The mere fact that Liberty won a Big South tournament game this season gives first-year coach Ritchie McKay hope that the program is moving in the right direction.

Before Liberty beat VMI to advance to the Big South tournament semifinals, the Flames had lost three straight conference tournament quarterfinal games, including two at home. Last season, VMI beat Liberty in the quarterfinals by a point, and the next day, the school fired coach Randy Dunton.

McKay's team lost in the next round, falling to UNC Asheville on its home floor, which was fitting considering the sort of season Liberty had. The Flames could play outstanding one night and look awful on others, and they struggled to string together solid performances.

Liberty's longest win streak was four games, which helped the team rebound from an 0-2 start in Big South play. But the Flames lost six of their last eight regular-season games before beating VMI in the league tournament.

Playing with a seven-man rotation for nearly the entire season, Liberty struggled to find any sort of consistency, especially late in the year, when mental and physical fatigue began to set in.

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