Three thoughts for now

1. Davidson lost 15 games this year, including this one, not only because of the loss of the kid who’ll play across town tomorrow night for the Golden State Warriors but also the loss of the coach who spent this afternoon coaching his ass off down on the other end of the court.

2. Speaking of No. 30: So no appearance for him to watch his former teammates and classmates and roommates here in the conference quarters. That’s too bad. Would’ve been a cool moment for the school. Would’ve been a cool moment for him.

3. Steve Rossiter, Bryant Barr, Will Archambault, Dan Nelms: Steve was a captain, Will was a 1,000-point scorer, Bryant hit those threes in Detroit. Steve and Bryant were on the court when Jason took the shot. That happened. They were a part of it.

SCT: Elon 66, Davidson 59

AP:

CHARLOTTE -- Chris Long scored 15 points, including four clutch free throws in the final minute, as Elon beat Davidson 66-59 on Friday in the first round of the Southern Conference Tournament.

Longs free throws were apart of a 6-0 run to end the game after the Phoenix led 60-59 going into the final minute.

The victory moved Elon (9-22), the sixth seed in the SoCon North, into a Friday quarterfinal matchup against Western Carolina. The Phoenix’s win over Davidson avenged a 99-96 double overtime loss on Feb. 27 after the Wildcats hit two 3-pointers in the final 3 seconds.

Observer: Six days after stunning Elon by hitting two 3-pointers in the final three seconds to steal a double-overtime victory at Elon, the Wildcats couldn’t summon the same escape magic. Burlington: That’s what Elon did, never wavering despite the rippling drama and the weight of history during what became a 66-59 first-round upset victory in Davidson’s backyard at the Southern Conference Tournament for men’s basketball. Winston: Matt Matheny embraced Bob McKillop near midcourt at Bojangles Coliseum yesterday, just moments after the student topped the teacher in the opening game of the Southern Conference Tournament. DavidsonWildcats.com: Elon ended a 15-game losing streak against Davidson, including three games in the SoCon Tourney. McKillop: “This team has a lot of tournament experience, but it doesn't have a lot in the roles they're playing now.” Also in his presser: “Matt Matheny has done a fantastic job all year long, and that doesn’t surprise me.” Video: Matt after the game.

Let’s do that again

Last weekend in Elon: McKillop: “For a basketball aficionado, to see the different counters each team made, there was a lot of chess going on out there.” Matheny: “To be in a heavyweight bout like we were and make the plays that we made to keep extending it into overtime after overtime, we have come a long way. My feeling is we have not yet played our best game.” The Rossiter shot.

Getting ready for Friday

Elon game notes: The Phoenix is 4-5 in its last nine games, losing the four games by an average of 5.0 ppg. ... Davidson is one of only two league teams that Elon has not beaten during its time in the Southern Conference -- the ‘Cats are 14-0 against Elon over the past seven seasons. ... Davidson and Elon have met four times in the SoCon Tournament, the last time in the 2008 championship game when No. 23 Davidson turned out a 65-49 victory. At that time, current Elon head coach Matt Matheny was the associate head coach for Davidson. SCT info. The Wildcats have won four SoCon Tourney titles in the Queen City, including three in a row from 1968-70: Davidson game notes.

Another view

The morning after

1. I drove all those miles to watch McKillop-Matheny. The game made me watch Davidson-Elon. Good.

2. Eddie on the court after the game: “I’m 52 years old and that’s the best ending I’ve ever seen.”

3. About the last half of the second half, Matheny was using his left hand to swipe the sweat off his forehead and kept taking quick glances up at the scoreboard clock, and I thought: They’re gonna make him earn this.

4. They call it a Cowens, as in Dave Cowens, and here’s what it is: Make like you’re sprinting back on defense, fake it like you mean it, a couple hard, purposeful steps the other way -- then turn. Maybe the ball will be coming your way. McKillop after the game wanted to talk less about Steve’s shot and more about Steve’s Cowens.

5. Steve?

Hey.

Did it feel like it was going in when it left your hand?

“To be honest,” he said, before heading to the bus back to the village, “I can’t say yes.”

Live from Elon

1. That was worth 22 hours in the car.

2. I’d say the same thing had Elon won.

3. Not gonna lie. I feel bad for Matt.

Tonight’s reunion

Matheny on McKillop: “My confidant, my friend, my mentor. He’s like a brother. He’s like blood.”

Tomorrow night in Elon

Game notes: It will be an emotional game for Davidson coach Bob McKillop and Elon coach Matt Matheny. Matheny, who is in his first year with the Phoenix, was an assistant coach on McKillop’s staff for 16 seasons. ... Matheny played football and basketball for the Wildcats and is a 1992 Davidson graduate. ... Elon assistant coaches Tim Sweeney (2 years) and Will Roberson (3 years) were also members of McKillop’s staff at Davidson, and Roberson is a 2002 Davidson graduate. Matt. Elon’s senior night.

Where he comes from

Matt with the boxing talk: “We haven’t been in a situation where we’re trying to hold on to a lead when a team like Western Carolina’s throwing haymakers at us and knocking us down.”

On Stephen’s decision last spring

Matt: “I really thought he would stay. The fact that he left and he was drafted seventh ... the decision he made is going to be good for him.”

Good for the SoCon

Matt on Charleston’s big win: “When our teams win or are competitive in games like that, it’s going to help us. Wins like that will maybe allow our champion -- instead of being a 14 seed to be a 13 or a 12 seed in the NCAA tournament, heaven forbid maybe a 10 or 11.”

Matt and Zack

The Brothers Matheny.

A first for Matt

SoCon win No. 1: Chattanooga in Chattanooga. Big.

Elon in N.Y.

Matheny and Roberson: Davidson classes of ’93 and ’02.

This is funny

Elon’s players are starting to talk like Bob McKillop. Here’s Adam Constantine: “We’re going to have times where it may seem like we get knocked to the mat.”

Sounding like someone he knows

Matheny: “We don’t surrender. And we didn’t surrender.”

Matheny’s head coaching debut

1-0. Matt: “For the last eight months now, having been at Elon with these guys, they have committed themselves to our program and our system. I just could not be happier with our players right now.”

Familiar system in a new place

Burlington:

So while the short-term tasks center on establishing an identity and foundation for the future, there’s a greater objective ahead that comes into focus as Matheny applies the proven winning formula of the Davidson blueprint to an Elon program starving for success.

Forward Adam Constantine: “What Coach Matheny has experienced is necessary for a winning program. He’s been around wins, a lot of wins.”

Matt Matheny

This morning on the SoCon preseason teleconference: “I’ve got Coach McKillop on speed dial.” Last March.