Western Kentucky's run is classic 'mid-major' success

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Yes, it will be big-time vs. mid-major, heavy favorite vs. gritty underdog, and grind-it-out half-court defense vs. end-to-end pressure when UCLA and Western Kentucky meet in the NCAA West Regional semifinals Thursday in Phoenix.But it will also be a clash of college basketball cultures.UCLA represents the New Way, the method in which the college game's elite programs now operate. Recruit transcendent talent, hope you can keep it around beyond one year, but understand that your very best guys are liable to jump to the pros sooner rather than later.Western Kentucky, in contrast, does things the Old Way. It's a place where Senior Night still has meaning, because the guys who have been there four or five years are the best players, the team leaders, the guys who have brought their careers to a crescendo.Tyrone Brazelton is a 6-foot senior from Chicago. He scored 33 points in Western Kentucky's first-round upset of Drake and contributed 15 points, including a critical three-pointer, and five assists in Sunday's victory over San Diego.Ty Rogers is a 6-3 senior from Eddyville, Ky. He thrust himself into NCAA tournament lore Friday with the buzzer-beating three that eliminated Drake in overtime, 101-99.Courtney Lee is a 6-5 senior from Indianapolis. He was the Sun Belt Conference player of the year, averaging 20.5 points, and his critical three-pointer and six free throws down the stretch Sunday propelled Western Kentucky into the Sweet 16.Unlike many players who toil on the mid-major level, Lee actually could have declared for the draft after his junior year.He passed, and here's one reason why:"We had some unfinished business," he said. "Leaving here without getting to the tournament isn't something you want. I knew staying would help me become a better player, but really it was about us living up to our potential."Lee typifies the profile of the mid-major player: a guy who was passed over by big-name programs out of high school but has become a superb inside-outside threat, a capable defender -- and a potential pro."Lee is an NBA player with an NBA body," UCLA coach Ben Howland said. "He's just a big-time player."And he, Brazelton and Rogers play for what is probably the prototypical mid-major program.Western Kentucky plays in what is normally a one-bid conference, although the Sun Belt got two teams into the tournament this year for the first time since 1994. The Hilltoppers find it difficult to upgrade their schedule because big-time teams don't want to risk losing to them anywhere, and they definitely won't play on Western Kentucky's floor.The Hilltoppers play under the radar and don't get the blue-chip recruit. If Coach Darrin Horn had placed a recruiting call to, say, Kevin Love, it would have been a waste of breath.What such teams do get are players with something to prove to all the people who overlooked them."The greatest thing a coach can have for comfort is to have talent, because seniors that aren't good enough can't get it done," Horn said. "But the second thing is talented guys that are seniors that have great toughness and great character. That's what we've tried to build this program on."That helps explain why mid-majors, low seeds and under-the-radar teams have their one shining moment at this time of year, and sometimes more."They've got an advantage in that those guys have been through a lot," Howland said. "They're older, more mature, and that definitely helps. Seniors have that light that goes on sometimes in their last year in college."That's one of the keys to why you see so many mid-major teams advance. The high majors lose guys to the NBA. That's our situation for the second straight year. Last year we had none. This year we have one whopping senior, Lorenzo (Mata-Real)."But there's one wrinkle, and it's the reason why Western Kentucky is expected to be little more than a speed bump Thursday.Even in the current one-and-done culture of college basketball, the further you go in the tournament, the more likely it is that talent will trump experience. That's why the coach who has the opportunity will invariably take that one-year wonder.If Darrin Horn had the chance, he probably would, too.(E-mail Jim Alexander at jalexander(at)PE.com)(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)