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Eugene Harris was fired Thursday afternoon, one week after he coached the Florida A&M men's basketball team to a one-and-done appearance in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament.
FAMU announced Harris' termination in a news release about five hours after he had a mid-afternoon meeting with athletic director Derek Horne. Harris will be on administrative leave with pay until June 10, the university said in its release.
During his four seasons, the Rattlers won 46 games and lost 80. Harris, who was hired in September 2007, had one year remaining on a five-year contract with an annual salary of $150,000.
FAMU gives Harris his pink slip
After four seasons of "underachieving", Florida A&M has parted ways with former head basketball coach Eugene Harris. Harris was notified of his termination in a four-paragraph letter he received in an afternoon meeting with Athletic Director, Derek Horne.
During his tenure as head coach, Harris amassed a record of 46-80. Over the course of the past two seasons, the losses are double the total of the wins at 21-42. This season completed his third consecutive of 20-plus losses.
Harris was in the fourth year of a 5-year contract at an annual rate of $150,000 per year. He will remain on administrative leave with pay until June 10, according to the FAMU press release.
Coppin State University Athletic Director Derrick Ramsey
Baltimore, MD -- Fang Mitchell rejected an offer Thursday to remain as coach of Coppin State's men's basketball team, saying the contract was "unacceptable" but that negotiations will continue.
"It wasn't done in good faith," Mitchell said of the offer after a scheduled meeting with university president Reginald Avery.
Mitchell has coached at Coppin for 25 years, won 395 games, gone to four NCAA tournaments and captured 10 regular-season championships in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.
He declined to say why the contract was unacceptable, but he said he expected negotiations to resume next week.
Asked if he believed he could still get a deal to remain at Coppin, he said, "Yes, in talking with the president, we should be able to get it done."
The Southern University football team will wrap up spring practice with its final scrimmage at 6 p.m. Friday in A.W. Mumford Stadium, and make no mistake:
The Jaguars have plenty of questions to answer if they plan on improving.
They’re coming off a 2-9 record in their first year under Stump Mitchell, finishing last in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Western Division.
They came into the spring with two new assistants — offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Gerald Carr and defensive line coach Tayrone Odums.
The Southern football team will wrap up spring practice with its final scrimmage at 6 p.m. Friday in A.W. Mumford Stadium.
The Jaguars, coming off a 2-9 record in their first season under Stump Mitchell, started spring practice Feb. 21 with two new assistants: offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Gerald Carr and defensive line coach Tayrone Odums.
Southern has also practiced without several veterans, including quarterback Jeremiah McGinty, who’s nursing an injury to his left (nonthrowing) shoulder.
SU opens its schedule next season Sept. 3 in Nashville, Tenn., against Tennessee State.
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Videographer: AaronMychael; 2011 NFL Draft Prospect Jordan Miller - DT - Southern U. Pro Day
Say this for Hampton men's basketball coach Ed Joyner Jr., he has a sense for the moment.
"What better script can you write?" Joyner asked Thursday, the day before his 16th-seed Pirates were to face top-seed Duke in a second-round NCAA tournament game at Time Warner Cable Arena.
Joyner, 38, a Winston-Salem native who attended Charlotte's Harding High before playing and coaching at Johnson C. Smith, had this script already etched in his mind two weeks ago, as Hampton prepared for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Association tournament in Winston-Salem.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. —— Ed Joyner Jr. was taking suggestions Thursday for tools he might use to demonstrate that the task at hand is difficult, but not impossible.
In advance of Friday's David vs. Goliath matchup against No. 1 seed Duke in the NCAA tournament, Hampton University's head coach planned to show his players video of the Pirates' upset of second-seeded Iowa State in the 2001 NCAA tournament.
Joyner said, only partly in jest, that he would show them the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team's Miracle On Ice upset of the Soviets, the movie "Rudy" and anything else he could think of.
"I think they're already pumped up," he said. "Anything to show them it has and should be done."
Meant to say earlier, I thought Hampton coach Ed Joyner was amusing Thursday during his media session, especially when a natural question was raised about a former Hampton U. tournament upset – 10 years ago in Boise, Idaho.
The 15th-seeded Pirates beat No. 2 Iowa State 58-57 that day – how about that; Iowa State (3-13 in the Big 12 this year) was a No. 2! And Joyner was asked why, as a Hampton player noted earlier, he’d not used that video as motivation for his team, seeded 16th, against No. 1 Duke on Friday.
“Everything, I believe, is timing,” he said. “It ain’t the right time yet. Trust me, they’re going to see it tonight along with “Miracle,” “Rudy”, anything else you can find.”
No point for Tulane to sit back and let its WNIT opener against Southern become competitive. The Green Wave swarmed the Jaguars with a full-court press from the onset.
Any lethargic Tulane tendencies the Green Wave might be expected to have after not earning an NCAA Tournament bid never appeared.
Tulane’s pesky defense helped it cruise to a 61-31 win over Southern on Thursday night at Fogelman Arena. The Green Wave will take on Oral Roberts, who defeated TCU, in Tulsa, Okla. either on Saturday or Sunday at 4 p.m.
Missing the women’s NCAA tournament is still a sore spot for tguard Olivia Grayson, who scored a team-high 12 points and still has two years of eligibility remaining.
NEW ORLEANS - Sophomore Olivia Grayson had 12 points and the Green Wave defense forced 22 turnovers as the Tulane University women's basketball team defeated Southern, 61-31, in the opening round of the 2011 WNIT Thursday evening in Fogelman Arena.
The Wave used its press to tally 12 steals - the 15th double-digit steal outing of the year and the most by the team since having 16 thefts at SMU on Feb. 3 - while limiting the Lady Jaguars to a 16.9 field goal percentage (12-of-71). With the win, Tulane improves to 23-10 on the year and advances to take on Oral Roberts in the second round of the WNIT on Monday, March 21, at 7 p.m. in Tulsa, Okla. Southern, meanwhile, concludes its 2010-11 season at 20-12.
NEW ORLEANS – Southern’s stay in the Women’s National Invitation Tournament was over almost before it began as an epidemic of missed shots and turnovers doomed the Jaguars in the first half of a 61-31 loss to Tulane in the first round Thursday night at Fogelman Arena.
Both teams were sloppy offensively at the outset, but the Green Wave (23-10) gradually got a handle on things. Southern (20-12) never did as it finished with its lowest point total of the season, falling short of an 85-36 loss at Miami on Nov. 29. The Jaguars made just 12-of-71 shots (16.9 percent), including 3-for-35 (8.6 percent) in the first half, and committed 22 turnovers.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA -- Debbie Ryan is proud of her Celtic heritage. But on an oddly unemotional St. Patrick's Night she didn't need the luck of the Irish to prolong her coaching career at the University of Virginia.
All she needed was, well, Morgan State.
Whitny Edwards scored 11 points, and teammate Ariana Moorer added 10 as Ryan's Cavaliers thumped the overmatched Bears 69-56 Thursday night in an opening-round game of the women's postseason NIT. The victory ensured Ryan of at least one more game at the helm of a program she has steered for the past 34 years. Ryan, a Hall of Fame coach with 737 career victories, announced last week that she will step down at season's end.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA - The Virginia women's basketball team built an early lead and held on for a 69-56 victory over visiting Morgan State Thursday night in the first round of the Women's National Invitation Tournament (WNIT). With the victory, Virginia's record improved to 17-15. Morgan State's final record is 17-15.
Virginia will face Loyola (Md.) on Sunday afternoon at 4 p.m., at Reitz Arena in Baltimore, Md., in second-round action.
In the first half, Virginia's lead at times ballooned to as many as 16 points, but Morgan State pulled to within 11 points, 38-27, at the 1:34 mark on a 3-pointer by Brittany Dodson. UVa responded by going on a 5-0 run to end the half and take a 43-27 lead.
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference's Council of Chief Executive Officers (CCEOs) reaffirmed its position to compete in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) postseason championships and retain the conference's automatic qualification for the MEAC football champion.
The presidents and chancellors expressed their views that the caliber of talent among the student-athletes and coaches in the MEAC football program were among the best in the NCAA football championship subdivision and, therefore, would allow them to compete with anybody in the nation.
The Council stated that the MEAC football champion will not compete in any post season football bowl game and can and will continue to compete at the FCS highest level.
All questions regarding this matter should be directed to the conference's media relations office.
Charlotte, N.C. - An eight-loss campaign guarantees another offseason of change for Johnson C. Smith football.
The Golden Bulls, who won just two games and finished fifth in the six-team CIAA South, face challenges on both sides of the ball when spring drills open Friday. On offense, they must replace the most accomplished receiver in school history, Jeremy Franklin, and locate a play-making quarterback. Smith also needs to bulk up a defense that allowed an average of 39.9 points 405.5 per game in 2010.
Special teams need shoring up as well after allowing a school record eight blocked punts.
Gold Nuggets Coach Bo Browder
(Grambling State 1994) 13 season record: 300 wins, 109 losses (Photo provided by Xavier University)
JACKSON, Tenn. (March 16, 2011) — Senior forward Christina Warren scored 19 points Wednesday, and Xavier University of Louisiana's defense excelled again in a 63-53 victory over Lee (Tenn.) in the opening round of the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship at Oman Arena.
The Gold Nuggets (27-6), ranked 20th in the final coaches' poll, defeated the 13th-ranked Lady Flames (25-7) by double digits for the second time this season and limited them to 29.4-percent field-goal shooting. Xavier entered the tournament No. 1 in scoring defense in NAIA Division I and fourth in field-goal percentage defense.
Xavier will play fourth-ranked Oklahoma City, an 87-45 winner against Montana Tech, in the second round at 10:45 a.m. Friday.
Warren, the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Year, scored 15 points
to carry Xavier to a 33-22 halftime lead. Brandi Young's basket with 14:13 remaining gave Xavier its biggest lead, 39-22, and the Nuggets pulled away with a 10-4 run after Lee closed to 53-49 at 4:38.
"I wasn't concerned about finishing this game," XU Coach Bo Browder said, "because we had a good learning experience at nationals last year."
Last year Xavier led Cumberlands 43-36 in the 34th minute before losing 67-62 in overtime in the opening round at nationals. This time the Nuggets led for the final 34:26 and took the lead for good on a Marchelle Jones basket.
Jones had 14 points, including 8-of-8 free throws, five rebounds and two steals, and Young had 13 points, four rebounds and a career-high-tying six steals.
The Nuggets ended a five-game first-round losing streak at nationals — the last victory had been 64-55 against Trevecca Nazarene in 2003 — and gave Browder his 300th victory a head-coach at four-year colleges. Browder is 298-101 in 12 seasons at Xavier, and he was 2-8 as Evansville's interim head coach to close the 1995-96 season.
"It's good to end the drought," Browder said. "That's been the million-dollar question — when are the Nuggets going to win at nationals again? It's always great to make it to nationals, but it's extremely difficult to win once you get there. Winning games at nationals is like getting some dessert."
Senior guard Brooke McKinnon, the Southern States Athletic Conference Co-Player of the Year, was 4-of-13 from the floor and scored 12 points for Lee, an NAIA semifinalist a year ago and in its seventh consecutive appearance at nationals. McKinnon was the Lady Flames' only double-figure scorer.
Xavier shot 44.2 percent the floor — the Nuggets' third-best percentage in 20 games at nationals and their highest since 1997 — and produced defensive stands in which Lee missed 12 and 10 consecutive field-goal attempts. Xavier has limited 15 opponents this season, including the last three, to less than 30 percent from the floor.
"Lee has a great program," Browder said. "They weren't going to give anything to us. We had to go out and earn it."
Xavier's next opponent, Oklahoma City, was No. 2 in the coaches poll for most of the season and was the Sooner Athletic Conference regular-season champion. No Gold Nuggets team has reached the quarterfinals, and Oklahoma teams eliminated XU three of the previous four times in the second round — including a 91-53 Oklahoma City victory in 2003.
NOTES: Lee entered the game No. 3 in NAIA Division I in scoring defense . . . Xavier reached 27 victories for the third time in four seasons . . . It's the fourth time in Louisiana collegiate history that the same school produced men's and women's basketball teams with 27 victories apiece in the same season. LSU did it in 2005-06, and Louisiana Tech did it in 1983-84 and 1984-85 . . . The Xavier-Oklahoma City winner will play in the quarterfinals at 2 p.m. Saturday against California Baptist or Shawnee State . . . Xavier has won 20 straight games — 13 this season — when shooting at least 40 percent from the floor and outerebounding the opponent in the same game.
NEXT GAME: Xaiver University of Lousiana Gold Nuggets (27-6) vs. #4 Oklahahoma City (26-3), Friday, 10:45 a.m. CDT . Sign Up and Watch -- CLICK HERE
By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director Xavier University of Louisiana Visit: XULA Athletics
Coach Lafayette Stribling is still
building winners in his 54th
year of coaching basketball.
Kansas City, Mo. (March 17, 2011) - No. 12 seed Tougaloo College (Miss.) earned its way into the second round of the 2011 Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship with a 73-58 victory Thursday against Emmanuel College (Ga.) at Municipal Auditorium.
Junior guard Marquise Mems registered a game-high 23 points and added seven rebounds to help lead the Bulldogs to their 13th consecutive victory. Tougaloo pushes its season record to 28-4 and moves to Friday's second round for an 8 p.m. CT game against either No. 5 seed Martin Methodist College (Tenn.) or William Jewell College (Mo.). This will mark the second trip to the round of 16 for the Bulldogs, with the other coming in 2009.
Emmanuel scored the first eight points of the contest and eventually built a nine-point advantage before Tougaloo began to battle back. Trailing 18-9, the Bulldogs reeled off 15 consecutive points to grab the lead for good, 24-18, with 5:38 left in the first half. After the Lions pulled to within three points, Mems hit a three-pointer and another basket to spark an 8-0 run to end the first half and give the Bulldogs a 32-21 lead.
Tougaloo extended its advantage to as many as 21 points in the second half on its way to the first-round victory. Junior guard Donteeno Todd came off the bench to record 14 points for the Bulldogs, including four three-point field goals. Senior forward Mario Luckett added 13 points, while junior forward James Carter just missed a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds. Sophomore guard Juan Gray pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds for Tougaloo, which held a 46-32 advantage on the boards.
Senior guard Tedrick Hudson led Emmanuel with 15 pionts, while junior forward Asmatiek Fields helped out with 11 points. Freshman guard Michael Stanley led the Lions with seven rebounds. Emmanuel, which was making its second appearance at the NAIA Naitonal Championship, closed out its season with an overall record of 26-8.
Tougaloo College coach Lafayette Striblingand assistant Harvey Wardell took only seven players to the nationals in Missouri -- Mario Luckett, Marquise Mems, Donteeno Todd, Jurmond Cattenhead, Juan Gray, Kadon Day and James Carter. The 'Magnificent Seven' Bulldogs move on to the Sweet 16, after bouncing Emmanuel College (Ga.) 73-58.
Who is this 76 Year Old Dynamo? The legendary Coach Stribling coached at Mississippi Valley State University, in Itta Bena, Mississippi for 22 years. The team won its first SWAC Championship in his third year as head coach. He retired with 7 SWAC championships, a Black College Championship, and 3 NCAA Division I Tournament berths. Stribling is also a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Hall of Fame.
Game Notes:
Tougaloo: Bulldogs overcame not scoring for the first four minutes and 27 seconds to lead by 11 at the half ... Outscored Emmanuel 14-3 over the final nine minutes of the first half ... Limited Emmanuel to 32.2 percent from the floor after being ranked No. 15 in scoring defense at 65.5 PPG during the regular season ... The 58 points surrendered by the Bulldogs is the lowest point total given up through 13 games of the opening round.
Emmanuel: Second opening-round loss by Emmanuel in their second tournament appearance ... Leading scorer Tedrick Hudson finished two points shy of his season average of 17.2 PPG with a team-high 15 points ... Averaging 72.0 PPG during the regular season, the 58-point final total for the Lions was their fourth-lowest output of the season.
NEXT GAME: FRIDAY, 8 p.m., CDT, TOUGALOO BULLDOGS (28-4) VS. MARTIN METHODIST REDHAWKS (32-2)
Amanda Dahl, NAIA Manager of Sports Information & Media Services
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (March 17, 2011) -- Senior guard Spud Harbour scored 27 points Thursday to lead Evangel University to a 79-71 victory over Xavier University of Louisiana in the opening round of the Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship.
The Crusaders (26-8), from Springfield, Mo., shot 52.8 percent from the floor and earned their 11th consecutive victory. They'll play second-ranked Concordia (Calif.) in the second round at 2:15 p.m. Friday. Xavier, ranked 17th and in the national tournament for the first time since 2008, finished 27-6 with its winningest season since 1983-84.
Senior guard Michael Harvey, in his final Xavier game, led the Gold Rush with 18 points, including a career-high-tying four 3-pointers. Chris Iles had 16 points and four assists, Cordell Hadnot had eight points and eight rebounds, and Denzell Erves had eight points and seven rebounds. In the first half Harvey scored 11 points, and Iles had 10 after going 4-of-4 from the floor.
The 2010-11 Xavier University of Louisiana 27-6 men's basketball team. Head Coach Dannton Jackson, Eighth season at Xavier, 179 wins 81 losses 17 of 18 seniors to play for Coach Jackson have earned degrees from Xavier; 1 still enrolled
(Photo courtesy of Xavier University)
Evangel, ranked 15th in the final coaches poll, spent more than 38½ minutes with the lead. Xavier's only advantage was at 7-6, and there were ties at 3 and 44 before Evangel went ahead to stay on Chad Gillaspy's basket with 16:49 remaining. The Crusaders stretched their lead to 68-56 on Mitch McHenry's basket with 7:17 remaining, then made 8-of-8 free throws in the final 3:15 after Xavier closed the gap to 71-69 on Hadnot's free throw at 3:29.
Harbour scored 15 points to help Evangel lead 39-34 at halftime. Harbour finished with three 3-pointers, three assists and 10-of-11 free throws.
McHenry made 7-of-10 from the floor and scored a season-high 17 points, all in the second half, for Evangel, and Gillaspy had 15 points, 7-of-11 field goals, six rebounds and two blocked shots.
Evangel was the first team this season to shoot better than 50 percent from the floor against Xavier, which entered the game in the top five nationally in scoring defense and field-goal percentage defense. The Gold Rush shot 45.9 percent but made 1-of-8 from 3-point range after hitting 5-of-9 in the first half.
Harvey finished his career with 143 3-pointers. He scored Xavier's first points on a trey at 18:42, giving him sole possession of fourth place on Xavier's all-time list. He entered the game tied with Michael Varnado, who played from 2001-05.
Xavier lost in the first round at nationals for the ninth time in its last 10 appearances. The Gold Rush are 4-12 in 12 appearances, and each of the last five losses was by single digits.
By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director Xavier University of Louisiana Visit: XULA Athletics
Soon after Hampton and coach Ed "Little Buck" Joyner dispatched Norfolk State last weekend in the MEAC tournament semifinals, Joyner made his way to his team's locker room at Joel Coliseum.
As he walked in, he was holding the hand of one of his sons, 5-year-old E.J., and someone asked E.J. if he would be the next branch of the Joyner coaching tree. "He's got a lot more to learn in life before then," his father said, "but why not?"
Joyner, a Winston-Salem native, is still a young coach at age 38, but as the son and nephew of coaches, he's more of a veteran than his age would indicate.
Bobby Collins says he has seen the highlight on TV about a thousand times in the past 10 years. Collins, who just completed his fifth season as the coach at Winston-Salem State, was an assistant coach at Hampton in 2001 when the 15th-seeded Pirates, playing in their first NCAA Division I Tournament, upset second-seeded Iowa State 58-57 in Boise, Idaho.
The clip that might make it to television again in the coming days shows head coach Steve Merfeld, now an assistant at Creighton, being lifted by power forward David Johnson after the victory.
"It doesn't seem like it's been 10 years, it seems like it was last year," Collins said earlier this week. "That's one of the most memorable things I've ever been a part of."
Earlier today CHN writer Jon Teitel spent a few minutes with Hampton head coach Ed Joyner, whose Pirates won the MEAC conference tournament to earn an automatic bid. The 16-seed in the West Region, Hampton will take on top-seed Duke in a second round matchup on Friday in Charlotte.
Jon Teitel: Your father and uncle are both Division II coaches. Who is the best coach in the family?
Ed Joyner: Right now I think my little cousin Steven is the best. He is the woman's coach Winston Salem State, and he just gets to sit around and talk to all of us!
JT: They grew up living next door to Hall of Fame coach Clarence "Big House" Gaines. Did you ever get to meet him yourself, and what is the most important thing you ever learned from him?
NEW ORLEANS, LA — Rutgers completed its three-match trip to Louisiana with a 9-0 women's victory against Xavier University of Louisiana at the University of New Orleans Tennis Center.
The Scarlet Knights (8-4) won all three matches during their trip and gave Xavier (2-10), ranked 24th in the NAIA, its eighth consecutive loss.
Amy Zhang and Jennifer Holzberg defeated Amber Brown and Carmen Nelson at No. 1 doubles, and Zhang beat Brown 6-0, 6-1 at No. 1 singles. Xavier defaulted matches at No. 3 doubles and No. 5 and 6 singles for the fifth consecutive dual, and the Zhang-Holzberg doubles victory clinched for Rutgers.
Brown, a freshman, played No. 1 singles for the second time as a collegian. Teammate Melissa DeLoach, 2-0 in singles at the AUM Invitational this past weekend, lost 6-2, 6-0 to Leonora Slatnick at No. 4.
Four of the Gold Nuggets' losses during their streak are against NCAA Division I opponents.
It was the Gold Nuggets' first home match since Feb. 5 and their first-ever meeting with Rutgers. The Nuggets' next match will start at 3 p.m. Tuesday against SCAD Atlanta at UNO.
Not all news is bad where Mississippi college basketball is concerned. Leave it to Lafayette Stribling, the 76-year-old veteran of 54 years in coaching to show the big guys how to succeed amid the most vexing of circumstances.
First things first: Stribling's Tougaloo College Bulldogs (27-4) will play Emmanuel College of Georgia on Thursday afternoon at 4:30 in the first round of the NAIA National Division I Tournament at Kansas City. It shouldn't cost Tougaloo much to get to Missouri. The Bulldogs have only seven players.
That's right. At Tougaloo, academics still come before athletics. You don't make the grades, you don't play. First semester grades left Stribling with seven of his original 13 players. The Bulldogs were 12-3 at the time. They are 15-1 since. So let's just borrow from Hollywood and call them the Magnificent Seven.
JACKSON, Tenn. - (Box Score) Xavier (La.) took down Lee (Tenn.), 63-53, in the first round action at the 2011 NAIA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship Wednesday in Oman Arena. The win for the Gold Nuggets (27-6) snaps a six-game losing skid at the National Championship dating back to 2003 when they defeated Trevecca Nazarene (Tenn.) in the first round. Xavier moves on to face #1 seed Oklahoma City in the second round Friday at 10:45 a.m. CDT.
The Lady Flames exit from their eighth National Championship with a 6-7 all-time mark in the event and wrap up their season at 25-7.
Leading the way for Xavier in the first half was Christina Warren. The senior forward had 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting to help the Gold Nuggets to a 33-22 halftime advantage. In the opening 20 minutes, Lee was only able to knock down six of its 24 shot attempts (.250). The Lady Flames were able to find a better touch in the second half, shooting 33 percent, but it was not enough as Xavier's offense remained steady (.423).
Warren went on to finish as the game's leading scorer with 19 points and was one of three Gold Nuggets players to pull down five rebounds. Also pouring in double-figure efforts were Marchelle Jones and Brandi Young with 14 and 13 points, respectively. Young also had six steals.
Lee's offense was directed by a 12-point outing from Brook McKinnon. She was the only Lady Flame to score in double figures, as the next highest scorer was Angela Spann with nine points. Hollie German had a game-high nine rebounds in the loss.
NEXT GAME: Xaiver University of Lousiana Gold Nuggets (27-6) vs. #1 Oklahahoma City (26-3), Friday, 10:45 a.m. CDT . Sign Up and Watch -- CLICK HERE
By Amanda Dahl, NAIA Manager of Sports Information & Media Services
DAYTON, Ohio -- Alabama State was hoping to make history on Wednesday night.
Those dreams fell apart quickly against Texas-San Antonio. The Roadrunners roared out to a 27-point halftime lead to earn the team's first NCAA Tournament victory, hanging on for a 70-61 win over the Hornets in the "First Four" at the University of Dayton Arena.
Texas-San Antonio (20-13) will face the tournament's No. 1 overall seed, Ohio State, on Friday in Cleveland.
DAYTON, Ohio — Shot by shot, Melvin Johnson III played up to his penmanship. The smooth guard with "SWISH" scrawled on the side of each orange shoe scored a career-high 29 points Wednesday night, putting on the most scintillating show so far in the NCAA tournament while leading Texas San Antonio to a 70-61 victory over Alabama State in the "First Four" round.
The Roadrunners (20-13) and their smooth guard head to Cleveland for a game Friday against top-seeded Ohio State, which won't allow all those open shots. Against Alabama State (17-18), Johnson took advantage of...
BOULDER, Colo. — If there was going to be a chance for Texas Southern to sneak up on Colorado, it came with five minutes left in the first half Wednesday night.
The Tigers trailed by three points, the crowd of 6,299 at the Coors Event Center was mostly quiet and the Buffaloes looked every bit like a team snubbed for a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
“We thought we had the game,” TSU forward Travele Jones said. Colorado pulled away just before halftime and cruised to an 88-74 victory over TSU in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.
BOULDER - Alec Burks had 27 points and seven rebounds, Cory Higgins scored 25 points and the top-seeded Buffaloes beat Texas Southern 88-74 in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament on Wednesday night.
Freshman Andre Roberson had 15 points and eight rebounds for the Buffaloes (22-13), who will face California - a 77-74 winner over Mississippi on Wednesday - in Boulder on Friday night.
BLACKSBURG - As Virginia Tech's men's basketball team prepared for Wednesday night's National Invitation Tournament first round game, Hokies coach Seth Greenberg realized there was a chance his players could care less about the game.
He made sure nobody would just mail it in and coast against Bethune-Cookman. Even if Tech's players and coaches still were stinging after failing to be included in the NCAA tournament field, there were no lingering signs of misery against Bethune-Cookman.
Tech dispatched Bethune-Cookman 79-54 to advance to the second round. Tech, which is a No. 1 seed in the tournament, will play at 11 a.m. Sunday in Blacksburg against No. 4 seed Wichita State, which defeated Nebraska 76-49 on Wednesday.
Jeff Allen scored 19 points as the Virginia Tech Hokies rolled to a 79-54 victory over the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats in first-round action of the NIT.
Malcolm Delaney registered 13 points for top-seeded Virginia Tech (22-11), which moves on to the second round to battle fourth-seeded Wichita State. The Hokies also got double-digit scoring performances from Manny Atkins (12 points), Erick Green (11 points, eight assists) and Terrell Bell (10 points).
Garrius Holloman posted 20 points in defeat for eighth-seeded Bethune-Cookman (21-13), which received 10 points and five assists from C.J. Reed.
Bethune-Cookman men's basketball coach Clifford Reed and his son, junior point guard C.J. Reed, have taken the Wildcats to unprecedented heights while achieving what no other father-son combination in MEAC history has achieved.
The elder Reed was voted MEAC Coach of the Year and his son was selected Player of the Year as the Wildcats won their first ever regular-season conference championship and earned their first-ever postseason appearance since moving to Division I. They play Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va., in the NIT Wednesday night.
Jackson High coach Quinn Gray quits, blames budget crisis
JACKSONVILLE, FL - Quinn Gray wanted to stay on as Jackson High School's football coach. However, the looming elimination of athletics from the Duval County public schools system created too unstable a future.
The former Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback resigned his post on Monday to accept an assistant coaching position with Florida A&M, his alma mater. The 31-year-old Gray spent six seasons in the NFL, including the first five (2003-07) with the Jaguars. Facing a $97 million shortfall, Duval County School Board Chairman W.C. Gentry has stated that all athletic programs will be cut if that figure remains largely in tact.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Andrew Jackson football coach Quinn Gray is leaving Jacksonville disappointed after just one season at the helm. The idea that high school sports could be eliminated altogether is something the former Jaguars quarterback can hardly believe.
"The determining factor was all the uncertainty when it comes to Duval schools and athletics for the season," Gray said of why he's resigning. "It would be a shame for the kids in the upcoming year, because a lot of students use sports as an outlet, and they use it as a motivator as well."
Tallahassee, FL - Six seniors from last year's MEAC championship winning team showcased their skills in front of scouts today.
Lincoln grad Isaac West impressed at wide receiver. Marianna (FL) speedster Philip Sylvester also turned some heads as well. Curtis Holcomb made his impression on the defensive side of the ball. Qier Hall, Marquiste Ramos, and Kendrick Washington also participated in Wednesday's Pro Day.
They gave their best shots in front of 14 NFL scouts during Wednesday's Pro Day testing. The next best thing would be a phone call with an invitation to attend one of the team's training camps.
"I think it was a good impression overall," said running back Philip Sylvester, one of the Rattlers' leading prospects for playing at the next level. "We did well; did what was expected. I've been working out six days a week and I met my expectation.
"It was just going out there and doing your business. That's all you can do." What they did was a battery of physical tests that included weight lifting, running the 40-meter dash and vertical jumps during the two-hour workout.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Hills: Henry Frazier III knows a few things about hills.
He learned how to win from the high school coach who made him run up the hill behind the field, over and over again, and he never forgot, becoming a winning quarterback at Bowie State and a winning coach there.
He climbed what may the biggest hill in all of college football, making a winner out of Prairie View A&M. The Panthers, famous for an NCAA-record 80-game losing streak, hadn't had a winning season in 31 years. Frazier needed only four to do it.
Videographer: NCCUEagles
Now Frazier faces a new challenge: seeing how far he can take N.C. Central in Division I and the MEAC. The Eagles have a long tradition of success in Division II, but this is a whole new ballgame.
DURHAM, N.C. (www.NCCUEaglePride.com) – Henry Frazier III, who was named North Carolina Central University’s new head football coach on Dec. 16, has announced his coaching staff.
Among the 10 assistant coaches, four rejoin Frazier from his prior coaching position at Prairie View A&M University, including Dwayne Foster (Assistant Head Coach/Recruiting Coordinator/Offensive Line), Michael Bryant (Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks), Roy Jones (Director of Football Operations/Tight Ends) and Lamar Manigo (Wide Receivers).
Four coaches have been retained from last season’s Eagles staff, including Mike McGlinchey (Special Teams Coordinator/Running Backs) and Antoine Rivens (Defensive Line), along with former NCCU gridiron student-athletes Jamar Harp (Assistant Offensive Line/Video Coordinator) and Andre George (Assistant Defensive Backs).
Rounding out the staff are John Morgan (Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Backs), who served as defensive coordinator at NCCU in 2007, and Mike Mendenhall (Linebackers/Assistant Special Teams).
The prevailing feeling from coast to coast is that Colorado deserved to be in the NCAA Tournament. Well-respected Seattle Times columnist Bud Withers on bubble teams scorned: "Clearly, the team with a beef is Colorado, which was 6-7 against the top 50, usually a figure that would guarantee entry."
ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale, known for his love of all things Big East and ACC, said if this were a beauty contest, at-large selection Alabama-Birmingham would be Roseanne Barr and shunned CU would be Scarlett Johansson.
TEXAS SOUTHERN (19-12, 16-2 SWAC) vs. COLORADO (21-13, 8-8 BIG 12) INTERNET STREAMING BROADCAST: 7 p.m., ESPN3.com GAME NOTES: Game Notes #35: NIT 1st Round
BOULDER - In most cases, the NIT is all about appetite - that is, which teams can summon the hunger to stay competitive and keep playing in the aftermath of an overlook by the NCAA or being bounced out via an upset in a conference tournament.
Colorado is an uncomfortable fit in the first category, having been passed over by the NCAA Selection Committee, while Texas Southern falls into the second. They could commiserate Wednesday night at the Coors Events Center (7 p.m., ESPN3.com) in the first round of the NIT, but CU Coach Tad Boyle isn't expecting that from the Buffaloes.
Bethune Cookman Wildcats (21-12) at Virginia Tech Hokies (21-11)
TELEVISION: 8 p.m. EDT, ESPNU
While Virginia Tech was still trying to come to grips with yet another NCAA Tournament snub Sunday evening, Bethune-Cookman’s players and coaches waited excitedly to find out who they would play in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.
They cheered wildly as ESPNU revealed their matchup with Tech.
The Wildcats (21-12) take on the Hokies (21-11) tonight in Blacksburg in the first round of the NIT. The game tips off at 8 p.m. and will be televised by ESPNU. The winner advances to play the Witchita State-Nebraska winner in the second round.
DAYTONA BEACH -- C.J. Reed doesn't need to glance at the newspaper box scores from the MEAC tournament to recall his rare back-to-back off nights. The league's Player of the Year has every aspect of his struggles memorized.
"Four for 19, four for 17, three free throws in the first game and five in the second," Reed said of his stat lines during two games in Winston-Salem, N.C.
"I know those numbers inside and out. I don't think I made the shots I normally make and didn't get to the line enough. That hurt us in the long run."
No. 16 Texas-San Antonio (19-13) vs. No. 16 Alabama State (17-17) WHEN/WHERE: 5:40 p.m.CDT, Dayton, Ohio TELEVISION: truTV Channel
A CLOSER LOOK: Texas-San Antonio likes a fast pace; Alabama State tries to keep games low-scoring. The winner will be the team that imposes its will. Alabama State was an upset winner of the SWAC Tournament. The Hornets have an RPI of No. 257 but have won 11 of 12 games. The Roadrunners upset McNeese State in winning the Southland tournament title. Area hoops fans might remember Texas-San Antonio coach Brooks Thompson, who played at Oklahoma State in the early 1990s before a short NBA career. The winner meets top-seeded Ohio State in the East Region.
Alabama State reached the NCAA tournament with a lousy record and a remarkable turnaround. The Hornets (17-17) have the worst record in the 68-team field. Everyone else has more wins than losses.
Alabama State must win its first-round game on Wednesday night against Texas-San Antonio (19-13) to improve to a winning record. Their reward? Heading up to Cleveland to try to knock off top-seeded Ohio State.
Roadrunners battle Hornets in "First Four" encounter Dayton, OH (Sports Network) - Day two of the inaugural "Field of 68" play-in format for the 2011 NCAA Tournament has the champions of the Southland Conference, Texas-San Antonio, squaring off against the Southwestern Athletic Conference champs, Alabama State, from Dayton, Ohio.
Dubbed the "First Four", Wednesday's matchup is the third of four games over two days at UD Arena as part of the NCAA's re-formatted expansion of the traditional 64-team field. The winner of this matchup moves on to face the tournament's top overall seed, Ohio State, in the East Region Friday in Cleveland, Ohio at Quicken Loans Arena.
Ivory White spends the first few minutes of every basketball game trying to figure out how he can help his Alabama State teammates. Need an offensive spark? White is your guy. Looking for someone to shut down the high-octane perimeter offense of your opponent? Call on White.
Hoping someone can bolster your inside game with a few rebounds and help speed up the transition game? Then the junior guard from Greensboro is the perfect answer to your problems.
Chris Duncan came to Alabama State with one thing on his mind.
And while he has excelled at defense in his two years with the Hornets, he has started to understand his value to the team as an offensive performer. The Hornets have won six consecutive games, transforming from a team that had underachieved and showed little chemistry to one that has dreams of earning an NCAA tournament bid.
For a while, it looked as if Stillman's dream run in the NCAA Division II tournament might continue as the Tigers held a 43-42 halfttime edge against regional host Alabama-Huntsville Tuesday night. Alas, the Chargers proved too much, overcoming Stillman and eventually holding on for an 88-81 victory in a Sweet 16 matchup at Spragins Hall.
Alabama-Huntsville (29-4) will now take on Minnesota State-Mankato in the Elite 8. Stillman (25-8), which began its run in the tournament by upending heavily-favored second-seeded Harding and then defeated Florida Southern, began this game on a similar high note. The Tigers took...
Huntsville, AL-- Stillman reached yet another milestone with a win over the Florida Southern Moccasins 92-86 and advanced to the NCAA DII South Region final for the first time in school’s history in Spragins Hall at the University of Alabama campus.
The Tigers trailed 38-51 at the half. Following the half, the Tigers overcame a 13-point deficit to tie the game 56-56 at the 14:43 mark. Both teams exchanged baskets and enjoyed the lead until the 5:31 mark when junior LaDarius Rhone made a 3-points basket and the Tigers went ahead for the last time and held it to the end of regulation.
LaJay Sears led the Tigers with 31 points on 10-20 shooting from the field and 7-8 from the free-throw line. Sears was followed by Kevin Johnson and Lee Riley both with 16 points. LaDarius Rhone chipped in 14 points. Rakee Anderson, despite not having a great shooting performance, added a game-high 11 assists.
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- Josh Magette, who typically holds the basketball game in his hands, was at the moment holding a thin strand of twine in his right hand. It was a piece of a basketball net, surgically removed Tuesday night in the middle of the warmest, loudest, lovingest, darndest bit of celebration and history this building has seen.
"You can't dream of something like this," said Magette, the UAH point guard. A couple of weeks ago, he had collected another piece of twine, from UAH's official coronation as Gulf South Conference East Division champion.
Eugene Harris was fired Thursday afternoon, one week after he coached the Florida A&M men's basketball team to a one-and-done appearance in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament.
