Delaware State Hornets suffer technical defeat

DOVER, Delaware -- Just when it appeared that Delaware State's men's basketball team had pulled out yet another thrilling victory Monday night, the referees pulled the plug on the celebration.

Tahj Tate appeared to have secured the victory with a follow-up slam dunk with 1.1 seconds to play, but a technical foul was called as fans stormed the court at DSU's Memorial Hall, causing a delay of game.

Morgan State's Aric Brooks then sank both free throws and the Bears were rewarded with a stunning 73-72 win in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference game, ending the Hornets' record 10-game MEAC winning streak.

Delaware State's players and coaches were shocked that the win was pulled out from under them. "I feel like we was cheated," Tate said. "They said the tech was for our bench for rushing the floor, but I didn't see it."

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WSSU women putting emphasis on defense

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina - For the Winston-Salem State women to win the school's first CIAA tournament title in basketball, solid defense will be critical.

That's the message coach Steve Joyner Jr. has been preaching. WSSU, 17-9 and seeded No. 3 out of the Southern Division, will play Lincoln (7-21) in its tournament opener at 5 p.m. today at Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte.



The Rams easily defeated the Lions 94-44 on Jan. 16 at the Gaines Center, but the danger will be in not looking too far ahead, to a possible quarterfinal Wednesday against Johnson C. Smith.

Guard Taylar Wells said the key for the Rams is no secret. "Coach doesn't ever worry about offense because we can score, so he's always stressing about our defense," Wells said. WSSU is No. 2 in the CIAA in scoring average (71.3 ppg) behind Shaw (74.8 ppg).

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Scores That Matters!!

February 27, 2012

MEN'S BASKETBALL

SWAC
Arkansas Pine Bluff 68, Grambling State 53
Mississippi Valley State 78, Jackson State 69
Prairie View A&M 62, Alabama State 59
Texas Southern 69, Alabama A&M 59

MEAC
Bethune-Cookman 74, Hampton 64
Coppin State 64, Maryland Eastern Shore 60
Morgan State 73, Delaware State 72
Norfolk State 79, Florida A&M 70
North Carolina Central 71, South Carolina State 57
Savannah State 62, North Carolina A&T 50

NAIA
Texas Wesleyan 74, Huston-Tillotson TX 65
Our Lady of the Lake TX 112, Jarvis Christian TX 95
LSU Shreveport 74, Texas College 50

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

SWAC
Alabama A&M 55, Texas Southern 40
Grambling State 84, Arkansas Pine Bluff 56
Mississippi Valley State 72, Jackson State 62 (2OT)
Prairie View A&M 52, Alabama State 44

MEAC
Coppin State 48, Maryland Eastern Shore 47
Delaware State 67, Morgan State 60
Florida A&M 81, Norfolk State 64
Hampton 54, Bethune-Cookman 30
North Carolina A&T 88, Savannah State 74
South Carolina State 68, North Carolina Central 57

GCAC
Southern-New Orleans 84, New Orleans 56

NAIA
Our Lady of the Lake TX 88, Jarvis Christian 82
Texas Wesleyan 58, Huston-Tillotson TX 54
LSU Shreveport 82, Texas College 52

WVIAC
Shepherd 72, Bluefield State 40
Davis & Elkins 66, West Virginia State 64

Gold Rush surge to 18th, Nuggets fall to 20th in NAIA polls

NEW ORLEANS -- The men outrank the women for the first time this season.

The Xavier University of Louisiana men's basketball team climbed seven spots to 18th Monday in the NAIA Division I coaches poll. It's the biggest upward move for the Gold Rush (22-7) since December 2010.

The Gold Nuggets (22-8) fell one spot to 20th in the women's poll but extended their streak of top-25 appearances to 29.

The Gold Rush won at Fisk and Dillard to earn a share of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference regular-season championship with Tougaloo, which dropped from 17th to 24th in the poll. The XU men matched their highest rank this season.

The XU women also won at Fisk and Dillard to win the GCAC regular-season title by a game over Talladega, which was among others receiving votes for the third straight week.


XAVIER Gold Rush last game at "The Barn" vs. Tougaloo Bulldogs

Oklahoma Baptist is the top-ranked men's team for the second straight week, and Oklahoma City's women are No. 1 for the fifth consecutive time.

Xavier is one of nine schools with men's and women's teams in the top 25. The other schools are Azusa Pacific, Columbia (Mo.), Georgetown (Ky.), Lee (Tenn.), MidAmerica Nazarene, Rogers State, Shorter and Southern Nazarene. A week ago there were 10 such schools, and two weeks there were 11.

Both Xavier teams will play Fisk on Thursday in the quarterfinals of the GCAC tournaments at Jacksonville, Fla. The Nuggets will play at 10 a.m. EST, and the Rush will play at 4 p.m.

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

District of Columbia, Others Prepare for D-II Tournaments

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Most of the historically black institutions in NCAA Division II will face off in either the SIAC or the CIAA tournaments. As such, they will, undoubtedly, receive most of the attention. However, there are several HBCU's vying for automatic playoff bids but in predominantly white conferences. Their battles also start this week.

Tops among them are the men's and women's basketball teams at the University of District of Columbia. Ranked nationally up until last week, the Firebirds (22-4, 13-3 ECC Men's; 21-5, 12-4 ECC Women's), figure to be the top seeds at the East Coast Conference tournaments at Queens College later this week. Both will receive byes in the quarterfinals and will play in the ECC semifinals on Saturday.

Other HBCU's in action this week will be men's and women's teams from West Virginia State and Bluefield State (West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic) and Central State (Independents). Also, the women of Lincoln (Mo.) will face off in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic tournament.

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Both XU teams will open with Fisk in GCAC tournaments

NEW ORLEANS — It will be a double-dose of Xavier University of Louisiana vs. Fisk in Thursday's opening round of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference basketball tournaments at Jacksonville, Fla.

XU's women, 22-8 and seeded first in their bracket, will play eighth-seeded Fisk (4-24) at 10 a.m. EST. XU's men — 22-7 and seeded second after losing a Sunday coin flip with Tougaloo for the top seed — will play seventh-seeded Fisk (6-22) at 4 p.m. EST.

Both games will be played at Edward Waters College's Adams-Jenkins Sports and Music Complex. That facility will play host to six of Thursday's eight games and all Friday and Saturday games.

The Gold Nuggets secured their seed and earned the regular-season championship by a game over Talladega by winning 59-53 at Dillard on Saturday. The Gold Rush also won at Dillard, shooting 53.1 percent from the floor in a wire-to-wire 67-43 decision, and grabbed a share of the GCAC men's regular-season title with Tougaloo, a 71-65 loser at SUNO.

It's the first time since 2003-04 that both XU teams won GCAC titles in the same regular season.

The XU men split their two regular-season meetings with Tougaloo. The coin flip was necessary because the Rush and Bulldogs had identical records against each of the other already determined seeds. The tie for fourth place between Philander Smith and Talladega was not determined until after the coin flip for No. 1. After Tougaloo won the flip — Bulldogs coach Lafayette Stribling successfully called heads — Philander Smith earned the No. 4 seed by virtue of a 1-1 record against Tougaloo. Talladega was 0-2 against the Bulldogs.

Both XU teams were 2-0 against Fisk in the regular season. The Gold Nuggets won 71-28 at home on Jan. 14 and 81-50 at Fisk this past Monday. The Gold Rush won 65-58 at home and 74-50 at Fisk on the same dates.

If the XU women win Thursday, they'll play fourth-seeded Dillard or fifth-seeded Tougaloo in the semifinals at 2 p.m. EST Friday. If the XU men advance, they'll face third-seeded SUNO or sixth-seeded Edward Waters at 8 p.m. Friday.

The championship games will be Saturday, with the women playing at noon EST and the men to follow at 2 p.m.

The Gold Nuggets defeated Tougaloo 71-44 in 2011 to win their second consecutive GCAC Tournament. Tougaloo beat Xavier 93-80 in overtime for the men's championship.

Both tournament champions will receive automatic bids to the NAIA Division I National Championships, which will begin March 14. The men's tournament will return to Kansas City, Mo., for the 11th consecutive year and celebrate its 75th anniversary. The women's tournament will begin a three-year run in Frankfort, Ky., after being played in Jackson, Tenn., the past 22 years.

Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournaments

at Jacksonville, Fla. — all times Eastern

WOMEN

Thursday, March 1
Quarterfinals (First Round)
Xavier (22-8, #1 seed) vs. Fisk (4-24, #8 seed), 10 a.m.
• Dillard (13-11, #4 seed) vs. Tougaloo (14-13, #5 seed), 10 a.m.
Talladega (20-7, #2 seed) vs. Philander Smith (5-24, #7 seed), 2 p.m.
SUNO (13-10, #3 seed) vs. Edward Waters (9-22, #6 seed) 6 p.m.

Friday, March 2
Semifinals

Xavier-Fisk winner vs. Dillard-Tougaloo winner, 2 p.m.
Talladega-Philander Smith winner vs. SUNO-Edward Waters winner, 6 p.m.

Saturday, March 3
Championship
Semifinal winners meet at noon

MEN

Thursday, March 1
Quarterfinals (First Round)
Tougaloo (21-7, #1 seed) vs. Dillard (1-28, #8 seed), noon
• Philander Smith (14-14, #4 seed) vs. Talladega (11-18, #5 seed), noon
Xavier (22-7, #2 seed) vs. Fisk (6-22, #7 seed), 4 p.m.
SUNO (14-13, #3 seed) vs. Edward Waters (11-17, #6 seed) 8 p.m.

Friday, March 2
Semifinals
Tougaloo-Dillard winner vs. Philander Smith-Talladega winner, 4 p.m.
Xavier-Fisk winner vs. SUNO-Edward Waters winner, 8 p.m.

Saturday, March 3
Championship

Semifinal winners meet at 2 p.m.
• Game to be played at Florida State College (south campus) Sports Center; all other games to be played at Edward Waters College's Adams-Jenkins Sports and Music Complex.

 

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

SCSU blown away by A&T for Cage-Bibbs' 499th career win

HEAD COACH PATRICIA CAGE-BIBBS WILL ACHIEVE A
HISTORIC MILESTONE WITH NEXT A&T WIN, AS SHE
BECOMES THE FIRST HBCU COACH TO ACHIEVE 500
WINS IN NCAA DIVISION I BASKETBALL. THE '72
GRAMBLING STATE LEGEND HAS A CAREER RECORD
 OF 499-278 (124-84 @ A&T), IN 26 SEASONS.
(READ MORE AT COACHBIBBS.COM AND NCATAGGIES.COM)

ORANGEBURG, South Carolina - The North Carolina A&T Aggies had plenty to motivate them coming into Saturday's rematch against S.C. State at Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center.

First was the opportunity to avenge Feb. 11's 71-68 home loss to the Bulldogs; second was the opportunity to pull two games ahead of the sixth-place Bulldogs in the MEAC standings and third was the opportunity to pull within one victory of head coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs' 500 career win milestone.

The Aggies (13-14, 8-6) capitalized on all three, handing the Bulldogs(11-14, 6-8) a 101-61 loss. It was the second time this season the Aggies have passed the century mark. It was the largest margin of victory in series history and it was the most lopsided win of the Bibbs era.

"Last time they beat us up and down the court," said Bibbs. "Today our kids came out so much energy. It was like this team didn't know who our team was. We were perfect today.

"I'm a happy, happy coach!," she continued. "I loved it. Our kids played hard and with a lot of energy, this is the best seriously I've seen us play all year. It was a great win, and a great win for us to do it on their court."

Redshirt sophomore Amber Calvin posted 23 points, including five 3-pointers, with seven rebounds and a career-high nine assists.

"You know when Amber's on the floor, she just makes things happen. She has that court awareness, but everyone played well. They wanted it," Bibbs said.

Sophomore Tiffanie Adair had 20 points and nine rebounds, and junior JaQuayla Berry added 18 points, eight rebounds, five assists and a team-high three steals. She is now seven points shy of becoming the 12th player in school history to reach 1,000 points.

Sophomore DeAndra Davis had a career-high 14 points as well. The Aggies shot a season-high 60.9 percent for the game.

"Well it's (S.C. State's) homecoming, and they beat us on our home court," said Bibbs. "(Our ladies) wanted this; they wanted to definitely make a statement. It wasn't so much about this game, it's about what we're looking forward to. We'll take care of business as we go. We're looking forward to taking it into the MEAC tournament."

2011-12 NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIVERSITY
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM
ROSTER
COACHING STAFF AND BIOS
(CLICK ON PHOTO TO ENLARGE)

Entering into the game, the Bulldogs were just one game back behind the Aggies, with two games coming up against sub-.500 MEAC teams to end the season. Making sure they won this match-up to pull two games ahead in the standing was key for the Aggies.

"It's very important because they have N.C. Central and then they have Delaware State. They have another game at home before going on the road. It was just really important to get this game to hopefully keep us competitive for fifth place," Bibbs said.

Ending the year in fifth place in the conference would ensure that the Aggies would face the No. 12 seed in the opening round of the MEAC Tournament.

The Aggies dominated the Bulldogs early. They took a 31-14 lead over the first 10 minutes of the game. A 15-0 run fueled by six Adair points and a pair of Davis field goals gave A&T a 32-point lead. The lead eventually ballooned to a 57-19 halftime lead.

"At halftime, we just said, hey, we gotta go back with the very same thing and go get it," Bibbs said.

The Aggies set a new-season best in first half points, fueled by 65 percent shooting from the floor. While several Aggies had strong performances, Bibbs was truly pleased by Davis'.

"I really liked the energy of DeAndra Davis," Bibbs said. "She played great. She's a lockdown defender. We're very proud of her coming out today."

The Aggies will be looking for more from Davis, Calvin and Berry as the Aggies take on Savannah State in their final road game of the regular season at 6 p.m. on Monday. The Aggies will return home for their season finale against Norfolk State at 5:30 p.m. at Corbett Sports Center on Thursday, March 1.

"We're just looking forward to Monday night. We've got two more games and we'll get it and we'll just keep going. I'm happy and I'm excited. We've got to go in there and play," Bibbs said.

BOX SCORE

NEXT GAME: MONDAY, FEB. 27, @ SAVANNAH STATE, 6 PM 

COURTESY: NCA&T SPORTS INFORMATION
VISIT: COACHBIBBS.COM

VISIT: NCA&TAGGIES.COM

VISIT: NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIVERSITY