S.C. State-Claflin basketball series to be revived this year

Orangeburg, S.C. - There was a time in the mid-1980s and '90s when Claflin and South Carolina State battled annually for on-court hoops supremacy in Orangeburg.

For a 10-year period, the Garden City Classic featured an evening of hard-fought men's and women's basketball. Whether at Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center or the Jonas T. Kennedy Center, the games saw passions raised to a fever pitch for the two Orangeburg fan bases which in turn produced funds to cover scholarships.

"I thought it was great," said Claflin athletics director Tim Autry, who served in the same position at S.C. State at the time of the final Garden City Classic in 1996.

A mandate by then-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference commissioner...

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Former Claflin star Salley fields pro offers

Orangeburg, S.C. - Eric Salley has been spending a good deal of his time of late on Google. Tus far, the majority of the former Claflin star guard's searches have revolved around the country of Iceland. He hopes to have a few more destinations to search, but for now, it is the volcanic island in the North Atlantic that draws his interest because that is where his basketball career figures to take him.

"My agent has an offer for me from a team in Iceland," Salley said. "They are looking for a guard, and when they saw me, they went back and forth with my agent. Right now, we are just waiting to figure out the money situation."

And, Salley said, he is waiting on other offers. He said Spain would be an ideal destination.

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Former Claflin University Star Salley to Play in All-Star Game

February was a tough month for Eric Salley.

When the month began, he was the leading scorer in the SIAC, averaging 24.3 points per game. By mid-February, he was a college star in limbo, thanks to a back-and-forth between Salley's school, Claflin University and the Army National Guard, regarding Salley's status with the military division.

The incident - Salley did not report with his unit to training in Saudia Arabia, opting instead to stay and play at Claflin and graduate - was eventually cleared up, according to Salley.  "They put me on something called Individual Ready Reserve," Salley said. "That just means, when I get finished (with school and basketball) I will be able to fulfill my duties."

Still, the status change came too late to save...

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VIDEO: Historical Black College All-Star Classic
WEBSITE:  http://www.hbcallstarclassic.com

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Videographer: Claflin University; Claflin Jazz Ensemble

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Jackie Robinson Day planned at ballpark to help minority colleges

Greenville, S.C. - Michelin North America is underwriting a Jackie Robinson Day on April 15 at Fluor Field, and the proceeds will go to the United Negro College Fund, organizers said. Two UNCF baseball teams, from Claflin University and Voorhees College, will square off at 7 p.m., said Greenville Drive baseball team spokeswoman Ashley Peden.

The game is open to the public; tickets are $8, she said. There will be local students, church groups, sororities, fraternities, members of the United Way and others in attendance, Peden said. “A high school band will play.”

Herb Johnson, Michelin's director of community affairs, said he and Mike DeMaine, the Drive's general manager, teamed up. Johnson said Michelin is eager to raise funds for UNCF. “It helps us fulfill our diversity goals,” he said.

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Claflin begins SIAC tourney play Wednesday

ATLANTA - The road to the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship will start Wednesday with play-in games in Atlanta for the Claflin men's and women's basketball teams.

After finishing the regular season with two straight wins, the seventh-seed Panthers (11-15) will face 10th-seed Fort Valley State (8-20) at 2 p.m. in L.S. Epps Gymnasium on the campus of Clark-Atlanta University. The Claflin men swept the season series with the Wildcats and the winner will face second-seed Stillman College at 2 p.m Thursday in the same gymnasium.

Within proximity of Clark-Atlanta, the 11th-seed Claflin women (8-18) will look to shake off a season-ending six-game losing streak when they open play in Frank L. Forbes Arena at Morehouse College against sixth-seed Tuskegee University (15-11).

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Even without Eric Salley, Claflin Panthers record victory

Eric Salley's playing days with Claflin University are apparently over and teammates and coaches were placed under a self-imposed gag order by the administration about commenting about the ongoing controversy which abruptly ended his college basketball career.

"I have no comments about it," Claflin men's basketball coach Ron Woodard said. "All the issues with him should be directed to (Claflin Assistant Vice President for Communications and Marketing Sonja) Bennett."

Yet as the All-Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference guard inconspicuously sat in the Jonas T. Kennedy Center stands Saturday afternoon as the Panthers trailed Albany State by 11 points in the second half, his on-court non-presence was not easy to ignore.

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Stillman continues dominance in SIAC

TUSCALOOSA, AL | Currently at the top of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, the Stillman College men’s basketball team proved why when it took on the Claflin University Panthers on Monday. The Tigers beat the Panthers on Senior Night, 62-55.

“We really played together as a team tonight,” Stillman coach Michael Grant said. “We did a pretty good job of taking care of the basketball, we just really took our time and then we hit our open shots. Any time you can get hit your open shots and hit your free throws, you have a shot and that’s what we did tonight.”

After a slow start where both teams remained scoreless for the first five minutes, Claflin scored first with a basket by senior center Efe Uwadiae. Stillman (17-5, 15-4 in SIAC) answered back a just 35 seconds later on a field goal by Tiger senior guard Rakee Anderson.

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Benedict Tigers Hold Off Claflin Panthers 69-63

Columbia, SC- The electricity was building since 10:30 a.m. and by tip off time the pitch was deafening. For Claflin University and Benedict College the moment had come. A nationally televised men’s basketball game carried on CBS Sports network. An opportunity that comes rarely to NCAA Division II programs that had been afforded to these two prestigious institutions.

Crucial free-throw shooting by the Benedict Tigers (16-6, 16-4), foiled all hopes of a miraculous comeback by the Claflin University Panthers (9-14, 8-13). Benedict went 6-6 at the line in the final minute and took the 69-65 SIAC win over Claflin.

The Panthers began the second half down by seven points, and again came out slowly, which quickly put the Tigers up again by double-figures, 39-29 with just one and a half minutes had ticked off the second half clock. But the Panthers never said die and began to cut the Tiger lead inside of ten points 47-54, with: 25 remaining.

And after a steal Claflin’s Stacy McAlister was fouled and he made both free-throws to pull the Panthers to within five points, 49-54. Benedict’s Antrjuan Albright quickly responded with a three point basket to push their lead back to eight points, 49-57, at the 5:13 mark.

Claflin Lady Panthers Fall to Benedict Lady Tigers 62-53

Columbia, SC- The air calmed down considerably, but the game began hot for the Lady Panthers taking a commanding 19-3 lead early. However Benedict tried to make a comeback but could only get as close as eight points 19-11 with six left in the first half. The teams ended the half on even terms scoring 10 points each for the 29-21 halftime score.

Claflin shot a sizzling 42 percent form the floor compared to just 17 percent for Benedict. Claflin was also 60 percent from beyond the arc (3-5) while Benedict was poultry 16 percent.

Natalie Davis went 3-4 from three point land for nine points. Santeria Grooms also scored nine points for Benedict, by intermission.

by Claflin University Sports Information

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Salley gets 20 as Claflin drops Fort Valley State

The outside was cold and rainy, but inside the Jonas T. Kennedy Health and Physical Education Center, things heated up between two SIAC rivals.

As the Claflin University Panthers (5-3) (4-2) stopped the Fort Valley State Wildcats in their tracks with a 71-58 victory. The Panthers went into the break leading by five points, 30-25, shooting a blistering 65 percent (11-17) from the field and going 7-9 from the free throw line for 78 percent to keep the Cats at bay.


Efe Odigie scored eight points and Eric Salley scored seven points in the first stanza for the Panthers. Desmond Lofland, Detritus McCall, and Brandon Davey each scored five points for Fort Valley at the midway point.

Claflin Lady Panthers fall to Fort Valley State Lady Wildcats

The Lady Wildcats of Fort Valley State are the preseason favorites to capture the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship. The Claflin University Lady Panthers got an up-close look at the Lady Wildcats Saturday afternoon, and what to expect this season.

The Lady Wildcats upped their league mark to a perfect 4-0 with a 72-54 win over the Lady Panthers at the Edward L. Tullis Arena on the Claflin University campus. The victory also improved the Lady Wildcats to 6-3 overall, while the Lady Panthers fell to 2-3 in conference play and 2-5 for the season.

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