CLEVELAND, Miss. – Two former Delta State University men's basketball greats will be experiencing life on the other side of the court this week, as former All-Americans Scott Nagy of South Dakota State and Chico Potts of Mississippi Valley State lead their respective teams into the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament.

For SDSU head coach Scott Nagy, a four-year letterman and two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American at Delta State, the drive to make it to the NCAA big dance has been a long one.  In his 16 seasons at South Dakota State, Nagy has guided the Jackrabbits through their transition from NCAA Division II to being one of the Summit League's most competitive programs.      

The South Dakota State University men's basketball team meets third-seeded Baylor in its first-ever NCAA Tournament game Thursday in Albuquerque, N.M., at 6:27 p.m., live on truTV from The Pit.  Both teams enter the matchup with 27-7 overall records. SDSU, the 14th seed in the South Region, won the Summit League postseason tournament, while Baylor finished as Big 12 tournament runner-up to Missouri.

Before making his mark in coaching, Nagy was a standout on the parquet for the Statesmen.  A year after graduating from Centennial High School in Champaign, Ill., Nagy led the Statesman to a second place finish in the league and a berth in the NCAA Tournament with a 20-11 record, earning him Gulf South Conference Freshman of the Year honors.

A year later, DSU won the conference title and advanced to the NCAA Tournament with a 23-8 record.

The Statesmen finished second in the Gulf South Conference Nagy's junior year, but they still advanced to the NCAA Tournament, and eventually to the Final Four with a 24-9 overall record.

As a senior, Nagy was named Gulf South Conference Athlete of the Year in 1988 and capped off his time at DSU with back-to-back CoSIDA Academic All-American honors. 

Nagy still holds the Delta State record for games played in a career with 122, career assists with 549, assists in a season with 234 and assists in a game with 15, which he did twice.   

Nagy's skills on and off the court earned him an induction into the Delta State Sports Hall of Fame in 2001.

For Chico Potts, an assistant coach on Sean Woods' Mississippi Valley State staff, the trip to the NCAA's big dance has been a bit quicker.  Potts, in his second season on Woods' staff, helped guide the Delta Devils to the 2011-12 Southwestern Athletic Conference title with a 21-12 finish. 

The Delta Devils meet the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (15-18) on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. in Dayton, Ohio in the First Four of the NCAA Division I Tournament.  The game will be broadcast on truTV starting at 5:30 p.m.  The winner meets overall No. 1 seed Kentucky on Thursday as part of the South Region. 

Potts, who spent three seasons as an assistant coach at his alma mater on Jason Conner's staff, was a standout guard for coach Steve Rives during his playing days with the Statesmen.  The 2000 Gulf South Conference Player of the Year, helped lead the Statesmen to the NCAA DII Tournament as a senior after transferring from Louisiana State University. 

Potts was also named to the NCAA All-Tournament Team and Daktronics All-South Region Team after averaging 15.9 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. 

Former men's basketball assistant Brian Ellis, who is also an assistant at MVSU, will join Potts on his journey this March.  

Special thanks to the sports information departments at South Dakota State and Mississippi Valley State for providing information for this story.