HAMILTON, N.Y. — Duane Simpkins didn’t need to say much to Matt Rogers.
Why should he? After 132 and a half collegiate games and nearly 1,800 career points over an illustrious five seasons at American University, Rogers knows what is expected and required of him.
In the first half of a potential regular-season-title-clinching game against Colgate, Rogers scored just four points, getting into foul trouble after nine minutes. However, the Eagles still held an eight-point lead. Simpkins made sure to commend his bench in the locker room, which scored 21 points to buoy the lead, before making his way over to his superstar.
“You should be nice and energized,” Simpkins told Rogers. “You should have plenty of energy, you’re going to play a lot, so be ready to go.”
That’s all it took. From there, Rogers scored 16 points in the second half, leading American to a 67-59 victory in Hamilton, and clinching the program’s first regular season title since 2008-09.
“I was just playing free,” Rogers said of his second half performance. “Being myself out there, letting the game come to me, and that’s how the game works.”
He drained a three on the first possession of the half, and a few more for good measure later. Rogers also dusted Jeff Woodward off the bounce on a baseline drive, to elevate for a monster jam. Eventually, all of the defensive attention that Rogers attracted broke the defense, as American had enough to get over the line at the end.
“We got him in space,” Simpkins said. “We know Woodward is a hell of a player, we know he’s going to struggle a little bit guarding the perimeter. So we wanted to make sure we got Matt in some space, and cross our fingers that he would hit a couple of threes. We thought that would really bring Woodward out and we can start to drive the ball.”
Rogers, along with Colin Smalls, committed to American in the summer of 2019, arrived on campus in 2020, and are in year five. Lincoln Ball, Mason Whittaker, and Elijah Stephens are in year four with the program, while Geoff Sprouse is in year three. These players all played for Mike Brennan before Simpkins arrived last season, and have been through the grind together so many times.
The Patriot League is unique in today’s landscape of college basketball, where players actually tend to stay long term. For everything that Rogers does as a unicorn on the floor, his presence at a mid-major school for five years is also unicorn-like in the modern game. Colgate head coach Matt Langel won plenty of championships with roster continuity and culture over the last half decade, so he’s able to recognize the development of American’s group.
“When you make a change, it’s a different system, a different style, and I credit their staff and their players for being completely invested,” Langel said. “A guy like Lincoln Ball to stick around an extra year to battle like crazy, and Colin Smalls, same thing. They’ve been asked to do different things over the course of their career, their roles have changed, their style of play has changed. Elijah Stephens has grown up a ton as a point guard. He’s had two fantastic coaches who have taught him a lot. Matt Rogers, he’s been as good as there is in our league.”
Simpkins, who according to Rogers has “changed the whole perspective of AU basketball” both on and off the court, credits the players for helping him transition into the job last year. And he’s seen another leap this season.
“They’ve gotten themselves to be a player-led program,” he said. “I tell these guys all the time, a coach-led program you can win some games, but player-led programs win championships.”
When the final buzzer sounded, Simpkins and the Eagles, from top to bottom, were all business. Despite the championship, which is shared with Bucknell, there were no on-court celebrations, no hugs, no rushing out onto the floor. The race isn’t over, as American takes on Lafayette in the Patriot League Tournament Quarterfinals on Thursday night, looking to win three games to make it to the NCAA Tournament, but it was a monumental step.
Any culmination of fate, coronation, or any other cliche is still three wins away, but for Rogers and his senior class, they’ve left an indelible mark – marked by a banner that will soon hang in Bender Arena – on the AU program that won’t be forgotten.
“It shows all the hard work we put into this program,” Rogers said. “Especially all the seniors that are here for four or five years. This is all the hard work we put into this program paying off.”
