They were bigger, faster and stronger.
Black Hills (S.D.) State was everything Holy Family head coach Dan Williams thought it would be in the first round of the NAIA Division II men's national tournament in Nampa, Idaho.
``A lot of people here are saying they have a real good chance to win the whole thing,'' Williams said last night after the Tigers were eliminated, 99-76, from the 32-team tournament.
``They have outside power. They're tall inside and very athletic,'' Williams said. ``They're well-coached and they're smart. They were the superior team tonight.''
The victory put the Yellow Jackets (25-6), who finished the regular season ranked seventh in the nation, into today's round-of-16 game against Embry-Riddle (Fla.), which was a 97-73 winner over Bellevue (Neb.).
The Tigers, who reached the national tournament after capturing the Northeast Atlantic Conference championship, saw their season end at 27-9.
Archbishop Ryan graduate Erik Henrysen led the Tigers with 17 points. Tim Ryan added 12.
For Black Hills State, Brian Fennema scored 25 points; Trent Trapagen and Brant Miller had 17 each.
Holy Family grabbed a quick 4-0 lead but saw the Yellow Jackets run off 14 unanswered points to take a 14-4 advantage.
The Tigers were forced to play catch-up the rest of the night. They trailed, 46-30, at intermission.
``It's hard to appreciate it right now because our kids are crushed,'' Williams said. ``They were taking this very seriously. But I know they will look back on this as a positive experience.''
