Joe Anderson has experienced the March magic before — just not from center stage.
Two years ago, he was a reserve at Furman when the 13th-seeded Paladins shocked No. 4 Virginia with a last-second 3-pointer, a moment that instantly etched itself into NCAA Tournament lore. Anderson didn’t log a minute that game, but he lived every second of the preparation and pressure.
Now a senior guard and the third-leading scorer at Lipscomb, Anderson steps onto the tournament floor again, as 14th-seeded Lipscomb faces No. 3 Iowa State on Friday at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. Anderson hopes to play a part in making history and leading Lipscomb to its first tournament win.
“It’s a completely different experience with me playing now,” he said. “It’s just a blessing. We have such a great group of guys. I’m thankful to have this second chance and am going to trying to make the most of it.”
Anderson has become a key piece in Lipscomb’s success this season, developing into a reliable scoring threat and floor leader.
After recording 8.4 points last season, the senior guard is averaging 12.5 points per game while shooting 47.6% from the field and a team-high 40.5% from 3. He also leads the Bisons in assists (3.9) and steals (2.3).
“Coach has so much confidence in me,” Anderson said. “My teammates have so much confidence in me. Everyone trusts me to hit big shots and make the play. We just want to keep playing together.”
Lipscomb is built for the big moments. The Bisons (25-9) are a veteran-laden team, with their top four scorers all seniors. The team’s veterans powered them to the ASUN regular-season title and then delivered again in the conference tournament to earn the automatic bid for the NCAA Tournament.
Their experience translates into a calm, confident style of play. The Bisons, who have won 11 of their last 12 games, are a well-rounded squad, averaging 79.3 points per game (51st in the nation) while holding opponents to 67.3 points (52nd in the nation).
Offensively, they rely on the 3-point shot, making 9.9 3s per game (29th nationally). Defensively, they limit opponents to 30.8% from beyond the arc (35th in the nation).
Lipscomb is loose, confident and fueled with the belief that it can make some noise in March.
“The beauty for us is we’ve already hung two banners,” Anderson said. “We won the regular season, we won the postseason, and now we are going to get the March Madness banner. The goal for us is to keep hanging banners. We have to take it one game at a time and play for each other.”
