March Madness crosses family time for High Point coaches with mom out at work

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Family matters at High Point, so much so that coach Chelsea Banbury has no problem with assistant Katie Clayman missing the Panthers’ final practice before the NCAA Tournament opener.

It’s March Madness, and Clayman got to watch her husband win his tournament debut Thursday as the High Point men upset the No. 1 seed. 5 Wisconsin in Portland, Oregon. Clayman spent Friday traveling back across the country to Nashville for the 15th-seeded Panthers’ first-round game Saturday night against No. 2 seed Vanderbilt.

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“There are no direct flights…” Banbury said. “I’ve been keeping in touch with her. She’s watching a movie. I’ve given her the task of what I want to see when she gets here and what I need to have analyzed for now, and we can go out tomorrow and shoot with the team.”

Of the 136 teams, there are 30 schools with both men’s and women’s teams at the two tournament fields. Flynn Clayman and his wife manage to juggle not only coaching duties during March Madness, but also juggle parenting duties for their 19-month-old son, Quinn.

The High Point women should be done with their opener Saturday night, when the High Point men square off against No. 4 Arkansas with a Sweet 16 berth in the West Region on the line.

Banbury said watching the 12th-seeded High Point men earn the biggest win in program history in the West Region was incredible. She watched as she packed her son and jumped on the couch and screamed.

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“It was amazing,” Banbury said.

The High Point women should be done with their opener Saturday night, when the High Point men square off against No. 4 Arkansas with a Sweet 16 berth in the West Region on the line.

Then again, Banbury had his son with him at practice Friday. In High Point, families are out asking for support.

“He should be there supporting Flynn,” Banbury said. “This was his first NCAA Tournament as a head coach. I couldn’t imagine what he would go through if he missed it. It was incredible. He was 100% where he needed to be. He’ll be here with us and where he needs to be tomorrow.”

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness