Stetson's Alec Oglesby has played in March Madness, but this time will feel different

DELAND — Alec Oglesby still has the video on his phone.

March 19, 2021. Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana. NCAA Tournament Round of 64.

Oglesby’s 15-seeded Cleveland State squad trailed second-seeded Houston 85-48. The teams were simply ticking down the final 90 seconds. But Oglesby got his moment.

He caught a pass on the left wing and fired a 3-pointer. Swish.

“I haven't watched it in a long time,” Oglesby said, laughing. “After that day, I did watch it a few more times. It was like, 'Oh, wow.' Especially as a freshman, to score in the tournament, it was really exciting.”

The rest of his Stetson Hatters teammates will get to feel that for the first time Friday. As a 16 seed, they will take on No. 1 UConn at 2:45 p.m. in Brooklyn, New York.

Oglesby will have the opportunity to add to his total. The 6-foot-5 senior guard, who left Cleveland State for UNC Wilmington before finally transferring to Stetson ahead of the 2022-23 season, is the only Hatter who has suited up in March Madness. He is 1-for-1 on field-goal attempts during the dance.

Multiple teammates have picked his brain, asking him what it’s like. His response:

“I'm like, 'Guys, it was way different then because of COVID,” Oglesby said.

Oh, yeah. Remember that era of college basketball?

After the pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 bracket, the 2021 iteration occurred entirely in central Indiana. Players lived in quasi-bubbles, staying at hotels in Indianapolis.

Each game venue upheld 25% capacity limits. That included staff members and players’ families. Some of Oglesby’s relatives attended the Vikings’ tilt with Houston.

The arena pumped in fake crowd noise.

So even though Oglesby competed in the tournament, he didn’t receive the full experience.

“But it was still special just to step foot on that court and just have that opportunity to play against such a phenomenal program and be able to play on TV in front of millions of fans around the world,” he said. “It was really special.”

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Oglesby doesn’t recall much anxiety other than a few pregame jitters. He subbed in for 15 minutes off the bench and finished with six points — that 3-pointer and three free throws on four tries from the line.

The loss marked Cleveland State’s first tournament appearance since 2009, and it has not returned since then. But as a freshman, Oglesby thought that’s how every campaign would end.

“It became like an expectation,” he said. “So me bringing that mentality even over to Stetson was really large. My expectation every year is to win our (conference) tournament and get to the (national) tournament.”

Stetson snuck through the ASUN event earlier this month to clinch its first league trophy and automatic Madness bid. It claimed the semifinals and finals by a total of four points.

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Oglesby averaged 8.3 points across the three victories, with 10 vital points against Austin Peay in the championship contest. Following a rough 1-for-7 performance from the field against Queens, he rebounded in the last two games. He drained four 3-pointers and shot 62.5% overall.

He fed off the big-game energy at the Edmunds Center.

“That was the craziest crowd I've played in front of,” Oglesby said.

At least until this week. No restrictions now. A date with the defending national champions in the Barclays Center awaits.

“This time around,” Oglesby said, “it's going to be crazy.”

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: 2024 NCAA Tournament: Stetson's Alec Oglesby has been here before