Texas Southern Men's Basketball adds two non-conference home games to upcoming schedule

COACH MIKE DAVIS
MEN'S BASKETBALL
TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY

HOUSTON, Texas  -- The Texas Southern University men's basketball program has announced the addition of two non-conference home games for the upcoming 2013-14 season.

Texas Southern will host Norfolk State (Nov. 9) and Wiley College (Nov. 11) at the H&PE Arena in what should prove to be two highly entertaining contest. Tip-off for TSU's game against versus the Spartans is slated for 5:00 pm while the Tigers game versus the Wildcats has been scheduled for a 7:00 pm start.

"We're really excited about having the opportunity to host Norfolk State this upcoming season," said TSU head coach Mike Davis. "Norfolk State has established themselves as a perennial power at the Division I level and they will pose a great challenge for our team. We're also looking forward to hosting Wiley College that following Monday. The additions of both of these games to our upcoming schedule will give our fans a chance to see some quality non-conference basketball on our home court."

With the additions of Norfolk State and Wiley College the Tigers upcoming 2013-14 slate will feature a total of 12 non-conference home games followed by 18 league match-ups against Southwestern Athletic Conference opponents. For all of the latest breaking news regarding Texas Southern men's basketball please continue to visit www.tsuball.com. 

TSU Men's Basketball Schedule

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Hope is theme for GSU

GRAMBLING, Louisiana  --  After a tumultuous and rather chaotic start to the year, homecoming can’t come soon enough for Grambling’s football program.

Pick any negative adjective to describe the Tigers’ season and it would fit perfectly like a puzzle piece.

It all started when legendary player and coach Doug Williams was fired. Then the team went on a five-game losing streak, boycotted practice, got the interim coach removed and forfeited a game.
Yet the players and coaches still have something to prove, and what better stage to do that in front of one of the largest crowds of the season — this Saturday at home against Mississippi Valley State.

“There’s no better time to win it than on homecoming in front of your home alumni, the alumni in California, Georgia, Dallas area,” interim coach Dennis Winston said. “We just want to win the football game for everybody and ourselves and want to represent Grambling State University the best we can.”

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NCAA recognizes Grambling-JSU as no contest

SWAC has right to consider it a forfeit

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama  -- The NCAA is officially recognizing the cancelled game between Grambling State and Jackson State as a no contest, an NCAA spokesperson confirmed Wednesday morning.

According to the NCAA statistics’ policies and guidelines, the Oct. 19 game will not count official in the win-loss record, although the SWAC will still deem it as a forfeit.

“When a team does not appear (e.g., due to weather conditions, accidents, breakdown of vehicles, illness or catastrophic circumstances, shortage of players), a forfeit is not recorded unless the rules of the sport provide that option,” the policy reads. “An institution shall not, for statistical purposes, declare a forfeit for nonfulfillment of a contest. Such instances shall be considered as "no contest."

Therefore, when Grambling didn’t show up, the NCAA immediately deemed it a no contest, not a forfeit.

So the news, which comes nearly two weeks after the scheduled game, shouldn’t come as a surprise because the policy has been in the NCAA’s guidelines since 1977.

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Alcorn State in contention for SWAC title

LORMAN, Mississippi  -- Alcorn State is enjoying its best football season in two decades.

The Braves (6-2, 5-1 SWAC) entertain Alabama A&M on Saturday in a crucial league contest at Lorman's Jack Spinks Stadium.

Alcorn hasn't won as many as seven games since 1994, when the late quarterback Steve McNair was on the Reservation setting NCAA records and becoming a Heisman Trophy finalist. Alcorn is also in contention for the SWAC championship, which would be its first since 1994.

Moss Point natives Carlton and Michael Reese will be inducted into the Alcorn Sports Hall of Fame on Nov. 1 at the Vicksburg Convention center, a day before the Braves' football contest. Mississippi Valley State at Grambling, 1 p.m.: The Delta Devils (1-7, 1-6) have a great chance to end a three-game losing skid against hapless Grambling at Eddie Robinson Stadium. A once-proud Grambling program has been reduced to shambles, since the firing of longtime coach Doug Williams last month. The Tigers are playing out the season and hope school officials rebuild their team. CONTINUE READING

Read more here: http://www.sunherald.com/2013/10/30/5072352/alcorn-state-in-contention-for.html#storylink=cpy

Southern University football faces Texas Southern in key SWAC game

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- Texas Southern found itself in the role of spoiler last weekend when the Tigers traveled to play Grambling. The focus on the college football world was on the Grambling football team, which was coming off a players’ boycott of its game with Jackson State the previous week.

The players returned to the field last week and were sort of the sentimental favorites because of the stand they had taken.

But Texas Southern threw cold water on that, taking down Grambling, 23-17, in overtime.

“We knew there were going to be a lot of emotions in this game,’’ Texas Southern coach Darrell Asberry said. “When we walked into the stadium you could feel a different type of atmosphere and a different Grambling football team. They came out and played hard.

“Both teams played hard and the game could have gone either way. It was a good win for the program and it’s over now. We have to move on.’’

The Tigers can again play spoilers this week but ...

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XU wins 3rd straight GCAC regular-season championship



Xavier has won 39 straight in women's volleyball against the GCAC.

NEW ORLEANS -- Xavier University of Louisiana won its third consecutive Gulf Coast Athletic Conference regular-season championship in women's volleyball by defeating Dillard 25-18, 25-18, 25-22 on Wednesday at the Convocation Center.

Moira Kirk and Taylor Reuther -- two of the four juniors who never have lost to a GCAC opponent since arriving at Xavier as freshmen -- had 12 kills apiece to lead the Gold Nuggets (22-7, 11-0) to their 16th consecutive victory, which extends their school record. Xavier has won 39 in a row against conference opponents since the start of 2011.

Xavier completed its home schedule with a 9-0 record and has won a school-record 13 straight on its campus dating to 2012. It's the first time the Nuggets won all their home matches in a season.

Kirk hit .476 in 21 attacks and had an ace, seven digs and four blocks. Reuther had 11 digs, one ace and a block.

Kerris Crier, Xavier's only senior, and Jodi Hill had six kills apiece. CeCe Williams and Chinedu Echebelem had 11 digs apiece.

Carolyn Baker had 13 kills, and Mercades Chevis had seven kills and 11 digs for Dillard (10-6, 7-4), whose four-match win streak ended.

Hill and Reuther had two kills apiece, and Claudia Haywood had a kill and two blocks during an 11-0 run which erased Dillard's 8-5 lead in the first set. Two Kirk kills and a Jodi Chatters ace helped Xavier take a 5-0 lead in the second set, and the Nuggets rallied from a 12-4 deficit in the third.

After a tie at 22, Xavier ended the match on kills by Reuther, Echebelem and Alexandria Rencher, who also had 17 assists in the final set. Xavier closed with an 8-3 run.

Xavier outhit Dillard .248 to .065 and had advantages of 47-26 in kills, 49-39 in digs and 6-3 in blocks. The Gold Nuggets defeated their city rival for the eighth consecutive time to take their first lead in the series at 8-7.

Xavier climbed two victories above .500 for the first time in the program's six years. The Nuggets are 97-95 overall, 67-22 in the last three seasons.

The GCAC championship is Xavier's third in five days. Xavier won men's and women's cross country titles on Saturday, and the university's total is 49 in the last nine seasons. Xavier has won approximately 100 championships at the conference, group or district level since fielding its first teams in the late 1920s.

Xavier and Dillard will close the regular season in a 1 p.m. Saturday match at Dillard's Dent Hall, then both will compete in the GCAC Tournament, which will begin Nov. 7 at Little Rock, Ark.

Box Score

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

TSU's Rodgers-Cromartie Earns AFC Defensive Player of the Week

COURTESY DENVER BRONCOS MEDIA RELATIONS & TSU ATHLETICS

DENVER, Colorado  -- On Wednesday, former Tennessee State defensive back Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie earned AFC Defensive Player of the Week after his performance against the Washington Redskins.

The former Tiger had a pick-six in the 45-21 Denver Broncos win on Sunday. Rodgers-Cromartie also recorded three pass breakups, five tackles and one tackle for loss.

 

Late in the fourth quarter Rodgers-Cromartie picked off Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins and raced 75-yards for a pick-six that sealed the deal on the Broncos come from behind win.

 

Sunday’s interception was the second of the season for the TSU alum and the 18^th in his career. The touchdown marked the fifth time Rodgers-Cromartie reached the end zone in his NFL career. Since making his league debut in 2008 Rodgers-Cromartie has recorded the most pass break-ups in the NFL with 95.

 

The award is the second of his career with the first coming in 2009 as a member of the Arizona Cardinals, when Rodgers-Cromartie earned NFC Defensive Player of the Week.

 

Rodgers-Cromartie and the Broncos return to action Oct. 10 after their bye week to take on AFC West Division foe San Diego, kick-off is slated for 3:25 p.m. (CT).

 

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