Second-half surge propels Central Arkansas past UIW, 77-60


Incarnate Word freshman Jordan Caruso hits a 10 footer off the baseline to complete a chaotic play in the first half against Central Arkansas.

Forward Eddy Kayouloud scored 18 points and 7-footer Hayden Koval had 13 points and 7 rebounds, lifting the Central Arkansas Bears to an easy 77-60 victory over the University of the Incarnate Word Cardinals on Wednesday night.

In a Southland Conference game played at UIW, Central Arkansas point guard Deandre Jones also produced in a big way with 9 points, 8 assists and 4 steals.

While Kayouloud and Koval dominated on offense, hitting a combined 12 of 17 from the field, Jones spearheaded a defense that forced the Cardinals into 17 turnovers.

Central Arkansas scored 15 points off of UIW mistakes in winning their second SLC road game of the season.

“You got to give Central Arkansas a lot of credit,” UIW coach Carson Cunningham said. “They played really well. I thought they shared the ball quite nicely, moved it really well, and so we can learn a lot from them.

“We’re just going to have to keep working and not get too down. We’re just going to have to figure out a way … to become a more strategically sound basketball team.”

The Bears shot 55 percnt from the field and outscored the Cardinals 44-31 in the second half, turning a close game into a run-away. Late in the game, a short-handed UIW squad fell behind by 24 points.

“I just thought we finally wore ’em down,” Central Arkansas coach Russ Pennell said. “We got the ball inside a couple of times. We did get a couple of fast break baskets. And then our defense was solid.”

Records

Central Arkansas 8-10, 3-2
Incarnate Word 6-11, 1-3

Individuals for UIW

Augustine Ene, 18 points and 6 rebounds. Jordan Caruso, 11 points on 5 of 7 shooting. Also, 5 rebounds.


Central Arkansas center Hayden Koval, a 7-foot sophomore, gets a hand in a shooter’s face, forces a miss and then grabs a rebound Wednesday night against UIW.

Notable

In a UIW season marred with several injuries, freshman point guard Morgan Taylor is the latest casualty.

Taylor suffered a shoulder injury last Saturday at Sam Houston State. He sat out his first game of the season against Cental Arkansas as the Cardinals lost their eighth game out of their last 11.

Sophomore forward Christian Peevy, meanwhile, still hasn’t regained the form that produced games of 26, 32, 23 and 16 points before he broke his left hand at LSU. Since his return, he has scored 4, 0, 0 and 4.

Quotable

“I think Coach Cunningham’s going to do a great job,” UCA coach Russ Pennell said. “I think he’s got a plan. I think he knows right now he’s a little undermanned. I think he knows what he needs to do, and now it’s just a matter of going out and making it happen.”

Added Pennell, “We talked a little bit about that. I was in a similar situation five years ago, and we’re still building. You got to show the recruits and the fans what you’re going to do and what you’re going to be like.”


UIW freshman Antoine Smith, Jr., muscles for position on the offensive glass, gets a rebound and puts it back in the first half against Central Arkansas.

UIW surges in second half, defeats Nicholls State, 65-58


Freshman forward Antoine Smith Jr. sizes up UIW’s first win of the season in Southland Conference play.

Trailing by 12 points early in the second half, the Incarnate Word Cardinals rallied at home Saturday night to beat Nicholls State, 65-58, for their first Southland Conference victory under new coach Carson Cunnningham.

Charles Brown III and Antoine Smith Jr. helped the short-handed Cardinals break a four-game losing streak with 17 points apiece.

In addition, Augustine Ene added 10, and Dwight Murray Jr. contributed 8 points and 7 assists with no turnovers.

Records

UIW 6-9, 1-1
Nicholls State 8-7, 1-1

Notable

Both Brown and Smith have started to come on for the Cardinals. In his last four games, Brown is averaging 18 points on 60 percent shooting from the field. Smith, a freshman from Westerville, Ohio, is averaging 13.3 points in his last three on 57 percent.

Quotable

“He’s a workhorse. He’s always in the gym. Even after tonight, he’ll be working on his game. That’s what I love about him. He pushes me at practice, and I push him. I’m glad to have him on my team.” — UIW senior Charles Brown III, on Antoine Smith, Jr.

Cunningham says UIW is ready for the SLC regular season

Northern Colorado beat UIW 90-64 on Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2018 at the UIW Convocation Center.

UIW’s Cody Graham (right) drives on Northern Colorado’s Johnatan Reyes.

Sophomore guard Cody Graham will play Wednesday night when the Incarnate Word Cardinals host the McNeese State Cowboys in a Southland Conference opener for both teams.

First-year UIW coach Carson Cunningham said Graham is a “full go” for the McNeese game after sitting out three straight with an injury.

The 5-10 sophomore from Fresno, Texas, played in UIW’s first 10 games and started nine of them before missing road losses at LSU, Illinois-Chicago and DePaul.

Incarnate Word coach Carson Cunningham gives directions to freshman guard Jordan Caruso in a 90-64 loss to Northern Colorado on Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2018.

Incarnate Word coach Carson Cunningham gives directions to freshman guard Jordan Caruso in a 90-64 loss to Northern Colorado on Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2018.

So, getting Graham back is a bonus for the Cardinals (5-8) as they continue preparations for SLC home games Wednesday against McNeese (4-9) and Saturday against the Nicholls State Colonels (7-6).

But as for the playing status of sophomore forward Christian Peevy, UIW’s leading scorer, Cunningham can’t say for sure.

“We’re going to find out,” Cunningham said after Monday’s workout. “We know he’s working hard to get better and as prepared as he can. We’ll know soon.”

Peevy enjoyed consecutive games of 26, 32, 23 and 16 points before sitting out UIW’s last two at Illinois-Chicago and DePaul.

Despite the uncertainty surrounding Peevy and a few others who didn’t do much in a New Year’s Eve workout, Cunningham said UIW is ready for the conference schedule to commence.

“We’re excited,” the coach said. “It’s a great time of year. We feel like we’ve had a difficult, challenging pre-conference slate, and it’s time to tip it up in conference.”

With several players not available, the Cardinals played well, all things considered, on the two-game trip to Chicago.

In a 63-57 loss at Illinois-Chicago, they clamped down defensively, holding the Flames to 18 points and 21 percent shooting in the second half.

Two nights later, in a 81-71 loss at DePaul, the Cardinals rained 14 three-point baskets on the Blue Demons.

Not bad for a banged-up SLC squad against a Big East opponent.

“I thought we did a lot of nice things,” Cunningham said. “I think we’re getting better. I’m hoping we can build off that as we start conference.”

At DePaul, UIW played well in the first half and trailed 42-38.

In the second half, the Cardinals continued to make shots. They were within eight with 11:36 remaining before the Blue Demons stepped on the gas and pumped the lead to 16.

Still, the home team couldn’t pull away, as UIW senior Charles Brown III and freshman teammate Antoine Smith both knocked down five three pointers.

“I thought we showed some real growth,” Cunningham said. “Guys were sharing the apple. We had good movement. We had some good flow. We’re just continuing to battle.”

Antoine Smith Jr. Northern Colorado beat UIW 90-64 on Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2018 at the UIW Convocation Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Freshman Antoine Smith Jr. pulls down a rebound against Northern Colorado. Smith scored 15 points on five 3-pointers at DePaul on Dec. 19.

UIW’s Christian Peevy is shooting for his coach’s NCAA record

Incarnate Word's Christian Peevy is 50-of-55 (90.9 percent) on free throws through the first 10 games of the season. The Cardinals are 171-of-208 (82.2 percent) as a team through 10 games. - photo by Joe Alexander

Incarnate Word’s Christian Peevy is 50-of-55 (90.9 percent) on free throws through the first 10 games of the season. The Cardinals are 171-of-208 (82.2 percent) as a team through 10 games. – photo by Joe Alexander

If history is a teacher on the nature of basketball culture, Christian Peevy’s modest streak of consecutive free throws made likely will never hit the television highlight reels.

Not unless the sophomore forward from the University of the Incarnate Word can quadruple his current run of 21 straight, that is.

UIW assistant coach Darnell Archey, a former Butler player who owns a 15-year-old NCAA record of 85 in a row, said the art of free throw shooting never will be regarded as sexy.

Not in any way, shape or form.

Incarnate Word assistant coach Darnell Archey at the UIW McDermott Center.

Incarnate Word assistant coach Darnell Archey at the UIW McDermott Center.

Archey said nobody talked about his streak until he broke the previous record of 73 in January of 2003 as a senior at Butler University.

“The only time it becomes sexy or when it’s in the mainstream, is when it’s in the extreme,” he said. “If you’ve made a ton. Or, (if) you can’t shoot a free throw.”

As UIW prepares to tip off at LSU today, the Cardinals are hardly a hot item.

They’re 5-5, with only one victory against a Division I program.

And yet, it’s worth noting that the Cardinals have blossomed into a program that leads the 351-team Division I standings at 82.2 percent from the free throw line.

All under a new staff that includes head coach Carson Cunningham, an 82 percent free throw shooter from his college days, and Archey, who hit 95.1 percent.

“Coach Cunningham just wants us to be a team that, when we get to the line, we knock down our free throws,” Peevy said. “We don’t want to be a team where teams want to put us at the line.

“He wants us to be a team (that) others hate to put on the line, because every time … we convert.”

Usually, free throws only become a topic of conversation in professional basketball when a player can’t make them in a high- profile playoff series, and it becomes a focus of an opposing team’s strategy.

“That’s when you talk about ‘em,” Archey said.

It’s even more unusual to hear about free throws in college ball.

For instance, ESPN highlights this season have focused quite a bit on the art of the windmill dunk by Duke sensation Zion Williamson.

But, did anyone notice last year when Eastern Washington senior Bogdan Bliznyuk made a Division I, single-season record of 77 straight?

Or, that Bliznyuk he produced the first serious challenge to the overall Division I record established by Archey over parts of three seasons, from 2001-03?

It’s just something that doesn’t come up when all the hot takes on hoops, across all media platforms, are sorted out.

Nevertheless, fans at UIW can look it up in the record books.

As a player at Butler, in Indianapolis, Archey made a mind-bending 85 in a row from the charity stripe over parts of his sophomore, junior and senior seasons.

The streak started on Feb 15, 2001 at home in famed Hinkle Fieldhouse, and it spanned 57 games through Jan. 18, 2003.

It came to an end at Hinkle, as well.

Father knows best

“Looking back on it, I’m not sure how I did it,” Archey said.

The roots of his success at the line and in his career, overall, can be traced to his childhood in New Castle, Indiana.

His father, Dennis Archey, worked a night shift at the Chrysler plant.

But before he started his shift at work, Dennis would take Darnell to the local YMCA to work on all sorts of skills, shooting included.

“He’d sleep during the day, obviously,” Darnell Archey said. “Then when I’d get home from school, we’d go get our shots up. Then we would have dinner, and he’d take a nap before he went off to work.”

Talking to a reporter at UIW’s McDermott Center last week, Archey reminisced about his childhood, when he learned lessons about the game and about life.

“Those shooting machines that we have over there,” he said, pointing to a contraption on the floor at UIW’s McDermott Center. “(It’s called) ‘The Gun.’ Well, my dad was my gun. He was my shooting machine.”

Archey said his high school coach also was equally demanding.

In practices, the coach would tell his prized shooter to go to the free-throw line and make 20 in a row — or the team would run.

“You know, five or six (in a row) wasn’t enough?” Archey said.

UIW coaches haven’t divulged all their secrets on how they practice and how they prepare as the premier free-throw shooting team in the nation.

Extra incentive

But, it’s likely similar to what Cunningham and Archey both experienced as high school and college players in Indiana.

“We’re going to try to get to the line, obviously, because that’s usually beneficial, especially if you’re shooting well,” said Cunningham, who played at Oregon State and Purdue.

“We’re going to keep plugging,” the coach said. “(We’re) just trying to keep getting better every day. Every week. And see what we can have once conference really kicks in.”

Peevy, for one, gets extra incentive when he talks to Archey about the NCAA record. About the streak of 85.

About how Archey, schooled by his father, took down what had been the record of 73, set in one season in 2000-01 by Villanova’s Gary Buchanan.

A record that likely will turn 16 years old this season — unless Peevy gets it.

“Yeah,” Peevy said. “I’m gunning for that. I told him already. I told him I’m going to try to come for it. He said if I get it, he’s happy for me.”

Peevy scores 23 as UIW races to 82-57 victory over Trinity

Incarnate Word beat Trinity 82-57 on Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2018, at the UIW McDermott Center. - photo by Joe Alexander

Christian Peevy led Incarnate Word with 23 points against Trinity. — Photo by Joe Alexander.

Over the past three games, Christian Peevy has played the best basketball of his career for the Incarnate Word Cardinals.

But in what may come as bad news for opponents on UIW’s schedule this season, the sophomore forward from Chicago still probably hasn’t hit his peak.

First-year Cardinals coach Carson Cunningham said he’s trying to figure out how best to get Peevy in position to score.

“He’s a potent weapon,” Cunningham said, after Peevy produced 23 points and 11 rebounds in an 82-57 victory over Trinity. “He does a few things particularly well, and he’s developing an all-around game from that.

“We just got to try to keep trying to find spots and wrinkles where he can excel, because he’s a dynamic player.”

Peevy sank 8 of 13 from the field and 7 of 7 from the free-throw line to boost UIW past Division III Trinity.

He has now scored 81 points in his last three games.

“It’s really all my teammates,” Peevy said. “They trust me with the ball, and I’m just so happy to convert. I just want to keep this roll going.”

The Tigers took leads of 3-0 and 6-5 on a couple of three-point baskets but couldn’t keep up with the bigger and more athletic Cardinals, who play in the NCAA Division I Southland Conference.

UIW built a 14-point halftime lead and then boosted it to as many as 27 in the final minute.

For the game, the Cardinals shot 54 percent from the field and blew away the Tigers with a 20-2 edge in fast break points.

Early on, it wasn’t pretty, as Trinity used a zone to flummox UIW’s dribble-drive attack.

“They did a good job of jumping some passing lanes,” Cunningham said. “Then I thought we started pass faking better. They have a nice motion offense, good cutting action.

“They run a good operation at Trinity. Coach (Pat) Cunningham has been doing it for a long time, and doing a great job.”

Records

Incarnate Word (5-5)
Trinity (0-7)
(Note: The game was an exhibition for Trinity, and it did not count on the Tigers’ win-loss record.)


UIW guard Augustine Ene makes the most of a broken play when he grabs a loose ball and soars for a resounding dunk.

Coming up

The Cardinals play the LSU Tigers in Baton Rouge on Sunday at 1 p.m. They also play at Illinois-Chicago on Dec. 17 and at DePaul on Dec. 19 before taking an extended break. UIW opens Southland Conferene play Jan. 2 at home against McNeese State.

Notable

Coming into Tuesday night, UIW led 351 Division I teams with 82.1 percent free throw shooting. The Cardinals had made 156 of 190 from the line, and against Trinity, they hit 15 of 18.

In the opening month of the season, UIW struggled against Division I competition. UIW was 1-5 against Division I programs. It is now 4-0 against Division III.

Last month, the Cardinals’ defense yielded 83.1 points in six games against D-I teams. In its four games against Division III, counting the Trinity game, UIW has given up an average of 54.8 points.

Sophomore guard Keaton Hervey, a starter for most of last season, is expected to take a redshirt this season after knee surgery.


UIW forward Christian Peevy fakes out a defender on the perimeter and gets to the basket for two of his game-high 23 points.

Individuals

UIW — Forward Charles Brown III, 12 points and 6 rebounds. Guard Augustine Ene, 8 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals. Off the bench, guard Jorden Kite, 11 points on 3 of 6 from the three-point arc; also, forward Antoine Smith Jr., 10 points on 4 of 5 shooting, including 2 of 5 from three.

Trinity — Tyler Peavy, 11 points on 4 of 9 shooting, including 3 o 7 from three. A.J. Clark, Stephen Molina and Matthew Colliflower, 7 points each. Clark, a freshman from Johnson, also had 4 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal.


The UIW Cardinals move the ball from side to side on a possession in the secocnd half before finding guard Jorden Kite, a junior from Clark, who buries a three-pointer.

Taylor, Peevy lead Incarnate Word past UT Tyler

Incarnate Word is off to a 2-1 start under first-year coach Carson Cunningham (at left).

Freshman guard Morgan Taylor scored 19 points and sophomore forward Christian Peevy added 15 Saturday as the Incarnate Word Cardinals downed UT Tyler, 66-54, at the McDermott Center.

With the victory, UIW improved to 2-1 on the season. UIW will host Texas Lutheran on Monday night to complete a three-game homestand.

UIW is a fledgling NCAA Division I program competing in the Southland Conference.

The Cardinals are playing in their first season under coach Carson Cunningham, a former guard at Purdue.

Cunningham is in his first season as a Division I coach after working the past five seasons at NAIA Carroll College in Montana.

So far, the coach has been playing with a lot of young players.

It hurt him in the opener last week when UIW was pounded 87-37 against Big 12 power Texas Tech.

But the young Cardinals seem to be finding some confidence against teams from the lower levels of college basketball.

First, they defeated NAIA St. Francis, Illinois, 63-49, on Friday night.

Next, a night later, they handled UT-Tyler with ease.

Both nights, Cunningham started four freshmen and a sophomore.

Despite their youth, the Cardinals pulled away from the Patriots mid-way through the first half and led by 22 several times in the second half.

Notes

The Patriots are in the first year of a transition from NCAA Division III to Division II.


UIW senior Charles Brown hits a shot in the paint Friday night against St. Francis, Illinois. Freshman point guard Morgan Taylor started the play out front by passing to another freshman, Romello Wilbert, who fed Brown in the post.

Cunningham wins first game as UIW basketball coach

The University of the Incarnate Word held St. Francis, Illinois, to 28.6 percent shooting Friday night en route to a 63-49 victory, the first for Carson Cunningham as coach of the Cardinals.

With the win, UIW improved to 1-1 on the season and earned a measure of redemption after a 50-point loss at Texas Tech on Tuesday.

St. Francis remained at 0-0 as it played the game as an exhibition.

“It was nice to see the guys really working on defense,” said Cunningham, who was in his UIW home debut. “I thought they were really trying to execute the game plan on defense.

“Give St. Francis a ton of credit. They played great, and they played really hard. It’s nice to get the win. I think it’s also going to help us get better.”

UIW plays as an NCAA Division I program in the Southland Conference, and so St. Francis, an NAIA team based in Joliet, Illinois, entered the Convocation Center looking for an upset.

In the second half, the Saints put together a 15-4 run to take a 39-38 lead with 11:52 remaining. Undaunted, UIW scored 13 of the next 15 points to regain control.

After a fast break dunk by freshman guard Morgan Taylor, UIW was up, 51-41. St. Francis never got closer than eight the rest of the way.

Individual leaders

Senior forward Charles Brown III came off the bench to score 14 points to lead the Cardinals, who shot 60 percent rrom the floor.

In addition, Taylor scored 11 in a team-high 34 minutes. Sophomore forward Christian Peevy added 10, all in the first half.

St. Francis point guard Terrion Howard, only 5-feet-4, led the Fighting Saints with 20.

First half

Peevy came off the bench for 10 points, six rebounds and two assists in the half.

Notes

The game marked the home debut for Cunningham, who was hired last March to replace Ken Burmeister. Burmeister stepped down after 12 seasons as coach.

Cunningham, who worked the past five seasons at Carroll College in Montana, started four freshmen and a sophomore. He has eight freshman on his 15-man roster.

Moment of silence

A moment of silence was observed before the game for the late Simi Socks, a former UIW player who died last June.

Socks, a power forward, played in 80 games for the Cardinals over the past three seasons.

Near the end of the first half (see video above), St. Francis defenders cut off Peevy on the baseline. But Peevy dished between two men to freshman Bryce Davis for a layup.

UIW’s Cunningham wants to play with ‘competitive fire’

I’m really anxious to go out and watch Coach Carson Cunningham’s home debut as the University of the Incarnate Word’s men’s basketball coach tonight.

UIW will host St. Francis of Illinois at 7 p.m. at the McDermott Convocation Center.

As tipoff draws near, I remember the first time I had a chance to interview the new coach.

Back in March, UIW had just announced Cunningham, and I was on another assignment out on the Northwest Side of San Antonio.

I can’t remember if he called me, or if I called him, but when I did get him on the phone, I was sitting in the foyer of a Luby’s restaurant.

It was pretty strange, with people coming in and out of the eatery, and I’m sitting on a little bench, asking the coach about his vision for the future of the program.

“The goal is to build a values-infused program that aligns with the mission of the university, delivers a fulfilling experience for the student-athletes and has a tremendous competitive fire,” Cunningham said.

Now that I think about it, I may need to go grab a late lunch before tipoff.

Records

UIW (0-1)
St. Francis (0-0)

Season opener

Texas Tech shot 63 percent in the second half Tuesday night and blew out UIW, 87-37. Tech was an Elite Eight team last year in the NCAA tournament.

Players to watch for UIW

Antoine Smith — A 6-7 freshman from Westerville, Ohio, who scored 16 at Texas Tech on 5 of 9 shooting.

Charles Brown III — A 6-7 senior from New Orleans, Brown led UIW in scoring last year. He was held to five points in Lubbock.

Coming up

UIW plays at home Saturday night, hosting Texas-Tyler, and again on Monday, against Texas Lutheran.

Notable

St. Francis coach Ryan Marks is a familiar face in Texas college basketball circles, having coached previously at St. Edward’s University in Austin and at Texas-Pan American in Edinburg.

UIW forward Charles Brown III takes it strong to the basket against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. (Soobum Im / The University of the Incarnate Word)

With two Catholic schools in Final Four spotlight, UIW rebuilds

Carson Cunningham started work this week as men’s basketball coach at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio.

The presence of the Loyola-Chicago Ramblers and the Villanova Wildcats at the NCAA Final Four this week serves as proof that small, Catholic schools can compete – and win – against larger, state-supported institutions.

On the other hand, the Division I basketball gods don’t always smile on the Catholic institutions.

If you doubt that, just call over to the athletic department at the University of the Incarnate Word and ask for new men’s basketball coach Carson Cunningham.

Cunningham, who has been on the job for only a few days, is busy trying to figure out how to correct problems that led to a 19-38 combined record the past two seasons.

UIW finished 7-21 last year and at one point lost 17 straight.

Asked about the nature of the rebuilding task at UIW, Cunningham said Tuesday afternoon that “we certainly have work to do.”

Which is precisely why UIW athletic director Brian Wickstrom wanted him in the first place.

Cunningham, a former starting point guard for Gene Keady at Purdue, has found success as a head coach at both Andrean High School in Merrillville, Indiana, and at NAIA Carroll College in Helena, Montana.

At Carroll, the Fighting Saints won only two games in 2012-13, the year before Cunningham arrived. In his last two seasons, they won 29 and 28, respectively.

“I have been through a rebuilding process before,” Cunningham said. “So, I’m confident we can build a program (at UIW) that alumni and current students and fans can be proud of and can celebrate. That’s certainly the goal.”

In Saturday’s national semifinals at the Alamodome, Loyola-Chicago will take on Michigan, before Philadelphia-based Villanova battles against Kansas.

Some might suggest that it’s a good omen for Cunningham that two Catholic schools from urban areas have advanced to play at the dome this week, his first on the job at UIW.

Though Cunningham smiled at the question, he wasn’t buying into that line of thinking. He just said it shows that every school has an opportunity to succeed with hard work.

“Being from Northwest Indiana and having lived in Chicago for several years, you know, I know Loyola and its background and kind of its general story quite well,” he said. “To think that it’s in the Final Four in 2018 is unbelievable.

“I think it just represents opportunity. It’s not easy. What they’re doing is out of this world, and I’m sure they feel great about it, as they should.”

A former history teacher at DePaul, in Chicago, Cunningham said “it’s awesome” that Loyola’s 98-year-old chaplain, Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, is getting recognized for her many years of service to the school.

“I think it just serves as a motivator to us,” Cunningham said. “I know, really, so many people across the nation are awed by Sister Jean’s story, and I think it’s a great representation of what Catholic higher education is, at the heart.”

UIW doesn’t have the resources to match Villanova, which plays in the powerful Big East Conference.

Even though UIW has recorded a few important victories on the basketball court over the past few years under former coach Ken Burmeister, the program lacks the tradition of a Villanova or a Loyola-Chicago, which have both won NCAA titles.

Still, UIW does have the tradition of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, brave souls who came to Texas in 1869 to help set up a hospital to treat victims of cholera, Cunningham said.

The coach also pointed out the accomplishments of Sister Walter Maher, the vice president for Mission and Ministry at UIW, whose background includes work as an administrator in the CHRISTUS Healthcare system.

Like Sister Jean, Sister Walter works with UIW athletes.

Cunningham said it’s important in starting to build his program that it “wave the banner” for Sister Walter and for those who came before her.

“That’s deeply motivating to know that we are part of that story,” the coach said. “Even if it’s just through basketball, we can at least be connected to that larger mission. Again, that’s a great honor.”

Carson Cunningham: ‘I’m just really grateful for the opportunity’

Former Purdue University guard Carson Cunningham says he is “super excited” to get the job as men’s basketball coach at the University of the Incarnate Word.

“I’m thrilled to be a part of the University of the Incarnate Word mission,” said Cunningham, who has coached the past five seasons at NAIA Carroll College in Helena, Montana.

UIW is an NCAA Division I program in the Southland Conference.

Cunningham said in a telephone interview that he applied for the job soon after it came open in the first week of March.

He said he had preliminary talks with members of the UIW search committee, headed by athletic director Brian Wickstrom.

Subsequently, he was invited to the campus.

“Really, it all happened pretty fast,” Cunningham said. “I’m just really grateful for the opportunity, excited to get to work.”

Cunningham played for Gene Keady at Purdue for three seasons through 2001.

It’s the first Division I head coaching job for Cunningham, 40, from Ogden Dunes, Indiana.

In the past three years, his teams at Carroll dominated with a combined 80-22 record and back-to-back Frontier Conference titles.

Cunningham took over a program in 2013 that finished with only two victories the previous season.

He won nine games in his first year and then followed with records of 18-11, 23-10, 29-6 and 28-6.

The Saints reached the NAIA tournament in each of the past three years.

Cunningham will replace Ken Burmeister at UIW, which is still a program in transition.

In 2013-14, UIW embarked on a move from Division II and the Lone Star Conference to Division I and the Southland.

The Cardinals posted three straight winning records to start the transition but have since fallen on hard times.

Two years ago, UIW fell to 12-17. This past season, with the program eligible to compete for both the Southland and NCAA tournaments for the first time, the Cardinals dropped to 7-21.

At one point, they lost 17 games in a row. Ultimately, UIW fell short of the eight-team, SLC tournament, finishing tied for 11th at 2-16.

Quotable

From new UIW head coach Carson Cunningham:

“It’s thrilling to join the University of the Incarnate Word — a school with a wonderful mission and super-dynamic academics — as its next head men’s basketball coach,” Cunningham said. “I’d like to thank AD Dr. Brian Wickstrom and the hiring committee for the opportunity to join such an impressive athletic program; one that is positioning itself for a bright future.”

From former Purdue coach Gene Keady:

“I’m very happy for Carson. He was fun to be around and very intelligent as a player. I’ve visited him at Carroll in Montana twice and really liked his program. I’m excited to follow UIW now, and I’m happy for him and his family.”