The 2003 Sun Belt Conference champion Western Kentucky Hilltoppers hoist their trophy on Tuesday at E.A. Diddle Arena after defeating Middle Tennessee State 64-52 in the conference championship game. The Toppers clinched an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament with the victory. Photo by Clinton Lewis

Western Kentuckys 64-52 win over Middle Tennessee ensures the team an unprecedented third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament. No other Hilltopper squad has made back-to-back-to-back appearances in the Big Dance. Thats pretty neat. Its a special, special accomplishment. Youve got programs from BCS (Bowl Championship Series) conferences that have unlimited resources that havent managed to do that, said WKU coach Dennis Felton. Its really a testament to our players character and their staying power. The players deserve all the credit, going back to guys like Nashon McPherson and Derek Robinson. It would be even more special if they can win at least one game this year in the tournament. The past two seasons have ended in first-round losses 69-56 to Florida in 2001 and 84-64 to Stanford in 2002.The reality of it is, 64 teams become 32 in just two days, Felton said. All we can do is keep fighting to play at a high level like we do and keep getting there. The last two times weve been there, Ive been very proud of our effort in the NCAA Tournament. Its easy to blame bad luck in the seeding process for those two losses. Florida was ranked No. 3 when the Toppers took them on and Western was only rewarded with a No. 9 seed last season, despite finishing the regular season 28-3 and being ranked in the top 25.I have a feeling that seeding issues wont be an issue with this years team. After losing Todor Pandov and Chris Marcus to injury and going through some of the tough losses early on this season, the current crop of Hilltoppers should be glad just to be back in the tournament. They should be happy, but not content. They still have something to prove. In the future and next year definitely qualifies Western may not win the Sun Belt Tournament. This time next season, WKU may be hoping to get an at-large bid and the chances for that go way up if they have a good showing in this years NCAA Tournament. And thats exactly what the Toppers are hoping for. The current group of seniors David Boyden, Nate Williams and Filip Videnov dont want to leave WKU without at least one win in the Big Dance. This is not the top of the mountain right here, Boyden said immediately after Tuesdays win. We want to try and perform well in the NCAA Tournament. We havent played up to our capabilities in the tournament yet and thats something were looking forward to doing. Thats certainly the right attitude. Winning the Sun Belt championship was all well and good these past two seasons, but now the Toppers need to take the next step to becoming one of the elite basketball programs.