dynamic
NCAA TOURNAMENT
What, who to keep an eye on
There’s a lot to watch for during the Big Dance
By ZACH BERMAN
The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Eagles’ unpre-
dictable offseason continued Mon-
day when the team worked out Tim
Tebow, the polarizing quarterback
who has not played in the NFL for
the past two seasons. The Eagles
did not comment on the workout.
No deal was announced with
Tebow, and ESPN reported the
Eagles would not sign him at this
time. But the mere mention of his
workout became breaking news in
the NFL, which speaks to Tebow’s
popularity.
Tebow, 27, was a 2010 first-round
pick who last played for New En-
gland in the 2013 preseason. Tebow
spent three seasons with Denver
and the New York Jets from 2010-
12. He was the starting quarterback
for the Broncos when they reached
the playoffs after the 2011 season.
Tebow completed 173 of 361 (47.9
percent) career passes for 2,422
yards with 17 touchdowns and
nine interceptions. He also rushed
for 989 yards and 12 touchdowns.
He won 8 of 14 games as a starting
quarterback, with a 1-1 postseason
record. Tebow spent last season as
a college football analyst.
The former Florida star won
the 2007 Heisman Trophy and two
national championships with the
Gators.
Tebow
works out
for Eagles
SEE GATORS, PAGE 2BSEE TOURNEY, PAGE 6B
CORNERSTONE
91
EMBRY-RIDDLE
81
JIM
MCELWAIN
was pleased
with the first
practice.
SEE EAGLES, PAGE 6B