Martin Methodist Rallies in Second Half to Defeat Tougaloo Bulldogs, 88-77

Kansas City, Mo. (March 18, 2011) - No. 5 seed Martin Methodist (Tenn.) staged an early second-half comeback to knock off No. 12 seed Tougaloo (Miss.), 88-77 at the 2011 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship. The RedHawks scored 52 points after the break to stump the 7-man Tougaloo squad Friday at Municipal Auditorium.

Martin Methodist improves its record to 33-2 overall and got its first-ever second round win in national championship play. The Bulldogs fell short of reaching the quarterfinals for the first time and will end their season with a 28-5 mark.

Tougaloo went on a scoring spree in the first half as Donteeno Todd, Mario Luckett and Marquise Mems all reached the double-digit plateau. Todd led the Bulldog scoring efforts with 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field and 3-for-5 from downtown. Tougaloo also won a battle on the defensive front as it forced 13 RedHawk first-half turnovers. Martin Methodist's Ree McCrory, who played all 20 minutes of the first half, scored 16 points and was 3-of-4 from 3-point range.

To begin the second half, Martin Methodist went on a 17-2 run and brought the game back within reach. The RedHawks grabbed a 53-52 lead with 15:20 remaining, which was their first lead since the beginning moments of the game at 3-2. The two seeded squads remained in a stalemate, trading baskets with each other for the next 10 minutes, but Martin Methodist went on a 14-3 run to finish off the Bulldogs.

It was just the eighth time that the RedHawks have trailed at halftime and they are now victorious in six of the eight contests. Junior guards McCrory and James Justice both reached the 500-point mark for the season with 28 and 24 points, respectively. Compared to shooting 39.3 percent in the first stanza, Martin Methodist came out and shot 54.5 percent from the field in the second half. Forward Chris Leggett logged a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds. LaQuantis Stewart also grabbed 10 rebounds for the game and helped the RedHawks outrebound Tougaloo 49-37.

Bulldogs senior forward Mario Luckett ended his career with 18 points and 11 rebounds. The outing gave Luckett his ninth double-double of the season. After shooting 6-of-19 for 3-pointers before the break, the Bulldogs went cold, shooting 2-for-11 in the final 20 minutes.



Game Notes:
Tougaloo (Miss.) -- Tougaloo falls to 0-2 in second round games...Martin Methodist's 88 points is the six time the Bulldogs have allowed more than 80 points, as Tougaloo entered the contest ranked 13th in scoring defense per game (65.2)...junior guard Donteeno Todd's 15 points off the bench extend his double figure scoring streak to three games...senior forward Mario Luckett registered his ninth double-double of the season with 18 points and 11 rebounds

Martin Methodist (Tenn.) - Martin Methodist advances to the quarterfinals for the first time in six appearances...the Redhawks become the fourth top-five seed to earn a spot in the round of eight...junior guards Ree McCrory and James Justice eclipse the 500 point plateau with 24 and 23 points...Justice has scored at least 11 points in eight straight games...the Redhawks 88 points is the 24th time Martin Methodist has scored more than 80 points this season...Redhawks extend win streak with six games.

Courtesy of NAIA

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NAIA Division I National Championship: No. 12 Tougaloo 'Magnificent Seven' Cruises Into Second Round with 73-58 Win Over Emmanuel (Ga.)

Coach Lafayette Stribling is still
 building winners in his 54th
 year of coaching basketball.

Kansas City, Mo. (March 17, 2011) - No. 12 seed Tougaloo College (Miss.) earned its way into the second round of the 2011 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship with a 73-58 victory Thursday against Emmanuel College (Ga.) at Municipal Auditorium.

Junior guard Marquise Mems registered a game-high 23 points and added seven rebounds to help lead the Bulldogs to their 13th consecutive victory. Tougaloo pushes its season record to 28-4 and moves to Friday's second round for an 8 p.m. CT game against either No. 5 seed Martin Methodist College (Tenn.) or William Jewell College (Mo.). This will mark the second trip to the round of 16 for the Bulldogs, with the other coming in 2009.

Emmanuel scored the first eight points of the contest and eventually built a nine-point advantage before Tougaloo began to battle back. Trailing 18-9, the Bulldogs reeled off 15 consecutive points to grab the lead for good, 24-18, with 5:38 left in the first half. After the Lions pulled to within three points, Mems hit a three-pointer and another basket to spark an 8-0 run to end the first half and give the Bulldogs a 32-21 lead.

Tougaloo extended its advantage to as many as 21 points in the second half on its way to the first-round victory. Junior guard Donteeno Todd came off the bench to record 14 points for the Bulldogs, including four three-point field goals. Senior forward Mario Luckett added 13 points, while junior forward James Carter just missed a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds. Sophomore guard Juan Gray pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds for Tougaloo, which held a 46-32 advantage on the boards.

Senior guard Tedrick Hudson led Emmanuel with 15 pionts, while junior forward Asmatiek Fields helped out with 11 points. Freshman guard Michael Stanley led the Lions with seven rebounds. Emmanuel, which was making its second appearance at the NAIA Naitonal Championship, closed out its season with an overall record of 26-8.

BOX SCORING

Tougaloo College coach Lafayette Stribling and assistant Harvey Wardell took only seven players to the nationals in Missouri -- Mario Luckett, Marquise Mems, Donteeno Todd, Jurmond Cattenhead, Juan Gray, Kadon Day and James Carter.  The 'Magnificent Seven' Bulldogs move on to the Sweet 16, after bouncing Emmanuel College (Ga.) 73-58.  

Who is this 76 Year Old Dynamo?
The legendary Coach Stribling coached at Mississippi Valley State University, in Itta Bena, Mississippi for 22 years. The team won its first SWAC Championship in his third year as head coach. He retired with 7 SWAC championships, a Black College Championship, and 3 NCAA Division I Tournament berths. Stribling is also a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Hall of Fame.

Game Notes:
Tougaloo: Bulldogs overcame not scoring for the first four minutes and 27 seconds to lead by 11 at the half ... Outscored Emmanuel 14-3 over the final nine minutes of the first half ... Limited Emmanuel to 32.2 percent from the floor after being ranked No. 15 in scoring defense at 65.5 PPG during the regular season ... The 58 points surrendered by the Bulldogs is the lowest point total given up through 13 games of the opening round.

Emmanuel: Second opening-round loss by Emmanuel in their second tournament appearance ... Leading scorer Tedrick Hudson finished two points shy of his season average of 17.2 PPG with a team-high 15 points ... Averaging 72.0 PPG during the regular season, the 58-point final total for the Lions was their fourth-lowest output of the season.

NEXT GAME: FRIDAY, 8 p.m., CDT, TOUGALOO BULLDOGS (28-4) VS. MARTIN METHODIST REDHAWKS (32-2)

Amanda Dahl, NAIA Manager of Sports Information & Media Services

NAIA Division I National Championship Tournament: Tougaloo's legendary Stribling leads 'Magnificent 7' to NAIA tourney

GAME TIME: Today at 4:30 p.m., CDT, Kansas City, Mo.

Tougaloo  (27-4) vs. Emmanuel (Ga.) (26-7)

TV: Internet Streaming Video Live: CLICK HERE

Not all news is bad where Mississippi college basketball is concerned. Leave it to Lafayette Stribling, the 76-year-old veteran of 54 years in coaching to show the big guys how to succeed amid the most vexing of circumstances.

First things first: Stribling's Tougaloo College Bulldogs (27-4) will play Emmanuel College of Georgia on Thursday afternoon at 4:30 in the first round of the NAIA National Division I Tournament at Kansas City. It shouldn't cost Tougaloo much to get to Missouri. The Bulldogs have only seven players.

That's right. At Tougaloo, academics still come before athletics. You don't make the grades, you don't play. First semester grades left Stribling with seven of his original 13 players. The Bulldogs were 12-3 at the time. They are 15-1 since. So let's just borrow from Hollywood and call them the Magnificent Seven.

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