HU hopes MEAC run carries over into next season

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina -- Standing in front of the Hampton men's locker room after the Pirates' 81-72 loss to Bethune-Cookman in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference semifinals on Friday night, HU coach Ed Joyner said to no one in particular, "It's on me."

"All wins are theirs," said Joyner, whose third year ended with a 12-21 record after his players made a surprise tournament run. "All losses are mine. I've got to digest it, I got to figure out what we did wrong, I've got to figure out what we've got to do to improve, and then I've got to go improve this team next year.

"I'll take the loss. They fought for it." HU showed that fight in trying to defend the MEAC tournament championship it won last year, beating Morgan State 59-55 in Tuesday's first round before knocking off top seed and regular-season champion Savannah State, 59-46, in Wednesday's quarterfinals.

In that game, the Pirates held the Tigers to 27 percent shooting while getting 16 points from senior guard Christopher Tolson and eight points and eight blocks from senior forward Danny Agbelese in a display of team chemistry missing at times from a difficult 2011-12 season.

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Hilltoppers headed to Dayton, will play MVSU

DAYTON, Ohio -- Western Kentucky already knew it was dancing, now it knows which ballroom it'll be performing in.

The Hilltoppers (15-18) learned today they'll be playing Mississippi Valley State (21-12) at on Tuesday in Dayton, Ohio as a 16 seed in the first round of the 2012 NCAA Tournament. The Delta Devils are champions of the Southwestern Athletic Conference.

The winner will play No.1 overall seed Kentucky in Louisville.

An estimated 1,400 fans of the team arrived at E.A. Diddle this afternoon to watch a national broadcast on the NCAA's Selection Show broadcast live by CBS.

The run was capped by a 74-70 win over North Texas on Tuesday night in the championship game. The Hilltoppers overcame second-half deficits in each of the four victories, including coming back from 13 down against the Mean Green en route to their eighth Sun Belt Conference Tournament championship.

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NSU to play Missouri in NCAA tournament

Bring on the Tigers! The Norfolk State University men's basketball team received a No. 15 seed Sunday night. They will play No. 2 seed Missouri in the West Regional of the NCAA tournament. This year marks the first time in school history the team has earned a NCAA bid.

The team joined fans at NSU's new student center to watch the selection show Sunday night. The student center erupted in cheers when NSU saw the school's name on national television.

"We really might pull the upset, whether they're hot or cold," said one fan after seeing the matchup with Missouri. The Spartans will take on the Tigers at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha, Nebraska Friday, giving them four days to rest and prepare for the big game.

With a record of 25-9, the Spartans won their first-ever MEAC championship and secured their first berth in the NCAA Tournament with a 73-70 win over Bethune-Cookman in Saturday's conference title game.

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No. 5 AUM edges No. 9 Xavier in AUM Invitational final

MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- Freshman Nicolas Pinones-Haltenhoff defeated Loic Didavi 6-2, 6-3 at the top singles flight Sunday to clinch NAIA No. 5 Auburn Montgomery's 5-4 men's tennis victory against No. 9 Xavier University of Louisiana in the championship dual of the AUM Invitational.

Xavier's women lost 6-3 to NAIA No. 22 Campbellsville.

Doubles victories by Didavi and Zach Taylor at No. 1 and Viktor Svoboda and Corey Huggins at No. 3 gave the Gold Rush (9-2) a 2-1 lead entering singles. But AUM (6-3) never trailed again after victories at Nos. 4, 5 and 2 singles.

Svoboda, a 6-2, 4-6, 1-0 (13-11) winner against Josh Reason in the final completed match, was the only Gold Rush player to win in doubles and singles. Sean Richardson beat Matias Dasso 6-4, 6-1 for the other XU singles victory.

Didavi played for AUM the past two seasons before transferring to Xavier. The Warhawks snapped the nine-dual win streak of the XU men, their longest since the start of the 2001-02 season. The Rush beat six top-25 teams during the streak.

"We can walk out of here with our heads high," XU coach Alan Green said. "We fought AUM hard. We will see them in two weeks at home, and we're looking forward to the rematch."

In the women's dual XU's Kourtney Howell and Nicole DeLoach scored the first point with an 8-1 victory against Lindy and Megan Charity at the top doubles flight. The Gold Nuggets (2-12) led 3-2 after Howell's 6-0, 6-0 decision against Anna Tumanyan and Amanda Materre's 6-2, 6-2 victory against Megan Charity at the top two singles flights. But Campbellsville (4-1) won the remaining matches and clinched when Jenna Sallee beat Jordyn Goody 6-2, 6-4 at No. 5.

Materre increased her singles win streak to seven matches, and Howell moved hers to five.

"Our ladies played well on this trip," Green said "It was good to see us compete against some ranked NAIA opponents. We just have to learn how to finish matches."

The Nuggets were 0-3 at AUM -- all against ranked NAIA opponents -- but began the trip with a victory at No. 21 Belhaven the day before the tournament. XU's women have five losses this season against ranked teams.

Both XU teams will play NCAA Division I member Nicholls State at 3 p.m. Wednesday at City Park/Pepsi Tennis Center.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director

VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

VISIT: XULAATHLETICS

VSU Lady Trojans softball sweep through CIAA round-up undefeated

RALEIGH, North Carolina -- Virginia State University's softball team swept through the three-day CIAA Softball Round-Up undefeated at the Walnut Creek Softball Complex in Raleigh, NC that concluded on Sunday, March 11, 2012. The Lady Trojans were the only team to finish with a 6-0 mark. They capped the Round-Up by knocking off defending CIAA champion Winston-Salem State University 6-5 in the last game on the third and final day.

Outfielder Mikia Noble led the Lady Trojans with 3 hits and 2 runs in their sixth straight win at the 2012 CIAA Softball Round-Up. All of the Lady Trojans starters recorded a hit against the Lady Rams totaling a season-high 16 hits.

VSU scored 3 runs, on 4 hits and an error by the Winston-Salem State's defense in the first inning. Infielder Jameshia Smith and Mikia Noble both singled in back-to-back plate appearances to spark the Lady Trojans' offense. With the bases loaded full of Lady Trojans, infielder Endya Bailey singled to bring home teammate LaCara Hawkes. Catcher, Dominique Johnson singled to bring home Noble for the Lady Trojans third run of the inning

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Edinboro, Shaw ready to prove it's Elite

Edinboro, Pennsylvania -- Edinboro's 70-56 victory over Indiana (Pa.) Saturday night at McComb Fieldhouse was a statement made by not only the Lady Scots, but also the entire PSAC West.
Shaw's tight 64-59 win over a youthful Gannon club showed that the senior-laden Bears of the CIAA are worthy of claiming a second straight NCAA Elite Eight berth and remain a national title contender.

The Atlantic Regional was perfectly seeded, as top-seed Edinboro (30-1), ranked No. 3 in Division II, meets defending region champion and second-seeded Shaw (25-6) today at 7 p.m. in the title game.

The contest is a rematch of the 2011 first round at Edinboro, with the vastly underrated eighth-seeded Bears crushing the Scots 72-51. Shaw went on to win the regional and advance to the semifinals before falling to Clayton State (Ga.), the 2010-11 champions.

"We're excited because we were left with a bitter taste last year,'' Edinboro coach Stan Swank said. "We're anxious to play them again.''

LIVE AUDIO OF GAME (wfseradion.com) : MONDAY, MARCH 12, 7:00 PM

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Savannah State makes NIT field; pairings announced

COACH HORACE BROADNAX
SAVANNAH STATE UNIVERSITY TIGERS
MEAC REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS

INDIANAPOLIS — The 75th edition of the National Invitation Tournament was released Sunday and the 32-team field features 25 teams with 20 or more wins, 11 automatic qualifiers and four teams out of the Atlantic 10 Conference, including the 2010 NIT champion, Dayton.

First-round play kicks off on March 13 and 14, with the second round taking place March 15 through the 19. Quarterfinals follow on March 20 and 21, and for the 75th time, the NIT semifinals and final game will take place in New York’s Madison Square Garden on March 27 and 29.

First-round action on campus sites features number one seeds Washington, Seton Hall, Arizona and Tennessee hosting, respectively, four automatic qualifiers, Texas-Arlington, Stony Brook, Bucknell and Savannah State.

The 8th seed SSU Tigers  (21-11) will travel to Knoville and face the  #1 seed Tennessee Volunteers (18-14) on Tuesday, March 13 at 8:00 PM ET. The game will be televised live by ESPNU.

Other first-round games include Northwestern hosting Akron, LSU visiting Oregon, Dayton travelling (due to arena unavailability) to Iowa, Middle Tennessee State at home against Marshall, La Salle hosting Minnesota, while Valparaiso visits Miami (Fla.).

Rounding out first-round play is UMass at Mississippi State, UCF at Drexel, UNI visiting Saint Joseph’s, Oral Roberts hosting Nevada, Cleveland State traveling to Stanford and Ole Miss at home against Illinois State.

“Once again, the committee has come up with an outstanding field, filled with strong teams with outstanding credentials. In addition to the at-large bids we handed out, we rewarded 11 regular season conference champions with an opportunity to play in the NIT,” commented C.M. Newton, now in his seventh year as chair of the NIT Selection Committee.

The seven remaining automatic qualifiers, regular season conference champions include: Washington, Akron, Middle Tennessee, Valparaiso, Drexel, Oral Roberts and Nevada.

2012 NIT MEN'S BRACKET (.pdf)

VISIT: NCCA.COM FOR MORE INFO

# 7 Shaw Downs Wheeling Jesuit 92-68 To Advance to Regional Finals

WEST LIBERTY, West Virginia – Karron Johnson had 22 points and Curtis Hines added 18 has Shaw handily defeated Wheeling Jesuit 92-68 to advance to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Finals.

With the win, the seventh-ranked Bears improve to 27-3 on the season while Wheeling Jesuit finishes their season 22-10.

Shaw dominated in all aspects of the game, shooting over 54 percent, pulling in 39 rebounds to WJU's 31, and forcing 20 turnovers while committing only ten.

"We executed our game plan," said Shaw head coach Cleo Hill, Jr. "We wanted to get the ball inside and I think we did that well. We thought we might wear them down, and I think we did."

The Bears played a smothering defense that held the Cardinals 20 points below their 88.4 points per game average, and holding their leading scorer, Steve Catlich, nine points below his average on the season.

"We've been spurt-y on the defensive side of the ball," said Hill. "We've had about four really strong defensive halves this season, and the first half of tonight's game was one of them."

Midway through the first half, no one could have anticipated the eventual blowout. With 10:10 left in the first, Josh Valentic gave Wheeling Jesuit a three-point, 15-12, lead. The Cardinals would not score again for five minutes and 15 seconds.

In that timeframe, Shaw scored 19 points, ending with Devon Mclendon's jumper off an assist from Tony Smith that gave Shaw a 31-15 lead with 5:33 to go.

Shaw closed out the half outscoring the Cardinals 9-5 to take a 20-point lead into the locker room.

It took Wheeling Jesuit less than five minutes of the second half to trim that 20-point lead down to nine. With 15:22 showing on the clock, WJU's Obi Ukwuoma hit a jumper off an assist from Ben Siefert made the score 45-36 and brought the large Cardinal contingent to their feet.

"We got lax," said Hill. "They came out ready to play. When you have only 64 teams in a tournament, they're all going to be good and they all will have had to battle through adversity. They were no different. They played hard."

Still up nine with 14:16 left, the Bears went on another run and again took control of the game. Karron Johnson started the streak with a jumper off a feed from Malik Alvin that started a 20-3 streak. When Mclendon hit a three from the right wing, he extended the Shaw lead to 26 at 67-41.

With 5:04 left in the game, Alvin hit a pair of free throws to give the Bears a 78-46 lead. In the next minute, Colin Barth hit four three-point shots. By the time he hit the fourth, Shaw led by only 20, 80-60.

Smith again found Johnson to rebuild the Shaw lead to 20.

"Both of these guys are NBA-level players," Hill said. "Karron is sacrificing part of his game by moving inside and he's handled that well. And Tony runs our offense, it's as simple as that."

The two teams would all but exchange buckets the rest of the way, with Shaw coming away with the 92-68 victory.

Johnson finished the game with 22 points and six rebounds. Hines, who averages 6.6 points per game, finished the contest with 18. Smith finished three rebounds shy of a triple-double with 13 points, ten assists and seven boards, which led the Bears. Alvin finished the contest with 13 points.

Barth finished the game with 17 points while Catich had 12 and Recardo Gaddy and Marquis Moore had ten apiece.

Shaw now advances to the Atlantic Regional Final where they will take on host and top seeded West Liberty who defeated West Virginia Wesleyan 99-69. The Hilltoppers, ranked third in the nation, knocked Shaw out of last year's NCAA Tournament in what locals call one of the best games ever played at the West Liberty gym. The Regional Final is Tuesday, March 13 at 7:00 p.m.

BOX SCORE

Sherri Fillingham , Director of Sports Information
VISIT: SHAW UNIVERSITY
VISIT: SHAWBEARS.COM

PVAMU Lady Panthers Win Second Straight SWAC Tournament Championship

GARLAND, Texas - Prairie View A&M junior guard Latia "Momma" Williams carried her team in the second half of the 2012 SWAC Tournament Championship Game on Saturday evening, scoring 20-of-her-24 points in the final 20 minutes as the Lady Panthers beat Alcorn State 63-50 to cut the down the nets for their second-consecutive conference championship at the Special Events Center in Garland, Texas.

Prairie View A&M coach Toyelle Wilson had some choice words to describe Williams after the win.

“Leadership. Veteran,” WIlson said. “The most consistent player all year. She should have been SWAC Player of the year.”

Williams, the SWAC Tournament MVP, scored over half of her team's second-half points as Prairie View went on to outscore Alcorn State 38-18 in the second half. The Lady Panthers used stifling defense to fuel their second half run and limited the Lady Braves to 24.1 percent shooting from the field, forcing 17 turnovers in the game.

Prairie View A&M went on a 19-3 run in the second half, which was capped off by a three-point play the old fashioned way by Williams with 4:58 left. This turned a 40-34 deficit into a 53-45 lead. Williams scored nine points during that stretch, and junior guard JaQuandria Williams added five of her seven points, also in that run.

“We played a really bad first half,” Wilson said. “We weren't playing as physical or aggressive as we normally do. But we made some half-time adjustments and obviously went to Latia Williams in the second half. I went to our bread and butter. I went to what got us here.”

Freshman center Larissa Scott saw her game of consecutive double-doubles end at four games, but she played a huge role in Prairie View A&M's SWAC Championship victory, scoring seven points and grabbing 10 boards.

“I had to pick up my performance,” Scott said. “Coach Wilson told us that only we can win the game, because we are the players on the floor. For me, I thought if I wasn't producing offensively, at least I could do it defensively.”

Scott had six defensive rebounds and three blocks.

Junior guard Kiara Etienne was doubtful for Saturday's game with a knee injury, but fought through the pain and proved to be the Prairie View A&M offense in the first half. She scored 10 first-half points, keeping her struggling team in the game. Etienne went 4-for-11 from the field, but the rest of the team shot a dismal 8-for-28 in the first half and entered the locker room trailing 32-25.

Wilson was overjoyed and at the same time relieved to win her second conference championship in just her second season as a head coach. Under her helm, the Lady Panthers have never lost a SWAC Tournament game (6-0). She has also tied former Prairie View A&M coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke for the most NCAA Tournament Appearances in school history with two.

“I don't like losing,” Wilson said. “You have to earn success. You can't take the elevator. You have to take the stairs. I told the girls the first flight was Alcorn State. The second flight was Mississippi Valley. I asked them if they were going to leave the legacy on the court as a champion or just another team. They responded.”

The Lady Panthers will find out their fate at 6 p.m. on Monday after watching the 2012 NCAA Women's Tournament Selection Show.BOX SCORE

Box Score

COURTESY: PRAIRIE VIEW A&M UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Hampton hangs on for third straight MEAC women's title

JERICKA JENKINS
MEAC TOURNAMENT MVP
HAMPTON UNIVERSITY LADY PIRATES

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — It came down to one last rebound, and Keiara Avant wasn’t letting anyone else have it.

Avant, Hampton University’s junior forward, secured the game’s final possession when Howard’s Tamoria Holmes missed a last-second runner as the top-seeded Lady Pirates held off No. 2 Howard 54-53 to win their third straight Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament championship on Saturday.

The Lady Pirates (26-4), the first Hampton team to win three consecutive women’s tournament titles and the first MEAC team to do so since Howard in 1998, will learn their NCAA tournament destination in Monday’s selection show.

“It means a lot to me and to my team, and it means a lot to my university,” said Hampton senior point guard Jericka Jenkins, named the tournament MVP. “It was great for us. We did a wonderful thing. We just made history.”

Saturday’s history was hard-fought. After Holmes’ miss, Avant wrapped both arms around the ball as Howard players tried in vain to wrest it away for the game’s final two seconds. Then she sank to the court, where she lay until celebrating teammates pulled her to her feet.

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Bethune-Cookman topped 73-70 by Norfolk for MEAC title

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Bethune-Cookman battled back from a 14-point deficit with 7 1/2 minutes left to have a chance to tie in the final seconds, but the Wildcats fell short Saturday afternoon in their first MEAC tournament championship game appearance.

Norfolk State survived two game-tying 3-point attempts in the final 17 seconds to win 73-70 and claim its first MEAC title and NCAA tournament bid.

"We feel we gave it out best shot," said B-CU guard Kevin Dukes, who led the Wildcats with 18 points. "We've got a good group. We came together as a team. We're proud of each other. We just have to come back and work as hard next year."

The fourth-seeded Wildcats (18-17) needed most of the second half to get a 13-point halftime deficit below double digits, and they didn't do that until Javoris Bryant's layup off a feed from Garrius Holloman made it 59-51 with 5:17 to play.

No. 2 seed Norfolk State (25-9) stretched the lead to 69-60 on two Kyle O'Quinn free throws with 1:28 to play, but the Wildcats made one more push.

PHOTOS: 2012 Conference Champions

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Mississippi Vally Delta Devils earn a trip to the Big Dance

GARLAND, TEXAS — Mississippi Valley State built an 18-point lead and then withstood a furious Texas Southern comeback to beat the Tigers 71-69 tonight and win the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament title and a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

Valley (21-12), the regular-season SWAC champion, won three games in four days here to claim the league’s automatic bid into the Big Dance, but none of the wins came easily.



Not even this one, in which the Delta Devils led by 18 midway through the second half and still led by 16, 63-47, with 4:35 left. That’s when the Panthers started their furious rally.

Led by Omar Strong, who led all scorers with 30 points, TSU cut it to three, 67-64, with 54 seconds left. That’s when MVSU freshman Brent Arrington made his biggest shot of the season, a 3-pointer from the corner with the shot-clock winding down, to give Valley a six-point cushion with 24 seconds left.  A 3-pointer at the buzzer by Strong made the final margin two, but that’s as close as the Tigers could get.

PHOTO GALLERY: MVSU - Texas Southern

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Shaw Downs #22 Gannon 64-59 To Advance to NCAA Regional Final

EDINBORO, Pennsylvania – Aslea Williams had 22 points - 16 of them in the second half - to help Shaw down #22 Gannon 64-59 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament held at Edinboro University. With the win, the Lady Bears advance to the regional finals for the second straight year.

The win improves the second seeded Shaw's record to 25-6 while the Lady Knights fall to 22-7 as their season comes to an end.

The Lady Bears outshot Gannon, but only slightly, hitting 27 of their 60 shot attempts (45 percent). The Lady Knights hit 22 of 53 attempts (41.5 percent). Shaw held the advantage in rebounds, as well, pulling in 39 boards compared to Gannon's 34.

Shaw managed only one made shot from beyond the arc on six attempts while Gannon sank six of the 22 threes they attempted.

Early on, the game was close with two ties in the first six minutes of play. With 14:08 left in the first, Victoria Tanner found Crystal Harris under the basket for a short jumper that gave Shaw a 7-5 lead.

Gannon answered with a three from Brittany Batts to give the Lady Knights the only lead they would hold on the night.

Shaw scored ten straight , punctuated by a layup by Williams off a pass from Sequoyah Griffin to give the Lady Bears a 17-8 lead with 8:55 left in the first.

Ninety seconds later, the Bears extended the lead to 12, but the Lady Knights battled back, eventually trimming the lead to two when Kelsey McCoy hit a three to make the score 24-22 in favor of Shaw.

The Lady Bears scored the final four points in the half to take a 30-24 lead into the half.

Box Score

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Hampton Uses Defense To Pull out Win Over Howard

SAADIA DOYLE
ALL-MEAC FIRST TEAM

Winston Salem, North Carolina -- Jericka Jenkins converted two free throws and then Hampton held Howard scoreless over the last 1:19 to eke out a 54-53 win over the Lady Bison in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament championship at the LJVM.

The Number 1 Lady Pirates (24-8) will receive the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament and will find out their opponent on Monday during the Selection Show.  Number 2 Howard will wait for an invitation to the WNIT.

Both teams came into the game ranked nationally in defense and that was what dictated the tempo. Howard took the early lead out of the blocks at 9-2 only to have Hampton rally to take a 29-21 advantage at the half. Jenkins, a senior guard and a first team All-MEAC selection, put her team on her shoulders by tallying 10 points.

The Lady Pirates, who won their third straight tournament title, upped the margin 10 to start the second half, but that is when Howard began to methodically work its way back in the game despite Hampton's attempts to keep them at bay by holding an 8 to 10-point bulge.

"We didn't rebound the ball well in the first half," said Hampton Coach David Six. "We did a better job in the second half. We also had some foul trouble which created matchups that were different than when we play them. But give Howard credit. It was a great game for a championship. I think I aged 10 years."

After the Lady Pirates took their last double digit lead at 47-37 at the 9:30 mark, the Lady Bison went on a 16-5 run over an eight-minute span to take their first lead of the second half at 53-52 on a jump shot by Tamoria Holmes with 1:19 remaining.

Jenkins, who was named the tournament outstanding performer, was fouled six seconds later and the senior, a career 80 percent free throw shooter, calmly sank two free throws as Hampton regained the lead at 54-53 with 1:19 left on the clock.

The Lady Bison had two more attempts to take the lead, but the Lady Pirates defense thwarted both attempts by Holmes to close out the game.

"I thought the last shot that I took had a chance," said Holmes, who led all scorers with 20 points and was named to the all-tournament team. "We battled back, we played hard, but we came up short."

Neither team shot the ball well, but the Lady Pirates used a 40-28 rebounding advantage to offset that and the 17 turnovers they committed.

"We are usually a good rebounding team, but we lost the battle on the boards this game," said Howard Coach Niki Reid Geckeler.

Jenkins led her team with and 5 assists, Alyssa Bennett with 13 and Kiera Avant with a double double of 10 points and 12 rebounds.

"In the past three years I have played, it has been a battle," said Jenkins. "Doyle is a tough player who plays hard all the time. She gets loose balls and does other things to help her team."

She continued. "Holmes is a great offensive player. She scores well and she is very difficult to defend."

The Lady Bison, who tied a school record for most victories in a season, got a game-high 20 from Holmes and 16 from Saadia Doyle, who was also named to the all tournament team.

"We are excited that we will be in post-season play,' said Geckeler. "We have all of our starters returning and lose only two seniors, so the future is bright for Howard women's basketball."

The All tournament team included Doyle and Holmes of Howard, Antonia Bennett from Florida A&M and Jeanine Manley from Coppin State. Jenkins was named tournament outstanding performer and David Six was named tournament outstanding coach.

Box Score

Jamilah Corbitt, Assistant Director of Sports Information
VISIT: HOWARD-BISON.COM
VISIT: HOWARD UNIVERSITY

Gold Rush, Howell continue their success at AUM Invitational

MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- The Xavier University of Louisiana men's tennis team rolled to its ninth consecutive victory Saturday, and the Gold Nuggets' Kourtney Howell recorded her second singles victory in as many days against a ranked opponent in the AUM Invitational.

The Gold Rush, ranked ninth in the NAIA, defeated 22nd-ranked Campbellsville 9-0. The win streak of the XU men (9-1) is their longest since the start of the 2001-02 season.

The Gold Nuggets lost 7-2 to No. 15 Shorter, but Howell beat 22nd-ranked Candice Laurent 7-5, 2-6, 1-0 (10-8) at the No. 1 flight. Howell has four consecutive singles victories since losing six straight. It was Howell's second super-tiebreaker victory of the spring semester in eight attempts.

Winning her sixth consecutive No. 2 singles match -- she began the streak this past Sunday -- was XU freshman Amanda Materre, who beat Margot Vetter 6-3, 6-2. Aurelie Gaborit clinched for Shorter (13-3) with a 6-1, 6-0 victory against Jordyn Goody at No. 4.

Shorter defeated the Gold Nuggets (2-11) for the second time in six days. /*-The XU men won every set but one against Campbellsville (4-1). Viktor Svoboda clinched the dual with a 6-3, 6-0 victory against Pablo Numbela at No. 3 singles.



Steffen Giles-Osborn and Sean Richardson improved their singles win streaks to six. Giles-Osborn defeated Pontus Blom 6-1, 6-2 at No. 4, and Richardson beat Alberto Diaz 6-1, 6-2 at No. 6.

The Gold Rush have six victories in the past seven duals against ranked opponents. The Gold Nuggets are 1-4 this season against ranked opponents.

"Our men got off to a good start in the doubles today," XU coach Alan Green said. "We're trying to clean up some things so we don't have to rely as much on our singles.

"Our women played tough in singles but came up short. We need to play much better doubles just to give ourselves a chance in these matches."

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
VISIT: XULAATHLETICS
VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

WSSU's season comes to an end

WEST LIBERTY, West Virginia - Winston-Salem State's basketball season came to a crashing halt Saturday night in the first round of the Division II Atlantic Regional.  A 25-foot 3-pointer by Raymont McElroy with 21.5 seconds left lifted West Virginia Wesleyan to a 57-54 win. The Rams failed to respond after the deep 3 and will take the six-hour ride back to Winston-Salem this morning.

"Throughout the game, we got out of character a little bit," coach Bobby Collins of the Rams said. "We needed to make one more stop, and we couldn't do it." 

The Rams were clinging to a 54-52 lead when the Bobcats got the ball with 42.3 seconds left. Wesleyan failed to find any room at first, but on an out-of-bounds play, McElroy worked himself free on the right wing, then buried his only 3-point shot of the game. It was the most open McElroy, who averages 21 points, had been all night.

On their next possession, the Rams got a good look from point guard Marcus Wells, who worked inside but missed a short jumper. Mike Williams of the Bobcats was there for the rebound and was fouled. He made both shots for a three-point lead with 4.2 seconds left.

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IUP Men's basketball loses to Shaw in Atlantic Region quarterfinals

WEST LIBERTY, WEST VIRGINIA -- For the first time since 2009, the No. 7 IUP men's basketball team will not make a trip to the Atlantic Regional final as it fell to the No. 2 seed Shaw of the CIAA in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, 62-54. The game also marked the last time seniors Ashton Smith and Julian Sanders will suit up in an IUP uniform.

Much like other games during this season, the senior tandem were the only two Crimson Hawks (23-6) in double figures, but the lack of offense from the team overall cost them for the second game in a row. This time, the loss ends the Hawks' season and the careers of two of the best players in program history.

"We found a way to win a lot of games all year long," IUP Head Coach Joe Lombardi said after the game. "In no way were we a dominating team and we just had some great leadership from our three terrific seniors. They had a lot of heart and they passed it along to the rest of the team. I certainly feel it was a gritty bunch and bunch that played together and cared about each other. Those intangibles helped us have the success that we did."

IUP's successful season was halted by a bigger, stronger Shaw team (26-3) that will move on to face Wheeling Jesuit in the Atlantic Region semifinals.

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TSU's rally falls short in SWAC tournament final

GARLAND, Texas -- Texas Southern was the top defensive team in the Southwestern Athletic Conference during the regular season, but in the conference tournament championship game Saturday night, its opponent, Mississippi Valley State, was the best defensive team on the floor.

With a shot at an NCAA Tournament bid on the line, TSU's failure to take care of the ball during the first 30 minutes put the Tigers in a hole that not even a late 22-8 run could overcome, falling to the Delta Devils 71-69 at the Special Events Center.

TSU received a game-high 30 points from junior guard Omar Strong, who went 8-of-15 from 3-point range, and 10 from reserve guard Dexter Ellington.

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# 7 Shaw Downs #10 Indiana (PA) 62-54 To Advance to Second Round of NCAA Tournament

WEST LIBERTY, West Virginia – Karron Johnson had 17 points as Shaw downed Indiana (PA) 62-54 in the opening round of the Division II Men's Basketball Tournament held at West Liberty University.

With the win, the seventh-ranked Bears improve to 26-3 on the season. They are the second seed in the Atlantic Region. Indiana (PA), the seventh seed in the region and the tenth-ranked team in the country, falls to 23-6.

The Bears led throughout most of the game, but allowed the Crimson Hawks to tie the game with just under two minutes left in the game. Junius Chaney hit a pair of free throws, then Johnson sank a three from the top of the key to give the Bears a five-point lead.

"Karron can shoot the basketball," said Shaw head coach Cleo Hill, Jr. "We've asked him to move inside and he's sacrificed and done that, but today he was able to do a bit of both." "We put up shots like that in practice," Johnson said. "That's what practice is for. After we fell short in the CIAA Tournament, I looked to find my stroke and get more involved."

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Rush drop to 21st, earn at-large berth in national tourney

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana is 21st in the NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll announced Wednesday afternoon. About two hours later the NAIA announced that the Gold Rush (23-8) received an at-large bid to next week's national tournament.

Xavier was 1-1 in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament at Jacksonville, Fla., this past week and lost 66-65 to SUNO in the semifinals Friday. SUNO then beat Tougaloo 79-58 in the championship game Saturday to earn the GCAC's automatic bid to the tournament.

Xavier is in the top 25 for the 10th consecutive time and the 23rd time in 24 polls dating to the start of the 2010-11 season. The Gold Rush were 17th in the final poll before the 2011 national tournament.

Tougaloo remained 24th in the poll and also received an at-large bid. The NAIA will announce the bracket and game times by 6 p.m today.

The 75th-anniversary Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I National Championship will begin next Wednesday at Kansas City, Mo., with eight first-round games. The other eight first-round games will be played the following day.

NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Coaches' Top 25 Poll
(first-place votes in parentheses — records through Tuesday, March 6)

Rank Team Record Points Last
1 Shorter (11) 31-2 312 2
2 Oklahoma Baptist (1) 28-4 301 1
3 Robert Morris (Chicago) 27-4 293 tie-4
4 Concordia (Calif.) 26-6 279 tie-4
5 Martin Methodist 27-6 269 6
6 Southern Poly 24-6 266 3
7 Our Lady of the Lake 26-7 246 7
8 Lindsey Wilson 21-9 230 9
9 Rogers State 22-8 217 10

10 Biola 24-8 216 19

11 Mountain State 23-8 215 8

12 LSU-Shreveport 25-7 205 14

13 John Brown 24-8 194 13
14 Georgetown (Ky.) 24-8 189 12
15 Columbia (Mo.) 26-6 167 16
16 Point Loma Nazarene 20-9 146 11
17 Lee (Tenn.) 20-8 142 15
18 Montana State Northern 27-6 132 21
19 Texas Wesleyan 25-7 131 20
20 Montana Western 24-9 122 17
21 Xavier 23-8 109 18
22 MidAmerica Nazarene 24-8 88 25
23 Campbellsville 21-11 73 RV
24 Tougaloo 23-8 72 24
25 Southern Nazarene 22-10 70 23

Others receiving votes: Azusa Pacific 59, Olivet Nazarene 50, Cumberlands 50, Freed-Hardeman 48, Cumberland 42, Saint Xavier 14, Westminster (Utah) 10, Evangel 8, Cal State San Marcos 7, Southwestern Assemblies of God 5, Westmont 3, Voorhees 1, Baker 1.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director

VISIT: XULAATHLETICS
VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

Howard Parlays the Scoring of Doyle and Holmes and Team Defense to Advance

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina -- Saadia Doyle scored 16 of her game-high 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Tamoria Holmes tallied 13 of her 19 after intermission to lead Howard University to a 51-43 win over Florida A&M University in the semifinals of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference women's tournament at the LJVMC.

The Lady Bison (24-7), the Number 2 seed, advance to the tournament championship for the second straight year against Hampton, the 2011-12 regular season and 2011 defending tournament champion on Saturday. That game will be televised live on ESPNU at 4 pm.

It was Doyle and the Howard defense that set the tone for the game early. The Lady Bison jumped out to an early 24-8 lead on the strength of some strong team defense and Doyle, a first team All-MEAC selection.

The Howard defense was stifling, holding the Lady Rattlers to 15 percent on 5 of 33 shooting. The 5-11 junior from Atlanta, GA, led all scorers with 16 points and grabbed 6 rebounds.

"We hang out hats on our defense," said Howard Coach Niki Reid Geckeler, of the defense which has held 25 of the last 26 opponents to under 60 points. "We were able to execute our game plan. Saadia did a great job on the boards and Tamoria picked up things offensively for us in the second half. And the twins (Portia and Nicole Deterville) are our unsung heroes." The Deterville twins grabbed 14 rebounds between them.

The Lady Rattlers (22-8), the Number 3 seed, made a run in the second half and used a 10-1 run to get within two at 36-34 at the 6:43 mark.

Following a timeout, Howard responded with a 10-2 spurt to take a 46-36 lead with 1:49 left that all but sealed the deal. Holmes, a first team All-MEAC selection, scored four of her 13 second points during the run.

"The outside game wasn't working in the first half, so coach told me to start going to the hole," said Holmes, who connected on 8 of 16 from the field and grabbed a season-high 6 rebounds.

After establishing herself as an offensive threat in the first half, Doyle concentrated more of defense and rebounding the second half, along with an occasional timely basket or free throws to keep FAMU at arm's length.

"I came out much more aggressive today than I did in our regular season game against them," said Doyle, who recorded her 39th double double of her career.



The Lady Rattlers appeared to be a step slow to start the game. Florida A&M had pulled out a hard-fought win over Maryland Eastern Shore less than 24 hours before this game. Their problems were further compounded by the absence of Antonia Bennett, the MEAC Player of the Year and Qiana Donald, the MEAC Defensive Player of the Year, due to foul problems.

"We started the game slow and sluggish," said FAMU head coach LaDawn Gibson, the MEAC Coach of the Year. "We dug ourselves in a hole that we were not able to get out of. And when Antonia and Qiana got into foul trouble, it changed the game."

Jasmine Grice led the Lady Rattlers with 14 points while Donald and Bennett each added 13 in a losing effort. Jamie Foreman grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds for Florida A&M.

Hampton swept Howard this season and has won six a row in the series, including last year's championship. It matches the Number 1 and 2 seeds.

"It is Number 1 and 2 matching up,"said Coach Geckeler. "They are very tough team."

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COURTESY: HOWARD UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION
VISIT: HOWARD-BISON.COM
VISIT: HOWARD UNIVERSITY

Mississippi Valley earns spot in SWAC title game

GARLAND, TEXAS — Cor-J Cox and Paul Crosby combined for 37 points tonight, helping Mississippi Valley State beat Arkansas Pine Bluff 71-64 to earn a spot in Saturday’s championship game of the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament.

The Delta Devils (20-12) will play Texas Southern at 7 p.m. Saturday for the championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament.

Cox scored 19 points and Crosby had 18 as Valley turned back APBU (11-22) in a game that was close throughout.

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SWAC title on the line, as Tigers take on Delta Devils

Garland, TX (Sports Network) - The possibility of a program getting into the NCAA Tournament with a losing record is all too real, as the Texas Southern Tigers face off against the Delta Devils of Mississippi Valley State in the championship game of the 35th annual Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament tonight at the Special Events Center in Garland, Texas.

The Tigers, the second seed in the tourney, enters the championship round two games under .500 at 15-17 as the team shoots for a fifth title in this event and the first since 2003. Texas Southern began the road to this game by first defeating Alabama A&M in the quarterfinals on Wednesday and then taking out sixth-seeded Alcorn State on Friday, 60-55.

As for the top-seeded Delta Devils, they were expected to be here considering than crushed the rest of the SWAC with a record of 17-1 this season. They've won this event a total of four times, the last trophy being taken home in 2008 after slipping by Jackson State, 59-58.

This year the top team in the SWAC defeated that same Jackson State squad in the quarterfinals three days ago, 63-60, and then topped fifth-seeded Arkansas-Pine Bluff last night, 71-64.

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“Momma” lifts Prairie View to the SWAC Tournament Finals

LATIA "MOMMA" WILLIAMS
5'-10" REDSHIRT JUNIOR FORWARD
HOMETOWN: RIVERDALE, GEORGIA
NORTH CLAYTON HIGH SCHOOL

GARLAND, Texas - As the only fourth-year player for Prairie View A&M, Latia Williams likes for her teammates to call her “Momma.” In Friday’s 58-55 semifinal upset of No. 1 seed Mississippi Valley State, Momma made it all better.

Williams rebounded a teammate’s missed free throw with 29 seconds left and scored to give Prairie View a one-point lead. She then hit two free throws with 10 seconds left for a three-point cushion.

On the final possession, MVSU got 3-point shots from Alia Frank and Lenise Stallings, but both failed to find the bottom of the net.

“My heart is still beating fast,” said Williams, who had 23 points and eight rebounds.

Larissa Scott added 13 points and eight rebounds for Prairie View, the defending tournament champion. Prairie View meets Alcorn State in the final at 5 p.m. Saturday.

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Williams Carries Prairie View A&M Back To SWAC Tournament Finals

GARLAND, Texas - She couldn't contain herself. As soon as the final buzzer sounded and the ball took its last bounce, rolling to a stop, Prairie View A&M junior forward Latia Williams collapsed on the hardwood and started pounding her fists in a moment of pure exitement.

Williams didn't want her season to end without getting a chance to repeat as a SWAC Tournament Champion. So she took the game into her own hands in the closing moments of the Lady Panthers' 58-55 win over top-seeded Mississippi Valley State, which propelled them to the SWAC Tournament Championship game on Saturday.

She scored 10 of her team's final 14 points and finished with a game-high 23 points and eight rebounds.

"I'm the oldest player on the team," Williams said. "So I call myself 'Momma'. I told them to 'get on my back and Momma is going to bring us home.'"

Prairie View A&M trailed 55-52 with 1:28 left in the game following a layup by the Devilettes' Alia Frank. Williams scored on a driving layup with 1:07 left to cut her team's deficit to 55-54. She then came away with a momentous block with 35 seconds remaining. Her teammate, Michaela Burton, came down with the rebound to give her team a shot at taking the lead.

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Texas Southern achieves goal that was a year in the making

GARLAND, Texas — Texas Southern achieved a goal that was a year in the making with Friday’s semifinal win over Alcorn State, 60-55, in the Farmers Insurance SWAC Tournament. It was last year on the same Garland Special Events Center court that a then-No. 1 seed Texas Southern was upset by Alabama State, which went on to win the tournament as the No. 4 seed.

This time, as the No. 2 seed, Texas Southern got past the semifinal hurdle and is a win away from the securing the SWAC’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. “We’ve been talking about this for a long time; we’re here now,” Texas Southern coach Tony Harvey said. “We’ve got one more.”

Texas Southern (15-17) trailed at halftime, 32-29, after Alcorn State shot 52.2 percent (12-of-23) in the opening period. Alcorn State (10-22) cooled to 28.6 percent shooting in the second half as Texas Southern’s trademark 2-3 zone began to take effect.

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