2021/03/17 14:08 COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Winthrop coach Pat Kelsey smiles as he considered the nearly two-year journey to play in the NCAA Tournament. “We did it the hard way,” Kelsey said. Kelsey and the Eagles won the Big South Conference tournament in 2020 and were among a dozen teams that earned bids and were eagerly awaiting their chance to play. Instead, the start of the coronavirus pandemic robbed those teams of that opportunity — leaving them a full year to dream, scheme and hope for another opportunity. Just four schools — Gonzaga, Liberty, Utah State and the Eagles — from that group of 12 reached this year's field of 68.