NCAA Invites should go to best conference record

In a stretch from 2005 to 2007, Greg Jackson's Delaware State Hornets were the toast of the MEAC, winning 32 of a possible 36 league games over that two-year span. Yet they were never able to go dancing. That's because the NCAA mistakenly rewards teams for reeling off three or four consecutive wins in a conference tournament rather than handing out a bid to the NCAA tournament for a body of work compiled in more than three months. Makes no sense.

Delaware State University Hornets men's head basketball coach Greg Jackson.

"The NCAA needs to change it," Jackson said. "One team gets hot and all you've done is null and void." Sure, the NCAA recently implemented a rule in which any team that wins their regular-season title receives an automatic bid to the NIT. But what kid these days grows up with dreams of playing in the NIT? No one. Delaware State was 16-2 in league play in 2005-06 but watched a Hampton team that was 10-8 in conference action go to the NCAA tournament. The next season the Hornets finished with an identical mark yet this time it was Florida A&M and its 12-6 mark that wound up getting automatic inclusion via three wins in March.

It wasn't the only time that Florida A&M pulled the upset either. The Rattlers were 12-19 overall back in 1999 and pulled off the upset to win the league tournament and get into the Big Dance.

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NBL’s Wollongong Hawks/South Philly’s Tywain McKee out for remainder of season

The Wollongong Hawks are committed to nursing injured guard Tywain McKee back to full health. Ruled out for the remainder of the season with two stress fractures in his lower back, McKee is expected to stay in Wollongong in the off-season and undergo an extensive rehabilitation process. The Coppin State University graduate has been instrumental in the Hawks' quest for NBL supremacy and the club is keen to foster a good relationship with the skilful playmaker and re-sign him for the 2010-11 season.

"Tywain is a great talent and we want to make sure he receives the best medical attention and is able to recover fully," Wollongong coach Gordie McLeod said. There's no chance Ty will be back this season, so it's about getting him on the road to recovery so he can play down the track. "It's definitely a big loss for the club, no doubt about it. But this is professional sports and it's the game we play. Injuries happen and you just have to work through the adversity and continue to move forward as a team."



McKee was on the Wollongong bench when the Hawks came from behind to beat New Zealand 83-78 on Wednesday night. The 23-year-old said he was devastated by the news and would work hard to overcome his injury. McKee's replacement Luke Martin debuted for the Hawks against the Breakers and will remain with the club until the end of the season. McLeod said McKee's warm personality endeared him to his coaches and team-mates as much as his playing ability.

"It's a killer blow for Ty and it's a setback for the club, because Ty brought some characteristics that really complemented the rest of the group," he said.

Full coverage of the Wollongong Hawks

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New recruit, Darryl Hudson hopes for a smooth transition

Darryl Hudson, 24, has played at the professional level in Finland and Hungary after completing his education at Howard University. This flick is a game from this first professional season in Finland. Hudson is #5 in orange uniform.

A self-described "military baby", new Wellington Saints import Darryl Hudson hopes to carve out a career Down Under shooting hoops, not guns. The 24-year-old American guard has fashioned a solid basketball resume, playing in the top German and Finnish leagues after graduating from Howard University. And when his American-based trainer, former Australian NBL player Phil Handy, discovered Pero Cameron would be coaching the Saints this season, an unlikely connection was made. "When I had this opportunity, I had to take it," Hudson said.

"My goal is to play in this league and then get to the Australian league. [Handy] knows Pero pretty well and he wanted Pero to check me out. Pero liked me so he brought me here." Hudson seems genuinely excited to be in Wellington and is full of questions about Cameron. "I heard he was kind of a legend, he's like big time around here. Is that right? That's a good thing for our team right there and then he's also playing too. I know he's like the Michael Jordan of New Zealand/Australia, that's what I heard." Hudson hopes to bring his girlfriend out from America to live with him and explains why playing ball on the other side of the world appeals.

"Europe basketball is cool but to play in Australia, man, that's something that a lot of people don't get to do. It's far away, it's far as hell, but it's a good league and I have a couple of friends, like Tywain McKee from Coppin State University [Wollongong Hawks import] that play in that league." Just laidback man, that's my type of lifestyle. People embrace you when you meet them, instead of people just being standoff-ish in Europe, because they don't understand the language."

Hudson chuckles when told Saints chief executive Nick Mills has identified a touch of Boston Celtics superstar Ray Allen in his play. "I would say I'm a smooth player, but I'm not Ray Allen. I like players like Ray Allen, Joe Johnson, the smooth guys, Penny Hardaway, those type of players. I'll try my hardest to be him but ... "

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B-CU Vanessa Inge Named MEAC Coach of the Year

VIRGINIA BEACH, VA - In an official announcement Thursday, conference officials named Bethune-Cookman women's basketball Head Coach Vanessa Inge the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Coach of the Year. This is the first MEAC honor for the second-year coach, but far from her first accolades. MEAC officials also announced the All-MEAC teams, and for the third consecutive year, a Lady Wildcats was on the lists, as Demetria Frank was recognized on the All-MEAC second team for the second time.

Inge guided the Lady Wildcats to 15-14 mark, and 9-7 record in conference play, including an 8-1 record at home. In her second year at the helm, the Lady Wildcats tallied their highest win total since the 1987-88 season and secured their first winning season in eight years. Inge is only the second coach at B-CU to earn such an honor since joining the MEAC, with the first being Sandra Booker, who won the award in 2003.

Although this is her first coaching award at B-CU, and in the MEAC, it is not new territory for the Lady Wildcats' head woman. In her stop at Mount St. Mary's before B-CU, Inge earned Northeast Conference (NEC) Coach of the Year in her debut season. Additionally, she earned NEC Player of the Year twice, as a post player at MSM. With her track record for success, Wildcat fans can expect this to be the first of many.

Demetria Frank earned her third consecutive conference honors, as MEAC officials tabbed her for the All-MEAC second team. So far this season, Frank is averaging 9.3 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.9 steals, and 2.8 assists per game. She leads the team in scoring, free throws, and steals, while second in rebounds, assists, and blocked shots. In the MEAC, Frank is second in steals (27th in the NCAA), eighth in scoring, and eleventh in rebounds. Demetria was named to the All-MEAC second team last season and on the MEAC All-Rookie team in her freshman season.

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SWAC Bowling Pairings Set

BOSSIER CITY, LA – Alabama A&M and Southern earned the top two seeds after Day One of the 2010 SWAC Bowling Championship at the Holiday Lanes. Grambling State, Prairie View A&M, Jackson State and Alabama State will be seeds 3-6 as Saturday’s competition moves to a double-elimination bracket playing the Baker format. Friday’s competition was a round-robin team format, with each team competing against the other five. Based on today’s pin count, the teams have been seeded 1-6 to set the bracket for the weekend.

Alabama A&M bowled a team-high 4,577 on Friday in winning all five matches. The Bulldogs bowled three 900-pin games, highlighted by a 945 score in game one. Jazmin Payne bowled a single-game high 222 to lead Alabama A&M. Southern, the two-time defending conference champions, earned the number two seed bowling a 4393 in posting a 4-1 record. The Jaguars bowled the best team score of the day in posting a 995 in game two. Vanessa Caldwell had the days’ best game in rolling a 247.

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Alcorn ready to tackle baseball season with new coach

Alcorn State baseball coach Barret L. Rey, Sr., ended his first head coaching job at Grambling State with a 56-94 record over a three year span moving the Tigers from the cellar to the SWAC semi-finals in 2009.

LORMAN, MS — Three things are on Alcorn State baseball coach Barret Rey’s mind, and those three things are the key to a championship season, he said. “It’s what I tell them every year,” Rey said. “All we need is defense, situational pitching and situational hitting. If we have those three things, we’ll be alright.” And Rey said he’s not satisfied with simply making the SWAC championship game. The Braves did last year, only to lose 11-7 against Southern University.

“We want to make it back, without a doubt,” Rey said. “But we don’t want to just be content with just getting there this year. We want to win, and we won’t be satisfied until we win. “This is a mature team, with a lot of juniors that were in the championship game last year. If we do things right — if we don’t beat ourselves — we’re going to be awfully tough to beat.” Rey singled out hitting as his team’s biggest strength, and said his players’ athleticism has allowed him the flexibility to move them around to different positions. “We can swing the bat,” Rey said. “We’re a pretty athletic team, too, and our success is going to come from our hitting and athleticism.

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Morgan Sweeps Rival Coppin State, 65-56 on Senior Night

Corin 'Tiny' Adams is Bears' all-time leading scorer of either gender.

The petite 5-foot-5 guard from Brooklyn, New York, turned down Syracuse University in 2006, to come run the show for the Lady Bears for four straight season.

BALTIMORE, MD - Playing in her final home game at Hill Field House, Corin Adams, scored 16 of her game-high 20 points in the first half and fellow senior Kristina Rosario pulled down a game-high 14 rebounds to go with six points, as Morgan State defeated crosstown rival Coppin State, 65-56 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference season finale on Thursday night.

Theresa Davis came off the bench due to senior night and chipped in with 13 points to help the Lady Bears close out the regular season with a 9-1 home mark. Adams, who entered the contest with 535 points this season, finished the regular season with 555, setting the single season scoring record, which she set last season with 547 points.

With the victory Morgan State improved to 17-12 on the season and 12-4 in the MEAC and likely will enter next week’s league tournament as the third seed. Their 12-4 conference mark ties the school record for MEAC victories and is the best overall record, surpassing the 12-6 mark set by the 1999-2000 team.

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Holmes breaks Morgan's scoring record in win over Coppin

Guard passes Webster on Senior Night for MEAC-champion Bears

Reggie Holmes, the hometown hero who helped restore Morgan State basketball to prominence, had the best of farewells at Hill Field House on Thursday night. Playing before a packed house in his final home game, Holmes broke Marvin Webster's all-time scoring record at Morgan with a 36-point effort and a 74-54 victory over Coppin State. The Bears finished the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference regular season with a 15-1 record and their third straight title. They go into next week's MEAC tournament as the prohibitive favorite and No. 1 seed.

Morgan (24-9 overall) pulled away in the second half against a depleted Coppin team beset by injuries and suspensions. The only suspense was how - and when - Holmes would eclipse The Eraser, as the 7-foot-1 Webster was known. The 6-4 senior from St. Frances needed 33 to get the record. He had 19 in the first half and steadily chipped away in the second. With seven minutes left, after hitting his sixth 3, he had 29 points. Two minutes later he was perfect on another 3 that tied Webster's total. And with 4:24 remaining, he got off a 2-point shot as he was fouled. It dropped to give him 34 and the school record. Holmes pumped his fist in quiet celebration.

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Alabama A&M faces limited spring with 1 QB

Alabama A&M will be extremely short-handed during spring practices as the defending SWAC East Division champs have just one quarterback participating. Deaunte Mason, who started the last five games of 2009 and led the Bulldogs to the title game, is the only signal-caller available with Jamari Brady sitting because of academics and Kevin Atkins planning to transfer to Winston Salem State. Coach Anthony Jones told The Huntsville Times he hasn't seen Atkins in a month.

"It's going to hamper us a lot," Jones said. "It's going to help (Mason) because he's going to get a lot of reps, but it's going to hurt him because he's not going to get a lot of rest. I'm going to have to control his reps." A&M signed quarterbacks A.J. Clark and Chris Leachman earlier this month, and they will be available in the fall.

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Delaware State Hornets To Open Season In MEAC/SWAC Challenge vs. Southern Jaguars

DSU played at Michigan last season; now adds MEAC/SWAC Challenge to its resume. Go Hornets!

Dover, DE --- Delaware State University will kick off its 2010 football season in the land of Disney. The Hornets will battle Southern University of Baton Rouge, LA., in the Sixth Annual MEAC/SWAC Challenge on Sunday, September 5, 2010, in Orlando, Florida. The contest at Orlando's Citrus Bowl Stadium will be televised on an ESPN network, which will be announced, along with the kick off time, at a later date.

"This is a great opportunity for our university to participate in an outstanding event," said Derek Carter, Delaware State's Director of Athletics. "I'm sure the experience will be cherished by our student-athletes, alumni and fans will years to come. We invite the entire DSU family to join us in Orlando for the game and other event activities."

The will be Delaware State's first appearance in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge, which pits a top team from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference against one from the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Southern will be making its second appearance in the challenge. The Jaguars defeated the MEAC's Florida A&M 33-27 in 2007 in Birmingham, Ala. Delaware State is 2-0 all-time vs. Southern. The Hornets, led by first-year head coach Bill Collick and All-American John Taylor, defeated the Jaguars 46-8 in 1985 in Baton Rouge, La. The teams met again the following year in Shreveport, La., with the Hornets coming out of top, 21-14.

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NCCU's LeVelle Moton: No excuses necessary

Durham, N.C. -- North Carolina Central UniversityEagles ended its men's basketball season Feb. 25 with an 83-69 loss to Longwood University. Coach LeVelle Moton's first-season record concluded with seven wins against 22 losses. That's still three more wins than all of last year. Don't expect to find Moton in a corner with his head in his hands or polishing up his resume. He knew what the job description entailed when he applied. The Eagles have completed their third independent year of transition to Division I. (Women's basketball ends March 14.) They have won 15 games in three years, but that's going to change.

Next season, the university becomes a full member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, a Division I historically black conference, which will level the playing field considerably. Oh, there'll still be the "money games," where low- to mid-major teams play top Division I programs for financial gain, but they won't make up an entire season. "I had Coach K [Duke's Mike Krzyzewski] call me and tell me he couldn't do what I'm doing," said Moton, the school's third all-time leading scorer (1,714 points). "We've been through some trials and tribulations and some adversity, but that's what life is about. We didn't have Batman, we had a bunch of Robins."

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Throwing a change-up: FAMU's Lee now pitching a baseball instead of a football

A pitcher can get a little rusty when he hasn't stepped on the mound in three years. Tobias Lee is no exception, as he tries to regain the stuff he had during his four years as pitcher for Pike County High School in Alabama. The four-seam fastball is coming back. So is his curve and change-up. But as he tries to execute them for the Florida A&M baseball team, he's found one huge challenge in his two starts for the Rattlers.

"Out of all those (the variation of pitches), just getting used to the strike zone is the most challenging," Lee said. "It's just a matter of getting used to that." If the last name seems familiar, it is. Lee is the same mild-mannered, easy-going, lanky sophomore who played tight end on FAMU's football team last season. Baseball has been a passion since he began playing the game at the T-ball level. He played both sports until his senior year at Pike High when fatigue from quarterbacking his football team in the fall was too much for him to go out for baseball in his senior year.

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South Carolina State Coach Pough picks program progress over pay

Coach Oliver "Buddy" Pough and FAMU's Coach Joe Taylor shares the same attorney in Ricky Lefft. However, Coach Pough owns the MEAC championship crown.

COLUMBIA, S.C. - Joseph “Ricky” Lefft and his family go back a long way with South Carolina State head football coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough. If anyone can attest to Pough’s coaching credentials, it would be his friend, attorney and agent. “People know that Buddy is not just a good coach, he’s an exceptional coach,” Lefft said. “So his record (67-26 overall in eight seasons at S.C. State) speaks for itself. They haven’t backed down from anybody. He’s got a real good coaching staff. They’ve done it the right way. They’re extremely well-organized. They do it very professionally.”

Such insight was apparently not a secret to other schools like Southern University where rumors surfaced about interest in hiring a coach -- potentially Pough -- at an annual base salary of $300,000. Pough and Southern denied discussing that school’s opening, and the school eventually settled on Citadel graduate and former NFL running back Stump Mitchell, who has a contract that pays $200,000 per season. At the same time, Lefft was finalizing a contract extension which would keep Pough on the Bulldog sidelines through 2015.

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JSU Title-winning coach is 73 - going on 40

Tevester Anderson, Jackson State's basketball coach, won't tell anybody how old he is. People constantly ask; he won't say. "We know he's on up there, even if he doesn't act like it," 20-year-old sophomore point guard Rod Melvin says. "Tell you the truth, I'm scared to ask him," says Jackson State athletic director Robert Braddy. "I'd just rather keep it to myself," Anderson says, chuckling. "Nobody else really needs to know." And this was after his JSU Tigers defeated his alma mater, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 52-46 on Monday night to claim JSU's first outright SWAC regular-season championship since 1993.

Perhaps nobody needs to know, but investigative reporting - that's Google in this case - tells us Tevester Anderson is 73. Monday night, he looked 73 going on 40, especially when he climbed the ladder to snip the last strand of a souvenir net. He took his hands off the ladder, grinned a championship grin, waved the net over his head, and then hung it around his neck. Anderson won two Ohio Valley Conference regular season championships when he was the head man at Murray (Ky.) State. "This one feels better,"Anderson said. "This one feels better because this is home. This is what I came back to Jackson to do."

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Jackson State Tigers on verge of SWAC crown

Garrison Johnson's mother, Rhonda, was the loudest person inside the Athletics and Assembly Center on Saturday night. That's anything but a surprise for the "team mom" who doubles as the most vocal Jackson State supporter at the few games she attends. But Rhonda didn't make the trip alone, or empty-handed. A handful of Johnson's relatives traveled from Georgia to see the team's captain and leading scorer play the final two home games of his career. Rhonda also brought her pots and pans to prepare a feast for the Tigers on Friday.

Johnson, who sported a muted smile while entertaining his entourage after a 63-51 win over Mississippi Valley State, hopes the celebration weekend goes beyond the Senior Day festivities. Jackson State will be crowned SWAC regular season champions with a win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff this evening. "Every day this week, I told (the team) there's no championship without two wins," Johnson said. "It's amazing to be in this position right now. "(But, UAPB is) coming to play. They're fighting for a championship just like we are."

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North Carolina A&T Aggies win A&T Invitational

GREENSBORO, N.C. – All the positive attributes people have come to associate with North Carolina A&T softball were on display during the three-day N.C. A&T Softball Invitational played at the Lady Aggies Softball Complex. Lillian Bullock hit for power. Yahamma White showcased her tremendous speed by constantly getting on base. Ryanne Hill produced runs, and pitchers Jennifer Luper and Sahsa Philpot were dominant. Throw in what was a career-best weekend for senior Bianca Alsobrook, and the start of the 2010 season has to be considered a success.

It all culminated in the Aggies 12-3 win over Appalachian State in the championship game of the invitational Sunday afternoon. After losing to the Mountaineers 3-0 on Friday, the Aggies (4-1) won four straight games to win the title. Senior Channing Statham, Alsobrook and Bullock had three RBIs apiece for the Aggies. Bullock hit her 30th career home run in the fourth, and White added three hits and scored a run. Junior Jennifer Luper earned the win on the mound by striking out six over six innings to improve to 2-1 on the season.

Alsobrook hit an impressive .571 (8-for-14) for the tournament with two doubles and four RBIs to earn all-tournament honors. White was also an all-tournament selection after securing eight hits and scoring six times over five games. Philpot was the only other all-tournament selection for N.C. A&T. Philpot went 2-0 and did not give up a run over 10 innings pitched in the tournament.

BOX SCORE vs. APPALACHIAN STATE

All Tournament Team
Inde Whitehurst, UMES
Jade Dudley, CSU
Sasha Philpot, A&T
Katie Boyd, ASU
Caitlin Wainright, ASU
Yahamma White, A&T
McKenzie Phillips, ASU
Travonna Byrd, HAM
Bianca Alsobrook, A&T

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Alabama State dominates SWAC indoor meet

Sunday was a day of domination for the Alabama State track and field program as the Hornets swept to the men’s and women’s team titles at the Southwestern Athletic Conference Indoor Track Championships at LSU’s Carl Maddox Field House. On the men’s side, Alabama State took control after scoring 16 points in the 60-meter hurdles, and never relinquished the lead. The Hornets went on to score 124 1/2 points to outdistance defending champion Grambling at 86 2/3. Southern freshman Micah McCulloch placed third in the high jump, triple jump and long jump, and was named the outstanding field performer. His efforts helped the Southern men place third with 70 1/3 points.

For the Alabama State women, the only contest was to see who might collect the most individual wins as they rolled to victory with 220 points. Jackson State was the closest challenger with 104 points, well ahead of the Southern women who were seventh with 39. In defending their 2009 indoor title, the Lady Hornets picked up eight individual firsts to go with a win in the distance medley relay. Second-year Alabama State coach Richard Beene was almost too happy for words following the dual championships.

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Maryland (Morgan State, Towson) Football Act unlikely to pass

Morgan State University gets short end of the stick as Colonial Athletic Conference Towson University backs out of supporting Delegate Jay Walker's bill. TU dropped Baltimore rivalry game with the Bears this season to open at Indiana on 9/2/2010 in a money game. MSU and TU are located 4.8 miles from each other, and 31 miles from the University of Maryland.

AD Hermann blocks bill that would require TU to play Terps.

A proposed bill that would force the University of Maryland play both Towson University and Morgan State University in football at least once every four years will most likely not pass, following a hearing in front of the state appropriations committee. State delegate Jay Walker (D), author of the Maryland Football Act, is not optimistic about its fate.

“I think Maryland would like to say ‘Hey, let us do this on our own,’” Walker, a former NFL quarterback and Howard University star, said. “With Morgan State playing Maryland next year and Towson playing Maryland the following year, we want to ensure that it doesn’t happen once in a lifetime.” Towson athletic director Mike Hermann was present at the hearing but was not in support of the bill. Towson is scheduled to play Maryland in 2011 and is working towards doing so again in 2015, according to Hermann.

“For me and for Towson, it’s an awkward situation,” Hermann said. “We want to play Maryland on a regular basis and we are on a path to do so. We are not in favor of the legal requirement not because we don’t want to do it, but I don’t think it should be legally required or that the state legislature should be stepping into college football scheduling. We want to play Maryland regularly and we see great value in that for our fans, for the media buzz it would create and for our student athletes.”

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Morgan State University 2010 Football Schedule

9/4/2010 Bowie State University Hughes Stadium 6 p.m.
9/11/2010 University of Maryland College Park, MD 6 p.m.
9/25/2010 * Howard University East Rutherford, NJ 2 p.m.
10/2/2010 * Bethune-Cookman College Hughes Stadium 4 p.m.
10/9/2010 * North Carolina A&T State University Greensboro, NC 1 p.m.
10/23/2010 * Delaware State University (Homecoming) Hughes Stadium 1 p.m.
10/30/2010 * Florida A&M University Tallahassee, FL TBA
11/6/2010 * Norfolk State University Norfolk, VA TBA
11/13/2010 * South Carolina State University Hughes Stadium 4 p.m.
11/20/2010 * Hampton University Hughes Stadium 4 p.m.

Reflections: Our Legacy...

North Carolina A&T Aggies earn MEAC title with win at Coppin State

Coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs has lead the Aggies to their third straight MEAC regular-season crown.

BALTIMORE, MD -- Senior guard TaWuana "Tweet" Cook scored a career-high 33 points as N.C. A&T overpowered Coppin State 72-53 on Saturday to clinch the MEAC regular-season women's basketball crown for the third consecutive season. The Aggies also won three straight regular-season titles from 1987-1990. "I know people picked us to win it, but we were hearing a lot through the grapevine that people thought we were vulnerable," said Patricia Cage-Bibbs, A&T's coach. "People really didn't believe we could pull this off because we didn't have our big guns coming back.

"I treasure all three titles, but I appreciate this one a little more because we've gone through a lot as a team this year. But the ladies hung tough and we got it done." The Aggies (20-8, 13-1) will open the MEAC tournament as the No. 1 seed March 10 when they face the No. 8 or No. 9 seed at 12:30 p.m. at Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem.

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Former NSU men's coach Mitchell dies at 74

Lucias T. Mitchell, who coached Norfolk State's men's basketball team after winning three national championships at Kentucky State, died Tuesday night after a lengthy illness. He was 74 and a graduate of Jackson State University. An important figure in college basketball in the 1970s at Kentucky State, Mitchell didn't find the same success at Norfolk State. Despite winning 61 games in three seasons, he was replaced in 1981. He never coached again.

Mitchell remained with the school until retiring in 2007 as a professor of health and safety and director of driver education. Until recently, he frequently could be found at local college games, where he assessed talent for the NBA.

Kentucky State's three straight Division II NAIA championships put Mitchell and the school on the basketball map. Two of Mitchell's players - Elmore Smith and Travis Grant - became first-round NBA draft picks, a rarity for Division II players. At Alabama State, Kentucky State and NSU, Mitchell compiled a 325-103 record, a .759 winning percentage, making him the sixth winningest coach in NCAA Division II history.

In 2008, Kentucky State invited Mitchell for a ceremony in which the school named the basketball court after its all-time winningest coach. Mitchell was 1 of 3 coaches in college history to win three straight national titles, the others being UCLA's John Wooden and John McLendon of Tennessee State. "I've had a load of great memories in my career," he said before being honored by Kentucky State, "and I put this right on the top." Mitchell did not feel as warmly received at Norfolk State in 1978. "I probably shouldn't have come," Mitchell said years later. "They weren't ready for me."

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Intensity high for Southern Jaguars football practices

On Friday morning, as the first session of Southern’s spring football practice began, a walk-on got his gear and reported for duty, and he cautiously approached the field at Mumford Stadium, searching for his new position coach. Defensive coordinator O’Neill Gilbert told the player to sprint until he found the right spot. Why? Because at SU, under new coach Stump Mitchell, players won’t walk anywhere.

“I think they’re all getting an earful on the offensive side,” Mitchell said. “They’re probably all tired of me. But that’s the way it is because I’m the one installing the offense. I know what I want to see, and they’re still learning. But we’re not going to set (ourselves) up for mediocrity just because they don’t know.” Of course, the new-sheriff-in-town routine is nothing new when programs make a coaching change, but at Southern, under Mitchell, that notion has some meat to it. Monday morning, one veteran player showed up late for the team’s 5:30 a.m. practice. At the end, while the rest of the players returned to the field house, the late comer was treated to a series of bear crawls and barrel rolls.

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Black Athletes from North Carolina Transformed Sports

Althea Gibson was a trailblazing athlete who became the first African American to win championships at Grand Slam tournaments such as Wimbledon, the French Open, the Australian Doubles and the United States Open in the late 1950s. Gibson had a scintillating amateur career in spite of segregated offerings earlier in the decade. She won 56 singles and doubles titles during her amateur career in the 1950s before gaining international and national acclaim for her athletic prowess on the professional level in tennis. Gibson was a 1953 graduate of Florida A&M University.

North Carolina has long been fertile ground for pioneering African-Americans to make their mark in sports. As Black History Month continues and the CIAA Tournament kicks into high gear at Charlotte's Time Warner Cable Arena, we take a look at 10 of these influential figures - athletes, coaches and administrators who were either born in North Carolina or arrived in the state later in life.

They share one characteristic: An influence on American sports and society that wasn't confined to North Carolina's borders, often reaching far beyond. Three of the 10 have direct ties to the CIAA: Winston-Salem State's Clarence "Big House" Gaines, N.C. Central's John McLendon and Dr. LeRoy Walker. Gaines, providing scholarships to players in a time when that advantage was rare for black athletes, guided Winston-Salem State to the 1967 NCAA Division II national championship - a first for a predominately black school.



Meadow "Meadowlark" Lemon is a professional basketball player, actor and minister. For 22 years, Lemon was known as the "Clown Prince" of the touring Harlem Globetrotters basketball team. He played in more than 16,000 games for the Globetrotters and is a 2003 inductee of the NBA Basketball Hall of Fame and received the NBA Lifetime Achievement – John Bunn Award in 2000. He was born in Wilmington, North Carolina and attended Florida A&M University. A born-again Christian, Lemon became an ordained minister in 1986 and received a Doctor of Divinity degree from Vision International University in Ramona, CA in 1998. He currently has his own comedic basketball team, the Meadowlark Lemon’s Harlem All Stars™

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Winston-Salem Rams flatten by Florida A&M Rattlers

Winston-Salem State took time on Saturday afternoon to honor the school's last two CIAA title teams in 1999 and 2000. Turns out, it could have used some of those players after falling flat against Florida A&M yesterday at the Gaines Center.

The Rams wound up losing 75-61, and had no answers for the Rattlers' effective zone. "We were just flat," said Coach Bobby Collins of the Rams. Perhaps suffering a hangover from last Monday's exciting victory over N.C. A&T in Greensboro the Rams never showed the same sense of urgency. Leading scorers Paul Davis and Brian Fisher, who were both averaging 11 points a game, combined for just seven points and eight turnovers and were non factors throughout.

The Rattlers (8-20) defended the Rams (11-16) with a man-to-man starting out but once the Rams ran to a 10-point lead Coach Eugene Harris switched to a zone. The Rams were never the same, and Harris stayed with the zone the rest of the way. "We couldn't penetrate the zone like you are supposed to do," said guard Lamar Monger. "We couldn't get the ball down low to Paul and it was just tough to get through it."

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