Bowie State men lose in CIAA semifinal

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina - For the second year in a row, the Bowie State University men's basketball team lost its opening game in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association Tournament. Elizabeth City State (15-13) outscored the Bullodgs 33-28 in the second half and 9-6 in overtime to earn a 66-33 victory in a CIAA semifinal in Charlotte, N.C.

Bowie State led by five points at halftime and by as much as seven in the early minutes of the second half. But a 13-2 run put Elizabeth City State in the lead, 44-40 midway through the second half.

Bowie State (22-6) trailed by seven with 3:58 to play in the second half, but rallied on 3-pointers by Byron Westmorland and Largo High graduate Darren Clark and a dunk by Travis Hyman. Clark's 3-pointer gave Bowie State a 57-56 lead with 1:24 to play, but an Angelo Sharpless free throw allowed Elizabeth City State to tie the game with eight seconds left.

Another 3-pointer by Clark gave Bowie State a 63-62 lead with 1:09 to play in overtime, but the Bulldogs committed a turnover and missed two foul shots in the final 28 seconds, and Elizabeth City State won the game on a jumper by Sharpless and a pair of foul shots by Marquie Cooke.

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SUNO holds on to beat XU Rush by 1 in GCAC semifinals

JACKSONVILLE, Florida — Freshman guard Kevin Dukes scored a career-high 27 points Friday to lead SUNO to a 66-65 men's basketball victory against Xavier University of Louisiana in the semifinals of the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament.

The third-seeded Knights (16-13) advanced to the championship game for the first time since 2004. They'll play defending champion and top-seeded Tougaloo, a 94-88 winner against fourth-seeded Philander Smith in Friday's other semifinal.

Xavier (23-8) — seeded second, ranked 18th nationally and the regular-season co-champion with Tougaloo — will await an at-large berth to the Buffalo Funds-NAIA Division I National Championship at Kansas City, Mo. Bids will be announced Wednesday, and the tournament will begin March 14. Xavier qualified for nationals five of the past seasons, including 2011.

Clyde Moore and Devin White scored 10 points apiece for SUNO, which led 30-27 at halftime.

Chris Iles and Jamaan Kenner scored 11 points each for Xavier, and Kevin Miller scored 10. Denzell Erves scored nine points and grabbed 11 rebounds.

Except for a tie at 36 which lasted less than half a minute, SUNO led for the final 28:16. Dukes' 3-pointer with 14:17 remaining put the Knights ahead to stay, 39-36.

Xavier faced its largest deficit of the game, 54-43, after Dukes scored with 7:22 remaining but twice closed to within a point in the final 2:40. The Gold Rush missed a chance to take the lead when Cordell Hadnot's shot hit the side of the backboard with 1:15 remaining. Moore grabbed the rebound for SUNO and drove the length of the court for a 3-point play and a 63-59 advantage at 1:11.

With the Rush trailing 66-63, Wanto Joseph missed on a 3-pointer with two seconds remaining. SUNO controlled the rebound out-of-bounds with half a second remaining, and Xavier scored the final points at the buzzer after Gil Mathieu stole the inbounds pass under the Rush basket.

Xavier outshot SUNO 43.8 to 42.6 percent from the floor. Both teams grabbed 32 rebounds and committed 13 turnovers. SUNO made 22-of-34 free throws, including 6-of-7 in the final 2:23. Xavier was 20-of-26 from the line, including 13-of-14 in the final 14 minutes.

SUNO beat Xavier for the second time in three tries this season. The Knights' earlier victory was 67-64 in overtime at The Barn on Jan. 10. That game knocked Xavier out of first place in the GCAC, but SUNO helped Xavier this past weekend when it defeated Tougaloo to force the Bulldogs to share the regular-season title with the Rush.

Returning to the GCAC title game for the first time since 1996 will be SUNO coach Dale Valdery, an XU alum who was 2-2 in the championship round in his first six seasons as coach of the Gold Rush. This is Valdery's fourth season at SUNO, where he has led the Knights to their first winning season since 2004-05.

Box score

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director

VISIT: XULAATHLETICS

VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

Shea Morris Strikes Out Career High 10 in TSU Tiger Win

Gainesville, Florida - The Tigers used early run support and an efficient pitching performance to upend Campbell University in the opening game of the Lipton Invitational at the University of Florida. TSU scored in each of the first four innings on its way to a 6-1 victory over the Big South opponent.

Tennessee State improved to 5-5 on the season as the Camels drop to 7-9. The two squads will face off again on Saturday afternoon.

Jennifer Givens opened the game with an inside the park home run. It was the first homer of any kind this season for the Big Blue. Givens shot a ball down the left field line passed the out stretched glove of the Camels left fielder and found its way into the corner. The junior outfielder never broke stride and slid into home to give TSU an 1-0 lead.

In the second inning, the Tigers took advantage of a two-out throwing error that kept the inning alive. Freshman Savannah Gutierrez drove a ball into centerfield allowing Brittany Davis and Tayler Shimizu to score and extend the lead to 3-0.

TSU continued the attack in the third inning as Kate Morris led off with a double. (Kate) Morris would get thrown out at home trying to score on Tedra Alford's second of three hits on the day. After a walk to Jordan Rehl, Ashley Haynes and Davis were each hit by a pitch in back-to-back at bats to force Alford home. Two pitches later Rehl would cross home plate on a wild pitch giving TSU a 5-0 lead.

Givens would close out the scoring for the Tigers in the fifth by once again using her speed. After a one out single up the middle, Givens stole second and third, reaching home after the catcher's throw to third sailed into left field.

Shea Morris (4-2) would make the runs count as she threw 62 strikes in 83 pitches for a rate of 75%. Stephanie Jones broke up a no-hit bid in the fourth inning with a solo blast to left field. The freshman pitcher finished the game allowing just three hits and one walk, while fanning a career high ten batters.

Alford went 3-for-3 with a run, a double and a walk, while Davis was 2-for-3 with a double, a run scored, one RBI and a hit by pitch.

TSU will play Gardner-Webb at 1:30 p.m. ET as they continue play in the three-day event.

COURTESY: TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

CIAA has perfected tournament atmosphere after 100 years

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina - The CIAA Tournament always brings folks from all over the world and this year, the party started Monday.

On the court, Raleigh-area teams are the favorites for both the women's and men's brackets. The Shaw University men's team, ranked No. 5 in the nation in Division II, plays their first game Thursday against Fayetteville State. The Shaw women have already made it to the semifinal on Friday where they will play Bowie State.



Off the court, there are non-stop events to occupy your time in Charlotte; you couldn't possibly do everything in a weekend. Honestly, basketball is the last thing on many people's minds at the tournament who are seen socializing with old classmates, teammates and rivals.

Clothes, jewelry and memorabilia are just a few of the crafted items for sale at the shops that fill Time Warner Cable Arena. It is a fashion show.

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Savannah State men win MEAC regular-season title

PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland. — Savannah State’s first season in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference keeps getting better. The Tigers clinched the regular-season title and assured themselves a date in the NIT by defeating Maryland Eastern Shore, 73-54, on Thursday night.

SSU (21-10, 14-2 MEAC) extended its winning streak to 13 games — its longest winning streak since the school began keeping records after the 1981-82 season.

“When we started the year, we were thinking maybe we could be among the top four and have a shot at winning (the conference tournament),” SSU coach Horace Broadnax had said Tuesday. “Playing in a league gives you those stepping stones.”

It was a big leap for the Tigers, who had been playing as an NCAA Division I Independent before this year. It’s the first Division I national tournament appearance ever for the men’s basketball team, which had been mired at the bottom only six years ago.

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Eubanks leads Stillman women in SIAC tourney; men fall in OT

ATLANTA | Phyllice Eubanks scored 25 points and had 13 rebounds as the second-seeded Stillman College women’s basketball team defeated seventh-seeded Albany State 91-73 Thursday in the SIAC basketball tournament at Morehouse College.

Eubanks was also 11-for-11 from the free throw line. Jamila McKinnis added 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Ashley Kidd scored 12 and had 11 rebounds for Stillman.

Stillman Men fall by 1 in OT

Damian Ford missed the second of his two free throws with one second left in the second overtime period as Stillman fell to Benedict, 86-85.

Benedict had a two-point lead with six seconds left in the second overtime after Tydran Beaty hit a jump shot and made a free throw after being fouled by Lee Riley. Beaty fouled Ford with only one second left and Ford made his first free throw, but his second shot missed the mark, giving Benedict the win.

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WSSU is still standing in CIAA Tournament

What Collins has done with nearly a whole new team can't be overlooked

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina -- It was by no means a thing of beauty but Winston-Salem State’s gritty 56-55 win over Virginia Union is a significant moment for the program and particularly coach Bobby Collins.

Collins, who has one more season left on his contract, has stressed all season about the importance of performing well “in those three days in March.” He’s referring, of course, to the CIAA Tournament, the crown jewel of the conference.

With around 10,000 fans at Thursday night’s game the Rams turned to their defense in the closing seconds to turn back the Panthers. It shouldn’t be overlooked what Collins and the Rams have accomplished, even if the road ends tonight against defending champion Shaw, who is riding a 21-game win streak. Shaw, who I think could give the woeful Charlotte Bobcats a good game, will be tough to beat in tonight’s 9:30 semifinal game.

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VUU's season ends in CIAA Quarters

CHARLOTTE, NC - Virginia Union made a furious rally, but it came one point short in the CIAA quarterfinals. Winston-Salem hung on to hold off Virginia Union, 56-55, on Thursday in the Time Warner Cable Arena, ending the Panthers season.

Winston-Salem State advances to Friday's semifinal game where it will meet the winner of Shaw/Fayetteville at 9 p.m. The Rams were swept by Shaw (76-60 on Feb. 11 and 80-59 on Feb. 20) and split the season series with Fayetteville State with a 58-54 victory on Jan. 21 and dropped a 64-54 decision nearly a week ago.

Justin Glover led the Rams (19-8) with 14 points, four rebounds and one assist. Chris Witherspoon added 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting as Winston-Salem State, which defeated Virginia Union, 67-66, on Jan. 7, shot 47 percent (22-of-47) from the floor.

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