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Of the hundreds of college basketball teams at any level, men's and women's, big or small, only one went undefeated this season.

And it comes from a town famous for its high school football, at that.

The Howard Payne Lady Jackets of Brownwood, Texas, won't make anyone forget Gordon Wood, but they've broadened the town's horizons.

Or as Keller's Meia Daniels, the Division III Player of the Year, put it:

"I never even knew Brownwood existed until I visited there.

"I guess we're on the map now."

Putting up a 33-0 record will cause stares, and it doesn't come close to telling the story of Howard Payne's dominance.

Under the direction of 32-year-old Chris Kielsmeier, national coach of the year, the Lady Jackets won by an average of 28 points. Only four games were decided by fewer than 10 points.

"We'd just lock teams down," Kielsmeier said. "We made it difficult for anyone to get any easy shots."

This is not a story of overnight success. The four seniors – Daniels, honorable mention All-America Stacey Blalock, Kim Hoffman and Daphnie Pippins – finished college with a 109-12 record. They were 18-0 at one point last year before ultimately losing in the Sweet 16.

Dealing with the mounting pressures of going undefeated last season taught them a lesson.

"They never thought about the streak this year," Kielsmeier said. "Every single game was about that game and that moment.

"This team kept things really simple."

Of course, it helps if you have a player like Daniels. Recruited lightly by Division I schools out of Keller Fossil Ridge, Daniels, 5-8, played small forward until this season. But when the Lady Jackets needed a point guard, Kielsmeier turned to his best player.

Result: Not only did she shoot 38 percent from 3-point range and 81 percent from the line, she was among the nation's top five in steals.

"But her biggest strength was going to the basket," Kielsmeier said. "She'd just drop the hammer and go to the hoop."

Kielsmeier believes Daniels would have made a fine Division I player. But Daniels, who will graduate in May, loved the school's academic environment. If she can't play basketball overseas, she'll go to law school.

And Kielsmeier? Fans talk about the school's first NCAA national title in a team sport and whether he'll be around to defend it.

But the Iowa native – who's been at HPU nine years, eight as head coach – cites the support of the community.

"People keep telling me I'll move on to the big time," he said. "I tell them, 'What's the big time?'

"I feel like I'm at the big time."

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