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JACKSON, Mississippi -- Mississippi State has offered Alcorn State head coach Jay Hopson a position on staff, a source confirmed to The Clarion-Ledger on Tuesday.
Hopson, a Vicksburg native, has been at the helm of Alcorn State since 2012. He guided the Braves to back-to-back first-place finishes in the SWAC's Eastern Division, and the Braves played in the Celebration Bowl in 2015. It's still uncertain how much interest Hopson would have transitioning from head coach to a position coach without any titles.
FootballScoop.com first reported the offer.
MSU coach Dan Mullen hoped to fill the vacancy left by Deshea Townsend with someone who has close ties to Mississippi to help in recruiting, another source said. Townsend accepted a position with the NFL's Tennessee Titans to coach their defensive backs.
Demetric "Tree" Austin calmly prepares to sink a free throws against Edward Waters.
COURTESY: J. Williams & Dillard University Athletics
NEW ORLEANS --The Bleu Devils held a 3-point lead at the half before holding its opponent to just 21 second half points en route to an 80-55 victory at the Battlefield in Dent Hall over Edward Waters. The win marks Dillard's fourth straight victory in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference.
Dillard (12-6, 4-1 GCAC) was led by junior Demetric Austin (JR/Washington, D.C.) who finished with yet another double-double, scoring 24 points and grabbing 10 boards in the victory. Teammate Jesse Ward (SO/Maringouin, La.) continued his solid GCAC campaign with 14 points, four boards, three assists and two steals in 33 minutes of action while Dennis Hightower (JR/Chicago, Ill.) and Dennis Reed (JR/England, Ark.) both chipped in with 10 points apiece.
The first half proved to be an exciting contest as the Tigers and Bleu Devils exchanged baskets throughout the 20 minute period, but Dillard would eventually pull away thanks to a solid transition game. Once again, the Bleu Devils outrebounded its opponent 43 to 34. During one stretch of the competition, the game began to get chippy in the latter half as double-technical fouls were called on two separate occasions, even resulting in an ejection.
Keith Williams Jr. led Edward Waters with 12 points while teammate Oceann Maddox finished with 11 points.
Dillard takes a break from GCAC action and faces Texas College on Wednesday, January 27. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m.
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina -- The Johnson C. Smith University men's basketball team limited visiting Livingstone to just 31.4%% shooting in the second half while getting 24 points and 14 rebounds from senior Diondre Pratt en route to an 89-81 CIAA Southern Division win on Monday night at Brayboy Gym.
Pratt, a Morven, N.C. native, went 9-of-19 from the field including a 6-of 8 mark from the free throw line against the Blue Bears. He also dished five assists and had two steals on the night. TeammatesStedmon Lemon (Lithonia, Ga.) and Alandre Davis (Florence, S.C.) also eclipsed the 20 point mark with Lemon registering 23 points and Davis chipping in 22.
Lemon finished 6-of-8 from the free throw line and was 7-of 11 from the field, including a 3-of-6 mark from long range in the win. Davis was perfect from the line (8-of-8) and was 7-of-10 from the field. Sophomore Robert Davis (West Friendship, Md.) also had a productive night, scoring eight points while dishing nine assists.
After being tied at 40-40 at halftime, JCSU quickly built and eight point lead at 52-44 after Pratt knocked down a jumper with 13:13 left. The Blue Bears would eventually tie the game at 60-60 with 6:32 to play when Daryl Trynham knocked down two free throws after forcing a JCSU turnover.
JCSU would respond by building a nine point lead at 75-66 after a free throw from Lemon with 3:12 to play. The Blue Bears would trim the lead to six points on two occasions down the stretch, with the latter coming after Eric Dubose converted a layup with 59 seconds to play. JCSU would then go on to make 4-of-5 free throws down the stretch and added an exclamation point when Lemon broke away for a highlight-reel dunk off the backboard that made it 89-77. A tip in from Livingstone's Nasir Austin and a layup at the buzzer from Trynham provided the 89-81 final.
The win improves JCSU to 10-8 overall, 5-4 in CIAA play and 3-0 in the Southern Division while Livingstone falls to 8-12, 3-5 in CIAA play and 1-2 in Divisional play.
The Golden Bulls will hit the road for their next game, travelling to Winston-Salem State on Wednesday for a Southern Divisional battle with the Rams. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at the Gaines Center.
COURTESY JOHNSON C. SMITH UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS
NORFOLK, Virginia -- For the second straight game and the second time in three days, the Norfolk State men's basketball team tied the school for 3-pointers, and the Spartans scored a season high in points in a 92-73 win over Savannah State on Monday night at Joseph Echols Hall.
Senior Charles Oliver hit 6-of-8 from beyond the arc and shot 8-of-11 overall for a career-high 25 points. He helped NSU hit 14-of-30 from 3-point range, tying the record originally set in November against DePaul in the Paradise Jam and then tied again on Saturday against South Carolina State.
The Spartans tied their season high for points in a half with 52 in the second after holding a 14-point lead at the break. Savannah State's only lead on the night came at the beginning when the Tigers scored the first bucket of the game. NSU led by double digits for most of the last 15 minutes of the first half, and by at least 20 most of the second stanza.
With the win, its fifth in the last six games, NSU improved to 10-12 overall and 6-1 in the MEAC. The Spartans now sit a half game behind Hampton for first place after the Pirates (7-1) lost to South Carolina State on Monday night.
NSU and Hampton will play the first Battle of the Bay of the season next Saturday when the Spartans travel to Hampton for a 6 p.m. matchup with first place in the league on the line.
Senior D'Shon Taylor and junior Jonathan Wade each added 14 points to the Spartan scoring effort, combining to hit 10-of-14 from the field in front of a crowd of 1,812. Senior Jeff Short also reached double figures with 13, and he, Taylor, Wade and sophomore Devonte Banner each had two 3-pointers.
The Spartans again started off on fire, jumping out to a 13-2 lead to start the game. The Spartans still led by 11 on a jumper by Wade and then two free throws by Oliver at the 11:03 mark. Those two points started a 10-0 run that put NSU up by 19, 27-8, with Oliver capping that spurt with a trey with eight minutes left before the half.
Taylor and Short each added buckets from beyond the arc for the Spartans, who eventually went up by as much as 21 when freshman Alex Long converted two from the foul line with just 4:26 left. The Tigers (7-11, 3-4 MEAC) did outscore the Spartans 10-3 from that point forward to close out the half, cutting the Norfolk State lead to 40-26 at the break.
NSU hit 7-of-14 from long range in the first half but just 43 percent overall. The Spartans hit better than 50 percent from the field in the second half and finished the game 24-of-51 (47.1 percent).
Norfolk State was also helped by a season-high 30-of-35 effort from the free throw line. The Spartans came into the game leading the nation in free throw percentage at 77.9 and bumped that number up by hitting 85.7 percent against the Tigers.
Isaiah Felder drained a 3-pointer less than a minute into the second half to get the Tigers to within 13. The Spartans quickly countered by scoring the next eight points in the game, and a short time later sophomore Zaynah Robinson hit two from the charity stripe to give NSU a 21-point lead, 54-33, with 15:50 still to go.
The advantage never dipped below 21 after that point, and a 10-0 run near the eight-minute mark gave the Spartans their biggest lead of the game at 32, 81-49.
Oliver had 12 points in second half after tallying 13 in the first. Long, meanwhile, posted career highs of nine rebounds, four blocks and three assists while scoring six points. Junior Brian Kelley had a career-high five assists and two of NSU's nine blocks on the night.
The Spartans held the edge on the glass, 35-29, although the Tigers did outscore NSU 28-14 in points in the paint and 13-6 in second-chance points. Norfolk State, meanwhile, had a season-high nine blocks.
Savannah State shot 25-of-60 (41.7 percent) from the floor, including 8-of-23 from 3-point range. Christopher Martin was one of five players in double figures for SSU with 16 points. Dexter McClanahan had 15, while Troyce Manassa tallied 14 points with a team-leading six rebounds.
NSU got another strong effort from its bench with 45 points.
HAMPTON, Virginia -- South Carolina State junior guard Eric Eaves scored a team-high 18 points, while sophomore guard Ty Solomon nailed a late 3-pointer and tossed in two important free throws, to give Hampton their first conference loss of the season ,67-62, Monday (Jan.25) at the HU Convocation Center.
The Bulldogs gave head coach Murray Garvin his only true birthday wish with the road victory over league leading Hampton. SC State improves to 11-11 overall, 6-2 in the MEAC, while Hampton falls to 11-8 overall, 7-1 in the league.
Eaves was 8-of-11 shooting for South Carolina State, while senior forward/center Daryll Palmer chipped in 11 points and eight rebounds and sophomore forward Tashombe Riley added the games only double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Soloman finished with seven points.
Despite 15 lofty turnovers, the Bulldogs controlled the tempo in the paint outscoring (38-32) and out rebounding (47-42) the Pirates, while producing 36 unanswered points from bench play.
The game was tied at 60 with 1:28 left. After a Hampton miss, Soloman drilled a 3-pointer to go up 63-60. Senior guard Quinton Chievous made a layup to cut it to one, and Hampton fouled three straight times to send sophomore guard Ed Stephens to the line.
Stephens made both to make it a three-point game again. Hampton's Brian Darden missed a 3, and Soloman gathered the rebound, was fouled, and made both free throws for the final margin.
Hampton was led by Reginald Johnson Jr. with 19 points. Darden had 13 points and Chievous had 12 points and nine boards in the loss.
For more information, on South Carolina State Athletics visit the official website at www.scsuathletics.com or call the Office of Athletic Media Relations at (803) 5 36-7060.
BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- After playing from behind for almost the entire game in an overtime loss to Alabama State on Saturday night, the Southern women never trailed in an easy victory against Alabama A&M on Monday afternoon.
The Jaguars scored the first eight points of the game, led by 18 after one quarter and never led by fewer than 15 points the rest of the way. The result was a 77-38 victory in the F.G. Clark Activity Center that improved Southern to 6-2 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference and 9-8 overall. The Jaguars host Alcorn State on Saturday. The Lady Bulldogs are 2-5 and 3-14.
“We were in a wait-and-see mode Saturday night,” Southern coach Sandy Pugh said. “I wanted us to just go and go and keep the energy up.”
Southern had the lead just twice during the 45 minutes of a 60-59 loss to Alabama State, but took the lead for good against AAMU on two free throws by Skylar O’Bear 19 seconds into the game.
Britney Washington led the Jaguars with a game-high 18 points, Briana Green scored 14 and Cortnei Purnell had 13.
BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- Alabama A&M brought the leading scorer in the Southwestern Athletic Conference into the F.G. Clark Activity Center on Monday night.
But Southern neutralized Ladarius Tabb, not only holding him to eight points, 13 below his season average, but also by having four Jaguars outscore him.
Adrian Rodgers scored a game-high 20 points, Christopher Hyder had 14 and Rashad Andrews and Trelun Banks had 10 each as Southern beat the Bulldogs 73-52.
“We had individuals step up against him, but it was all about team defense,” Southern coach Roman Banks said. “I don’t think you can ever stop him, but I thought we controlled him and got him out of his rhythm.”
Tabb made 3-of-9 shots and missed all four of his 3-pointers, playing just 20 minutes because of foul trouble and the lopsided margin. Quinterian McConico came off the bench to lead AAMU with 12 points, and Nicholas West scored 10.
NEW ORLEANS — Jordan Washington scored 32 points, including the go-ahead points in overtime, to lead NAIA No. 8 Talladega to a 62-58 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball victory against 21st-ranked Xavier University of Louisiana.
The Tornadoes (16-4, 4-1) remained in a tie in the GCAC with Dillard, which won 80-55 at home against Edward Waters.
Washington's only points of overtime occurred on a 3-point play that put Talladega ahead to stay, 55-52, with 1:51 remaining.
Washington was 11-of-17 from the floor and 9-of-11 from the line in 42 minutes but also committed nine turnovers. It was his third 30-point game this season. Courtney Mack had 11 points, eight rebounds and two blocks for Talladega.
Morris Wright scored 23 points for the Gold Rush (15-8, 2-4), and Seth Jackson had 11 points and five assists.
Talladega led 30-24 at halftime. Gary Smith's basket for Xavier with 13 seconds remaining in regulation tied the game at 48 and forced overtime.
The teams made a combined 4-of-30 on 3-pointers. Talladega was 0-of-13 on treys after halftime.
Xavier will visit GCAC and city rival SUNO at 7:30 p.m. next Monday.
NEW ORLEANS — Shakeena Benton scored 12 points and sparked a late rally which lifted NAIA No. 19 Talladega to a 62-55 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference women's basketball victory against 20th-ranked Xavier University of Louisiana.
The Lady Tornadoes (16-3, 4-0) won their sixth straight and gave the Gold Nuggets (14-8, 3-3) their first home loss of the season.
Xavier led 50-49 after Whitney Gathright made two free throws with 5:43 remaining, then Benton scored half of the Lady Tornadoes' points during a 10-1 run which gave them a 59-51 lead at 1:44. Benton's 3-pointer at 4:17 put Talladega ahead to stay, 53-50, and she capped the surge with two free throws.
Ashley Burchfield and Tashieba Henry scored 10 points apiece for Talladega, and Latisha Brown had nine points, nine rebounds and three steals.
Freshman Keira Robinson, playing for the first time in six games, had 13 points, six rebounds and a career-high three steals for Xavier. Gathright had 11 points, seven rebounds and six rebounds.
Xavier, which is 8-1 at home this season, led 28-26 at halftime.
Talladega outshot Xavier 46.7 to 28.1 percent from the floor, 47.8 to 19.4 percent in the second half. The Gold Nuggets were plus-10 in turnovers, committing 14 and gaining 24.
Gathright, a senior point guard, became the 16th Gold Nugget to reach 1,200 career points. She has 1,206. Donyeah Mayfield's 3-pointer at 3:03 of the third quarter made her the second Gold Nugget to reach 20 3-pointers and 20 blocked shots in the same season. Mayfield, a senior forward, has 20 treys and 26 blocks in 21 games. Antasha Jones made 21 3-pointers and blocked 23 shots for Xavier in 36 games in 1996-97.
Xavier will visit GCAC and city rival SUNO at 5:30 p.m. next Monday.
HOUSTON, Texas -- The Texas Southern University Lady Tigers basketball team continued its dominance in conference play Monday night as they rolled past the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Lady Lions, 57-30.
The win pushes the Lady Tigers to a perfect 7-0 record in SWAC competition and an 11-6 overall record. It was the tenth-straight win for TSU.
When asked if anyone on the team has any superstitions that they are maintaining throughout the streak, head coach, Johnetta Hayes-Perry, said, "no strange superstition, but we are in a routine where we do the same thing everyday in warm-ups and where we stand in line. That's our little corny thing."
The Lady Tigers were balanced and efficient on the offensive side of the ball as they had four players score in double figures. The distribution of scoring was reflected by the fact that of 22 made baskets for TSU, 18 came off of assists.
Senior forward, Toni Cheadle, posted a double-double as she scored 12 points and pulled down 17 rebounds. She also contributed 5 assists. She received a lot of help from another senior as guard, Brianna Sidney, led all scorers with 13 points.
Freshman point guard, Joyce Kennerson, scored 12 points and had 5 assists while senior center, Keiana Vines, poured in 12 points and was a force to be reckoned with on defense as she blocked 8 shots.
Vines' tenacity down low was matched by her teammates as the Lady Tigers turned up the intensity on defense and stifled the Lady Lions all night. For the game, UAPB was held to a meager 18 percent shooting from the field and did not make a three-pointer. TSU also dominated on the boards as they outrebounded the Lady Lions 49-34.
Next up, the Lady Tigers go for their eleventh-straight win as they head to Montgomery, Alabama to take on Alabama State, Saturday ni
ght. Tip-off is set for 3:00 pm.
JACKSON, Mississippi -- Jackson State built some recruiting momentum last weekend when it had its initial official visits and brought 20 recruits on campus.
The Tigers were able to secure nine verbal commitments and they were able to keep the ball rolling this past weekend.
JSU had 20 to 25 recruits in town and received nine more verbal commitments, according to a source.
Tupelo defensive end Kyree Bradford, who stands at 6-foot-7, 220 pounds, gave his pledge to the Tigers. JSU was able to add more bodies to its defensive line when it received commitments from a pair of Provine defensive ends in Kahlil Johnson and Devon McNeil, who both stand at 6-foot-4.
Leake County receiver Kobe Gates (6-foot-4, 215 pounds) gave first-year Tigers coach Tony Hughes another wideout commit. JSU picked up two receiver commits last week.
WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina -- It’s that time of year when sports are colliding in a big way at WSSU.
I was able to check out the baseball team practicing indoors in preparation for its Feb. 5 opener at BB&T Ballpark against Millersville. I was also keeping tabs on both the women’s and men’s basketball teams at the Gaines Center. They were taking on Fayetteville State.
I was also able to get a hold of the WSSU football schedule for 2016, and it’s a good one.
The Rams, the defending CIAA champions who went 6-5, will open at home on Sept. 3 against UNC Pembroke before traveling down Route 52 to play Catawba on Sept. 10. The Rams will then have consecutive home games against Virginia Union and Virginia State.
The Rams will have a balanced schedule with five home games and five away games. This season will also mark the first time the Rams will travel to take on Lincoln (Pa.) since they rejoined the CIAA in 2010.
Dominique understands he could have fallen in the same trap as his older brother, who is currently in prison and facing a possible sentence of nearly 200 years on numerous charges.
MEMPHIS, Tennessee -- Golf has been good for former LeMoyne-Owen standout Dominique Worthen. He reminds himself of this as he reflects on his short but amazing two-year run at LOC.
During the 2015 college golf season, Worthen won the PGA National Minority Collegiate Championship. He also won the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) Tournament title and was named the conference’s golfer of the year. Late during the summer, he set the course record at Ted Rhodes Golf Course in Nashville by posting a 60 in the Duffers Golf Tournament benefiting Sickle Cell research.
He has taken pictures with former Memphis Mayor AC Wharton, laughed it up basketball hall of famer Magic Johnson, rubbed shoulders with local hoops legend Penny Hardaway, and appeared on a social media post with Grizzlies’ Tony Allen.
But those things are part of the icing. The cake is represented in the name of his website, golfsavedmylife.com. It is what Worthen believes: Golf saved his life.
WHEELING, West Virginia — With the national football signing period set to begin Wednesday, February 3, several prominent senior standouts from the past year in the state have been weighing their options.
One of those has been Wheeling Park receiver/defensive back Elijah Bell who is also in the middle of basketball season with the Patriots. Bell recently announced his commitment to North Carolina A&T out of the MEAC, a Division I FCS program.
Bell made the announcement on his Twitter account.
Bell was a force on both sides of the ball this past season as the Patriots won the Class AAA football state championship. Bell collected 50 catches for 1,214 yards (24.3 yards per catch) and 17 touchdowns. Defensively, Bell added 57 tackles.
Bell finished third in both the MetroNews Player of the Year and Kennedy Award voting, while being named USA Today’s Offensive Player of the Year in West Virginia.
WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina -- Stephen A. Smith doesn’t mind putting his money where his mouth is when making a point on his ESPN show “First Take.”
Smith also made a point Saturday morning at a Winston-Salem State fund-raising breakfast by committing $50,000 toward his alma mater for each of the next five years.
“It’s the right thing to do,” said Smith, a 1991 graduate and former sportswriter who started at the Winston-Salem Journal as a part-time clerk when he was in college.
WSSU officials said the breakfast raised $33,000. This was the first year the fundraiser was held.
Smith said he’s proud of being a product of a historically black college, but he also said the institutions need help.
“A lot of HBCUs are hurting financially, but I’m here to tell you they are needed in a big way,” Smith said.
Smith, a member of the Big House Gaines Hall of Fame at WSSU for his service to the university, attended WSSU on a basketball scholarship but injuries limited his time on the court.
BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- Now that Southern has its full complement of players, men’s basketball coach Roman Banks has the most options he has had since the start of Southwestern Athletic Conference play.
With guard Trelun Banks and center D’Adrian Allen having returned from ankle injuries, the Jaguars expect to have everyone available for a conference game for the first time this season when they meet Alabama A&M at 6 p.m. Monday in the F.G. Clark Activity Center. The game will air on ESPNU.
Trelun Banks returned from a two-game absence to start, play 38 minutes and score a team-high 21 points in Saturday’s 73-69 home victory against Alabama State. Allen wasn’t as far along in his recuperation, but he still managed to come off the bench and contribute three points and two rebounds in 12 minutes.
Coach Banks used 10 players in the game, more than he had used in any of the previous SWAC games for Southern (13-7, 5-2).
WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina -- In his cramped office inside the Bowman Gray Stadium Fieldhouse Marc Heinecke sees plenty of clutter.
But for Heinecke, the busy head strength and conditioning coach at Winston-Salem State, there’s not enough time in the day to keep a clean office.
As a one-man staff he’s in charge of keeping the more than 200 athletes at WSSU in top shape. That means long hours, but for somebody who has a passion for his job he isn’t complaining.
At the Division II level, Heinecke is what you call a bonus baby. There aren’t a lot of schools, at least in the budget-conscious CIAA, that have the luxury of a full-time strength coach.
“I think there are about three or four schools (out of 12) in the CIAA who have a full-time strength guy,” said Heinecke, who is entering his fourth year at WSSU.
COLUMBIA, South Carolina -- The 15th-ranked Benedict College Lady Tigers used a dominating second quarter to defeat Albany State 82-53 in a rematch of last year’s SIAC Championship game Saturday afternoon at Benedict.
In a battle for first place in the SIAC East Division, Benedict outscored the Lady Rams 26-2 in the second period to take a 49-26 halftime lead and held on for the victory.
Benedict improved to 19-1 overall and 9-1 in the SIAC with its 14th straight victory. Albany State dropped to 8-10 overall and 8-2 in the SIAC.
Zuri Frost led Albany State with 16 points.
Albany State will play host to Miles College Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
MOBILE, Alabama – The Spring Hill College (SHC) men's basketball team lost an 83-78 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) West Division contest on Saturday evening versus the Stillman College Tigers at the Arthur R. Outlaw Recreation Center.
The West Division leading Tigers (12-5, 8-1 SIAC West) fought out to a 41-37 lead at halftime and built a 12-point 58-46 advantage with 12:30 left in the second half. The Badgers rallied to cut the lead to just two points on three occasions only to see Stillman respond each time with either successful free throws or layups on the other end to keep the Badgers from wresting away the lead.
Freshman guard Sawyer Glick dropped in two 3-point buckets in the final five seconds, but it would prove to be too late as Stillman converted 5-of-7 free throws over the last 22 seconds to secure the victory.
Glick paced SHC with 17 points and eight rebounds while sophomore forward Walter Massey pitched in 16 points, senior guard Wesley Pietri added 14 points off the bench and freshman forward Chase Shellman contributed 12 points. Spring Hill shot 46.8% (29-62) from the floor and was 33.3% (6-18) in 3-point attempts. The Badgers won the rebounding war by a 39-35 margin, but lost 15 turnovers to nine Stillman steals.
NORFOLK, Virginia – Norfolk State tied the school record for 3-pointers set earlier in the season, and a big first half propelled the Spartan men's basketball team to an 87-74 victory on Saturday evening at Joseph Echols Hall.
NSU had six players reach double figures in scoring, thanks in part to a first half in which the Spartans hit 10 3-pointers and shot nearly 61 percent from the field. They finished the game with 14 treys, tying the school record set earlier this year against DePaul in the Paradise Jam.
The Spartans outscored the Bulldogs 51-35 in the first stanza, the second time this season scoring 50 or more in a half. NSU hit 20-of-33 from the floor before the intermission but less than 40 percent in the second half.
Nevertheless, the victory bumped NSU into second place in the MEAC ahead of South Carolina State. The Bulldogs fell to 10-11 overall and 5-2 in the conference, breaking a five-game win streak in the process.
NSU, meanwhile, won for the fourth time in the last five games, improving to 9-12 overall and 5-1 in the MEAC behind first place Hampton (7-0). It marked the third game this year NSU scored at least 87 points against a MEAC school.
The Spartans shot 14-of-32 from the 3-point line, also tying the school record for attempts set against Coppin State on Jan. 30, 2012. Six of those treys on Saturday evening came from senior Charles Oliver, who shot 6-of-12 from beyond the arc and finished with a team-high 19 points. NSU finished with six players in double figures for the first time since Dec. 5, 2013 against Florida A&M.
Both teams got off to a ridiculous pace in the early going, with senior D'Shon Taylor hitting treys on back-to-back possessions to get NSU going. Oliver sank a trey at 13:18, the team's fifth of the night already, to put the Spartans up by seven, 22-15.
S.C. State's Eric Eaves, the team's leading scorer, countered by getting to the rim quickly on several occasions. He did so 30 seconds apart, with the second bucket making it 26-23 in favor of the Spartans at the midway point of the half. The Spartans countered, though, by outscoring the Bulldogs 16-6 in less than four minutes for a 13-point edge.
The scoring eventually slowed – NSU went four minutes without a point, but senior Jeff Short sank a pair of 3-pointers, and Oliver hit the 10th of the half with 34 seconds left to give the Spartans a 51-35 lead at the break.
The Bulldogs got to within single digits just once in the second half. Before that time, they had to overcome a 21-point NSU lead, as the Spartans scored seven of the first nine points of the second half. Up 21 at 58-37, the Spartans led by at least 16 before the Bulldogs got 3-pointers on three straight possessions to make it 64-53 with 8:54 left.
Oliver and Taylor each hit treys to keep the lead in double digits, but eventually S.C. State got it down to nine at 73-64 after another fastbreak layup by Eaves and two free throws from Greg Mortimer. Junior Jonathan Wade got a 3-point play off a Bulldog turnover, and NSU led by double digits, and as much as 16, the rest of the way.
Eaves finished with a game-high 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting and had all 12 of the Bulldogs fastbreak points on the night. Darryl Palmer was the only other Bulldog player in double figures with 13 points to go along with 10 rebounds.
With Eaves and Palmer not in the starting lineup, South Carolina State's bench scored 55 of the team's 74 points on the night. NSU also got 42 points from its bench as well.
South Carolina State also held a 36-30 edge on the glass, but NSU did its damage thanks to S.C. State's sloppiness. The Bulldogs had 17 turnovers, and the Spartans outscored them 30-9 in points off turnovers.
Taylor had 13 points and four assists, while sophomore Zaynah Robinson tied his career high with 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting. Taylor also had three 3-pointers, with senior Jeff Short also hitting three from beyond the arc. Short, though, finished with just nine points, failing to reach double figures for the first time in 10 games.
Wade, junior Preston Bungei and freshman Alex Long each added 10 points for NSU. Long led the Spartans with six rebounds and had two of the team's seven total blocks in the game. It marked the third straight game the team had at least five players reach double figures in scoring.
NSU ended the night 32-of-64 from the floor, while S.C. State hit 44.8 percent on 26-of-58 shooting. The Bulldogs also connected on 7-of-17 from long range and had 11 more attempts than NSU at the charity stripe.
The Spartans will host Savannah State on Monday at 8 p.m.
HAMPTON, Virginia -- After 20 minutes of play Saturday evening at the HU Convocation Center, it appeared the "Cardiac Kids" were going to make another appearance. But a 47-point second half propelled the Hampton University men's basketball team to a 75-52 win over Savannah State.
The Pirates (11-7) won their sixth straight game and improved to 7-0 in MEAC play.
Quinton Chievous led four Pirates in double figures with 26 points, while also grabbing a team-high 16 rebounds for his sixth double-double of the season – and his ninth in his last 19 games dating back to last season.
Chievous also dished out five assists.
Lawrence Cooks came off the bench to drop 15 points on 5-for-9 shooting, while Brian Darden added 13 points on three 3-pointers and Akim Mitchell chipped in a season-high 10 points.
The Pirates shot 42.1 percent (24-for-57) from the floor on the night, hitting nine of their 20 3-pointers (45.0 percent). The Pirates also held a 44-32 edge in rebounding and turned 17 Savannah State turnovers into 25 points.
Hampton scored the game's first seven points, capping that run with a tear-drop floater on the baseline from Mitchell, before the Tigers scored the next five points to cut the gap to 7-5. A jumper from Cooks at the 9:51 mark of the first half gave the Pirates a 20-12 lead.
But Savannah State answered with a 9-1 run, tying the game at 21-21 with 4:54 left in the half after a free throw from Troyce Manassa. The score was tied three more times in the final minutes of the half – and a three from Christopher Martin sent the teams into the break tied at 28-28.
Darden scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half.
A 4-1 spurt to open the second half gave the Tigers a 32-29 lead with 18:45 left to play, before the Pirates went on a 10-0 run – taking a 39-32 lead after a layup from Mitchell with 15:37 remaining. Chievous added a jumper at the 15:27 mark to put Hampton up 41-34.
That jumper kicked off an 8-2 Hampton run that put the Pirates up 49-36 after Mitchell hit a trey at the 12:23 mark.
Savannah State cut the lead to 10, 51-41, with 10:25 remaining, but that was the closest the Tigers would get. In fact, Hampton answered that Martin layup with a 9-1 run – taking a 60-42 lead with 7:31 left after a layup from Reginald Johnson, Jr.
Trevond Barnes hit a free throw with 2:43 left to give Hampton its largest lead of the game at 75-49. That free throw capped an 11-0 Hampton run.
Savannah State (7-10, 3-3 MEAC) shot 38.2 percent (21-for-55) from the floor, but made just three of the 17 3-pointers they took (17.6 percent). The Tigers also struggled at the free throw line, going 7-for-16 (43.8 percent).
Martin led three Tigers in double figures with 15 points.
The Pirates will play host to South Carolina State on Monday at 7 p.m. For more information on Hampton University basketball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.
NEWPORT NEWS, Virginia – Hampton University senior Trey Holloway broke his own school record in the men's 60-meter hurdles during the CNU Captain's Invitational, held Friday and Saturday at the Freeman Center.
Holloway had come close to breaking the mark on numerous occasions already so far this season, but his 7.70 in the finals of the event – which was the best time – set the new best.
His previous best was 7.72, set last season.
Holloway now holds the second-fastest time in the nation in that event.
Holloway's title in the 60-meter hurdles was one of three for the Pirates over the weekend; junior Rayon Black took gold in the 800-meter run after turning in a 1:56.68.
Redshirt junior Christian Faber-Kinney won the heptathlon with 4,561 points. Faber-Kinney did not win any of the seven events, but he finished no worse than fourth in any of them (including a second-place effort in the shot put).
Freshman Jerrick Powell was third with 4,442 points. He won three events in the heptathlon: the 60-meter dash, 1,000-meter run, and long jump.
The Lady Pirates won seven events over the weekend, including gold medals in both the 4x200-meter relay (1:41.30) and distance medley (12:26.17). Freshman Erin Morrison was on both squads; she anchored the 4x200 team along with senior Kristian Young, freshman Tiara Robinson, and freshman Saenea Williams.
Morrison also won the 400-meter dash with a season-best 57.81, and Murray ran a 5:22.30 to win the mile run.
Robinson ran a 25.37 to win the 200-meter dash.
Senior Ce'aira Brown competed in the 3,000-meter run, taking gold after running a season-best 10:20.57. Her time was just four seconds why of Krystle Medlin's school record.
Freshman Kaitlin Scott won the pentathlon with 3,274 points. She won the 60-meter hurdles, high jump, and shot put in the competition. Sophomore Kayla Key, who was second with 3,166 points, won the other two events – the long jump and 800-meter run.
The Pirates and Lady Pirates will compete in a pair of meets this coming Friday and Saturday: the John Thomas Terrier Classic in Boston, Mass. and the Darius Dixon Memorial Invitational hosted by Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va.
For more information on Hampton University track & field, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.
NEW ORLEANS -- The Dillard University Bleu Devils produced 50 second half points en route to a 84-74 victory at the Battlefield in Dent Hall over the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics' eight-ranked team in Talladega College in the NAIA Network Division 1 Men's Basketball Game of the Week. With the win, Dillard moves into sole possession of first place in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference, and the loss snaps Talladega's 11-game win streak.
Dillard (11-6, 3-1 GCAC) was led by junior standout Demetric Austin (JR/Washington, D.C.) who finished with a double-double, scoring 28 points and grabbing 10 boards in the victory. Austin was thrilled with the outcome but still seemed focused, only showing a casual smile from time to time.
"I feel great," said Austin. "We worked very hard for the past three weeks leading up to conference play and this game goes to show how great we can be. I think Coach Mike Newell had the upper hand today and showed why he is a great coach and was able to beat his mentee Coach Matt Cross."
Dillard led by as many as eight points in the first half before Talladega's Jordan Washington and teammate Qua Doster nailed several shots for the Tornadoes. Doster finished with a team-high 24 points and buried 7-of-11 three-pointers while Washington scored 19 points and dished out five assists in the loss.
"I think we can go all the way to a championship game, we just have to have the same mentality and spirit all the way through conference play," said Austin. "Also, I love our fans. They were great and they always support us."
As a team Dillard dominated the glass by grabbing 47 boards to only 29 for the Tornadoes. The Bleu Devils shot over 50 percent from the field thanks to players like junior Dennis Reed (JR/England, Ark.) who finished with 16 points and hit 8-of-9 shots from the field. Reed also pulled down eight boards while teammate Dennis Hightower (JR/Chicago, Ill.) filled the stat sheet with 13 points, eight assists, seven rebounds and tfuwo steals in nearly 40 minutes of action.
Dillard continues GCAC action on Monday, January 25 as they host Edward Waters College. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.
BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- Southern got a boost from the return of injured starters Trelun Banks and D’Adrian Allen.
And those two got a helping hand from Jared Sam as the Jaguars needed all hands on deck to hold off Alabama State 73-69 on Saturday night in the F.G. Clark Activity Center.
Banks returned from a two-game absence with a sprained ankle to start, play 38 minutes and score 21 points. Allen returned from a six-game absence with a sprained ankle to come off the bench and get three points and two rebounds in 12 minutes.
“(The ankle) felt pretty good,” said Banks, who made 7 of 12 shots, including 4 of 8 3-pointers. “I didn’t think about it very much. Once I started getting up and down the court, the adrenaline started pumping and it really wasn’t on my mind.”
JACKSON, Mississippi -- Hitting shots and scoring points had become an issue for Jackson State guard Javeres Brent during the first six games of SWAC play.
So much so that even his teammates had to tell Brent, who had scored nine points and made just three shots in those six contests, about it.
"One thing my teammates always put in my head, they would tell me it was me. Me missing shots was the reasons (our SWAC games were close)," Brent said. "They said if the 3s drop, the lead spreads. So I had to take that with me."
It was apparent the message found its intended destination. Brent drained seven 3s and scored 21 points to help JSU claim its largest conference victory of the season, 60-45, against Grambling at the Lee E. Williams AAC on Saturday night.
JACKSON, Mississippi -- Mississippi State has offered Alcorn State head coach Jay Hopson a position on staff, a source confirmed to The Clarion-Ledger on Tuesday.
