Princeton clinches final spot in Ivy Madness with dominant showing against Penn

By Andrew Hefner (@Ahef_NJ)

PRINCETON, N.J. — To hunt or be hunted.

That was the theme Saturday following Princeton’s dominant 95-71 win over Penn. 

With the win, the Tigers clinched the last spot in the Ivy League tournament, but unlike previous years, will be on the bottom end of the bracket. 

“I'm happy about it,” said junior Xaivian Lee following the game. “I like to be the hunter and not the hunted, if you will, so I think coming in as underdogs, I think it takes a lot of pressure off. We can just go out there and hoop.”

Lee had an outstanding performance in the matchup against the Quakers, even going so far as to have the second triple-double in his career, and in Princeton’s history, as both belong to the Canadian.

Although he did not score until 12 minutes into the first, Lee was already having an excellent performance, with four assists to open the game. When he did start scoring, however, he made it known with 14 points in the last eight minutes of the first half. In the second, he kept it going, ending with a stat line of 23 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. 

Blake Peters matched Lee’s impact, as the senior put up ten points of his own before ten minutes had even passed off the game clock on the way to a career-high 25 points in his final game at Jadwin Gymnasium, connecting on seven 3-pointers and reaching a milestone with his 200th career triple in the process. 

“He's had to deal with a lot this season, and he’s always been consistent,” head coach Mitch Henderson said of Peters. “I benched him to start the season, brought him into the game, started him, he had 25 tonight. I'm just so humbled and honored to be his coach, and I'm really glad that we got the win tonight.”

“I had three dream schools growing up: Princeton, Michigan, Stanford, and only one of them wanted me,” Peters reflected. “I’ve told so many people, this place has changed my life,
 the program has changed my life. It’s the greatest honor ever to represent Princeton and I hope the way I play is a direct reflection of how I feel about this place.”

Although Penn seemed out of the game just as quickly as it began, Sam Brown—coming off an impressive 42 points again against Columbia last week—did his best to keep the Quakers in it, scoring all 10 of Penn’s points in the last six minutes of the first half. He would end with 19 points while playing a game-high 37 minutes. Even though Brown attempted to win the game himself for Penn, career nights from Peters and Lee led to an impressive and dominant showing from the Tigers. More importantly, Penn and Princeton, a rivalry that began more than 120 years ago, is now tied once again at 126 wins for each side, and the Tigers specifically have won the last 13 straight matchups between the two. The series was last tied in 1905.

“I lost to them four times,” said Henderson about his time playing for the Tigers. “(Lee and Peters) have never lost to them. I think rivalries are really important to acknowledge and talk about.”

Princeton will now look ahead to facing a tough Yale squad next week at Ivy Madness in Providence next Saturday. Princeton fell to Yale on the road last month, 84-57, and 77-70 at home on January 31.

“Penn was Coach's rival and Penn is still our rival,” said Peters. “But as players, we think Yale is our rival and that's always how we approach the games.”

Yale, the regular season Ivy champs and top seed in the tournament, went 13-1 in the Ivy this year and will be a tough competitor for Princeton. Despite the mountainous challenges ahead, the Tigers are ready to take on the Bulldogs for a chance at a second March Madness berth in three seasons.

“We know very well what it's like to be the one seed in this tournament,” Henderson said. “We're gonna have a great week of practice while we're on spring break. We're looking forward to getting up there.”

“We won’t back down from a challenge despite what the scores have been the past couple of weeks,” Peters declared. “We're fully locked in and we’re ready to embrace it.”

Swish Gilyard leading Manhattan resurgence as Jaspers head to MAAC tournament with top 5 seed

Swish Gilyard flushes dunk as Manhattan wraps up win over Sacred Heart Thursday. Jaspers have won seven of nine entering MAAC tournament. (Photo by Vincent Dusovic/Manhattan Athletics)

NEW YORK — When he returned to the college basketball fraternity after a self-imposed gap year, John Gallagher extolled the potential of Manhattan College—now Manhattan University—among the mid-major landscape.

The Jasper program, whether under the direction of Steve Lappas, Fran Fraschilla, Bobby Gonzalez or Steve Masiello, had historically been among the better teams in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and in the New York area. The success was not lost on Gallagher, who believed in the potential even after essentially being hired sight unseen in March of 2023.

Two years later, Gallagher has taken Manhattan to its best performance in a decade. At 17-12, and 12-8 in the MAAC, the Jaspers are in the midst of their most successful campaign since 2014-15, when they repeated as MAAC tournament champions, overachieving to an extent thanks to the tireless work ethic of their ebullient coach.

“I’m just thankful for this place,” Gallagher gushed after Manhattan’s victory over Sacred Heart last Thursday, one that secured a first-round bye in the upcoming MAAC tournament. “This place feels like home to me. It just has a great feeling. I really believe in the place, it’s a big-time mid-major job. I believe that, and now I think the energy behind the alums and the fans, you could feel the energy building.”

“Less is more. When you’re good, you don’t have to tweak things, you just gotta go play. I just felt the energy in that second half, so for us, we just have great confidence in how our approach is. We’re not adding things, we just have to work on our mental approach. We’re not a team that thinks this is an anomaly. These guys really, really study game plans and understand them.”

With five players averaging 10 points or more a game, including the likely MAAC Rookie of the Year in Will Sydnor and Sixth Man of the Year Devin Dinkins, the Jaspers make up for a short rotation with a relentless style on both ends of the floor and the best offense in the conference.

However, the player who does most of the work may just be the player mentioned the least, junior guard Masiah (Swish) Gilyard, who Gallagher plucked from Blinn College in Texas, a junior college whose most notorious alumnus is former Heisman Trophy winner and NFL MVP Cam Newton. So how did a player like Gilyard, whose nose for the basketball and Brooklyn roots would normally give him a chance to ply his wares at a higher level, end up in Riverdale? According to Gallagher, the oversight just proves that good things truly do come in small packages.

“He flew under the radar for one reason: 6-foot-3,” the coach said of Gilyard. “If he’s 6’6, 6’7, he’s playing in the SEC or ACC. That’s just the facts. His body, what he does physically, he just comes up with balls and he’s on the floor, he’s stealing it, he’s deflecting it. He just disrupts the game in such a way. He’s been the one difference maker for us in this turn to feeling like you can win games.”

“Swish has just been Swish all year. When I recruited him, his JUCO coach who I talked to a lot, Scott Schumacher, said, ‘look, you’re gonna have to keep him on the floor, I’m just telling you. And there’s no truer words. You just have to have him out there. He’s just indispensable for us in everything we do. I think he’s the most under-talked about player in the conference. No one even mentions his name in any conversations. We flipped this thing in two years because of him. He deserves a lot of credit.”

Manhattan is still unsure of who it will face to begin the MAAC tournament next week, but is arguably the hottest team in the conference at the right time, having won seven of its last nine to conclude the regular season. In the Jaspers’ last two games, 11 players have registered a double-figure scoring game, only underscoring the firepower that comes from multiple sources.

“All of us are super dangerous,” Gilyard assessed. “If one of us is not hitting, we could all be hitting. You just can’t stop it.”

“Quite frankly, we’re probably a year ahead of schedule,” Gallagher reiterated. “It’s hard in mid-major basketball, flipping it. We don’t have any NIL budget. We’re doing it the old-school way and it’s very rewarding to see these guys keep growing. I think we have a lot in our tank, and you can’t rest on your achievements. What we have now is we have guys that are finding each other. That’s exciting.”

Winthrop continues its hot stretch, dispatches Longwood in Big South quarterfinals

Winthrop guard Kasen Harrison was one of two Eagles to notch a double-double in Friday's Big South quarterfinal win. (Photo:  Winthrop Athletics/Professional Photography Group)

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JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Griff Aldrich is, without question, one of the top coaches in mid-major college basketball. He is also known to be a bit of a philosopher.

Aldrich’s Longwood team had just fallen, 88-79, to Winthrop in the quarterfinal round of the Big South tournament and he wanted to say some things about his Lancers and their season. What unfolded was a bit of a sermon on the state of college basketball.

More on that in a bit, though.

Winthrop built a gigantic lead early Friday night, then withstood a frenetic Longwood run in the second half. The win marked the Eagles’ ninth in their last ten contests.

“We count ourselves very fortunate to get the opportunity to play again. That’s a really good basketball team,” Winthrop coach Mark Prosser said after the game. “Our upper-classmen really sort of guided us through that, including (guard Kasen Harrison and forward Kelton Talford). It’s a good group. They were locked in and ready to go.”

Prosser’s words were an understatement.

Longwood (18-14) started well enough, jumping out 8-4 early and leading by as many as five. The Eagles quickly – and decisively – dropped the hammer. Winthrop (22-10) unfurled an 11-0 burst that flipped the Lancer lead upside down and put the Eagles ahead by seven. The Lancers would bounce back with a 9-2 run of their own to level the contest at 17.

Then, all hell broke loose.

Kasen Harrison cashed a pair of triples. Bryce Baker hit one of his own. Nick Johnson added a couple baskets. KJ Doucet had a thunderous dunk and a three. Johnson and Baker hit a couple more buckets apiece.

When the dust settled, Winthrop had scored 24 of the final 31 points of the half. The Eagles had staggered the Lancers and taken a 45-24 lead to the interval.

“Tonight was obviously a frustrating night for us,” Aldrich said. “It was a little bit of a microcosm of our entire season. Our season has been full of stretches where we show that we can be a really good team, and then stretches of a lack of discipline, lack of playing with team focus, and a lack of effort. That’s something we’ve been working on all year.”

That inconsistency – while maddening in the first half – proved to be a bit more interesting in the second.

Winthrop seized a 24-point lead on the opening possession, then maintained a lead as high as 23 for the first seven minutes of the period. Longwood began to punch out of its corner a bit, scoring 12 of 16 points in a run of the half that snipped the deficit to 15. Another 7-0 burst later knifed the Winthrop lead to 10. As soon as Longwood worked the lead down to three possessions, though, star forward Kelton Talford took over. The Great Falls, S.C., native scored seven straight Eagle points to grow the lead back to 13. Longwood could never again draw closer than nine.

“It was just about being able to go out there and give that little ‘umph’ for my teammates,” Talford said. “You’ve just got to be ready when your name is called or when it’s your game. It’s just like they would do for me. Somebody else would pick up the slack. That’s what makes us so special. We’ve got nine guys who can get it done on any given night.”

“Every game tells its own story and every season tells its own story,” Prosser said. “I’m really proud of them. They have a next play mentality, and they had it again today. That’s a terrific team. They’re terrific this time of year. We knew it was going to be a battle. They did exactly what we knew they would do. That’s what good teams do. Our kids stuck together. There was no blinking in the face of adversity. They stuck together and made a lot of big plays down the stretch.”

After the game, Aldrich reflected a bit on the Lancers’ season and how things ended.

“It’s the job of a coach to recruit pieces and to put those pieces together. The reality is that I wasn’t able to do that this year. 18 wins is a good thing, but I think we always try to measure ourselves at Longwood by whether we reach our potential. This group – unfortunately – I don’t think it did reach its potential. That’s certainly on me and the staff. We just weren’t able to press the right buttons this year and get them to play the way that I believe they could have played.”

“It’s a hard part of coaching. It’s a hard part of sports. It’s almost like parenting. You see the potential in the group. We saw flashes – we even saw elongated stretches – but we were just never able to get that to gel. That’ll be a big disappointment – not only for me, but I think for everybody in our locker room for a while.”

Aldrich then commented on the state of college athletics.

“Whether your team is at the top or whether your team is struggling, you’re always trying to evaluate how the organization is working. Is the vibe right? Are there any gaps that we need to plug? I think one of the hard parts in the current state of college athletics is you’re trying to – at Longwood, we do want to transform. It’s harder to do that in the current environment. Some guys you only have for ten months, for eight months.”

“God bless the kids. With the transfer portal and the money, it’s hard to – the Big South is a great example. I don’t know how some of these kids can stay focused when they think, ‘Man, I could be making six figures next year if I’ – how can you be selfless in that moment? That’s a tall order. I don’t know many adults who can do that, much less 18-to-22-year-old kids.”

“College athletics is transforming. We have to transform with it. We never will sacrifice our values. We’ll never not be about trying to positively impact our guys. My hope is that, for these guys, they do learn. I don’t think anybody in that locker room thinks we met expectations. Hopefully, this is something they will learn from and it will be able to help them in a future season of their life.”

Five Winthrop scorers finished in double figures. Talford and Harrison both turned in double-doubles. Talford scored 16 points and snatched 10 boards. Harrison scored 15 and dished 11 of Winthrop’s 19 helpers. Doucet tallied 17, while Baker contributed 15 and Johnson 12. The Eagles shot 56.9 percent (29-for-51) from the deck, adding 13 triples on 31 tries (41.9 percent). Winthrop got to the line 32 times, but sank just 17 (53.1 percent).

Longwood booked three double-figure scorers. Guard Colby Garland registered 24 points, bolstered by a 13-for-14 performance from the line. Senior Michael Christmas missed a double-double by one rebound, scoring 15 points and boarding nine misses. Forward Elijah Tucker added 10 points and seven boards. The Lancers shot 36.1 percent (22-for-61) from the field and 25 percent (5-of-20) from beyond the arc. Longwood attempted a season-high 42 free throws, hitting 30 (71.4 percent).

Winthrop advances to Saturday’s second semifinal against Asheville. The teams split the season series, with the Eagles taking the most recent affair just a week ago. Winthrop turned away Asheville, 103-90, in that game.

“I don’t think anybody’s going to apologize for having to turn around and play tomorrow,” Prosser said. “We’ll do the proper preparation in the time we have. I’m sure they have the same familiarity with us that we have with them. It was a great college basketball game up there. It was a great college basketball game at our place. I’ve got a feeling it’ll be a great college basketball game again on Saturday.”

The third-seeded Eagles and second-seeded Bulldogs are set for a tip time of approximately 2:30 (Eastern) Saturday afternoon. ESPN+ will provide streaming coverage.

Bulldogs sink Bucs in Big South quarterfinal

By Jordan Ferrell (@FerrellonFM983)

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — Quarterfinal Friday in the Big South Conference tournament is always an interesting day.

Like any one-bid league tournament, there are always going to be tense moments, upsets, highs, lows, and occasionally, an overtime thriller. There are also more than a fair share of contests that for lack of a better adjective, are clunkers that get out of hand quick. That would be the case in the third quarterfinal game of the day between UNC Asheville and Charleston Southern, two teams that were in similar shoes coming into Friday night. 

UNC Asheville, who for much of the season was at the top of the league standings, went into a skid at the worst possible time, dropping three of its last four regular season games. That allowed High Point to both overtake the Bulldogs and pull away for the Big South regular season title while Asheville would clinch the #2 seed. The Buccaneers' end-of-season circumstances saw them lose four of their last five games. CSU did have a run where they rattled off four wins in six games, beating USC Upstate, Longwood, Gardner-Webb, and Presbyterian. That little hot streak propelled the Bucs as high as fifth in the standings before they went sliding the rest of the way, coming into the tournament as the No. 7 seed. 

Off the court, there was a huge storyline that may have made a difference in this game. It is nothing short of old news that the City of Asheville was among the hardest hit when Hurricane Helene tore through the western Carolinas back in late September of 2024. The area was met with flooding of historic proportions, washing away many surrounding towns and homes while leaving hundreds of thousands without electricity for weeks. UNC Asheville’s campus was deemed unsafe, which forced the displacement of many students and athletic teams until they were told they could return. The men’s basketball stayed in a hotel in Charlotte for three weeks, which gave head coach Mike Morrell a unique opportunity to help his team bond in ways it normally would not. 

“We have had more time together than any other team in the country,” Morrell stated emphatically. “There are 360-some of them (other college basketball teams). Nobody has spent more time together than we have. It has been a really tough year for this group. We have been able to find ways to stick together when we need it most. We believe that comes from time spent together off the court. When you are in Charlotte cooped up in a hotel room for three straight weeks, you get that.” 

“We went through the hurricane, which was tragic. It was a lot on me and everybody. We went to Charlotte and we had to live with a roommate. We had to switch roommates every week. We bonded and we all just love each other,” said Toyaz Solomon of the trial of being away from campus with just his teammates to lean on. 

“This team has the best bond I have ever been a part of,” Jordan Marsh added. “Everybody accepts everybody for who they are on and off the court. We were in Charlotte for three straight weeks with nobody else but us. And I feel like that set the bar for us to have a good season.” 

The circumstances entering a game mean very little, especially when it comes to a Big South quarterfinal. It sounds laughably cliche as can be, but the team whose playmakers make the most plays is the one that wins the game. So, for Charleston Southern, getting off to a strong start with the likes of Taje’ Kelly, RJ Johnson, and Lamar Oden, Jr. put pressure on Asheville’s Solomon, Josh Banks, and Fletcher Abee. As far as execution of that goes, things could not have started off too much better for Saah Nimley’s group. 

After Asheville opened the scoring on a Marsh layup, Reis Jones answered on the other end with a jumper to tie it. Marsh missed the Bulldogs’ first attempt at a three on the ensuing possession and Daylen Berry broke down the court to drain a layup, giving the Bucs the lead. From that point, the two sides traded baskets up until the first media timeout, where the Bucs led, 14-11. That was the moment the wind lessened, but did not completely turn to a doldrum in Charleston Southern’s sails. 

In a crazy sequence of events, Berry picked off a pass from Asheville’s Greg Gantt and took off on a fast break. Gantt made it back down court to block Berry’s attempt at a layup. Marsh then picked up the rebound and hoofed it up the court for a driving layup, only to be blocked by Jones. While it was initially ruled goaltending, a late review during the half would take those points back. Even with the initial call, the game devolved into a back-and-forth affair yet again from there, with the Bucs doing all they could just to keep Asheville within range of their cannons. 

Charleston Southern fought its way back to a narrow one-point lead with 5:32 to play in the half when Kelly finally hit his first basket of the game. That lead was brief as by the final media timeout of the half, the Bulldogs had reclaimed the point and upped the ante to five points, never to look back from there.   

“I thought that was our best defensive performance of the year,” said Morrell. “We had a season-high number of deflections in the first half. Usually when we do that, we are able to get out and run in transition and we did that tonight. These two guys (Solomon and Marsh) were terrific. We are definitely harder on them defensively than anybody else on the team and tonight they were really good. But credit to Charleston Southern, usually we have all-out wars with them every time, so to blow them out like this is an outlier.” 

UNC Asheville was led by the duo of Marsh and Solomon, who combined for over half of the points scored by the Bulldogs with 21. Abee tallied 16 and Kameron Taylor just missed double figures with eight points.

I’d be remiss not to touch on this one last storyline from the night. The loss for Charleston Southern marks the end of the storied career of Taje’ Kelly, a player that in an era where transfers and NIL money would make many as talented as him leave without hesitation, stayed with the team that recruited him out of high school. Not only that, but he stuck it out through a coaching change. His loyalty is something Nimley praises. 

“Taje’ reminds you of what is right with college basketball, even with all that is going on,” he said. “Regardless of how his career went as far as wins and losses, there is no doubt he is one of the best to ever play here. He will be cemented in that because of his loyalty.” 

Kelly closed the book on both the night and his career by emphasizing his love for Charleston Southern and how it has impacted his life. 

“It means everything to me,” he reflected. “CSU got me closer to God. It geared me towards a better relationship with God. I love how they accepted me there. Saah recruited me out of high school and I appreciate them giving me a chance.”

Inside the Numbers: #7 Charleston Southern vs. #2 Asheville, Big South Quarterfinals

 

Asheville forward Kam Taylor is captured in the middle of a windmill dunk in Friday's quarterfinal victory. (Photo:  Big South Conference)

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JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Charleston Southern coach Saah Nimley – himself a legend as a Buc player and now their coach – walked onto the podium after Friday’s quarterfinal against Asheville, looked at the table, and spoke volumes in three words.

“That was tough.”

Asheville reversed course Friday night. Its prior largest win in conference play was nine points – until the Big South quarterfinals. The Bulldogs turned a once-close contest into a 20-point blowout on the strength of ball security, great shooting, and suffocating defense.

You now know that Asheville claimed an 80-60 victory – now, let’s find out how they did so as we go…Inside the Numbers!

• To call Asheville’s big victory uncharacteristic would be quite the understatement. The Bulldogs led by just six at the interval as Charleston Southern shot 48.3 percent in the opening 20. After Daylen Berry snipped the CSU deficit to four with a bucket to start the second half, Asheville went on a nearly immediate, 10-0 run that helped put away the game. More on that run in a minute, but first, some words from Asheville coach Mike Morrell on the result.

“I thought we had the three best days of practice that we've had all year,” Morrell said. “That doesn't guarantee you anything, but if you don't do that, I can guarantee you what the other result will be.”

“We haven't blown anybody out this year and I I don't know that that's as much on us as it is that this is the deepest in the best of league as it’s been in my seven years (at Asheville) and I really don't think it's close.” 

• Regarding that key segment, Morrell commented after the game on its importance. After a brief stoppage, Charleston Southern ran a quick ATO and passed up on its first read – whether this was something Asheville blew up or the design was to go to the second look could not be determined – choosing instead to kick to Berry for a triple. Berry’s look spun away and Asheville boarded the miss, spraying ahead to Fletcher Abee for a deep corner triple that extended the Bulldog lead to 12 and induced a Charleston Southern timeout.

“That was a really good read by (guard Jordan) Marsh,” Morrell said. “That’s something we talk about a lot. I wish we did more of that – getting the ball ahead in transition. One of the reasons we probably can’t do it as much is that I probably play Fletcher too many minutes and he’s so damn tired that he has a hard time getting down the court.”

“That was a big sequence. The other big sequence was when (forward) Toyaz (Solomon) made a really good read off a side out of bounda play that was really an option for him or Fletcher. He decided to give it to Fletch and Fletch hit a big three there.”

• Asheville absolutely suffocated Charleston Southern in the second half, but the defensive effort in the first half also helped tell the story. The Bulldogs logged 25 first-half deflections, which forced the Bucs out of their comfort zone. CSU shot just 33.3 percent (9-for-27) in the closing 20, adding just 25 percent (3-for-12) from deep. The Bucs also missed five free throws in 12 tries in the period.
  
  
• That defense led to one of the more interesting tempo numbers of the night. Asheville cashed 20 points off 16 Buccaneer turnovers but surrendered just three points off its eight miscues. Which number was more important? Let’s ask Solomon and Marsh.

“Definitely the 20 off their turnovers, because we had a season-high of deflections in the first half,” Solomon said. “That’s pretty big. We converted (on those turnovers).”

“Coach Morrell is on us – mainly me and Toyaz – about defense,” Marsh added. “We just want to keep playing. This group is too good. We just have to stay strong and keep playing for each other.”

Leave it to Morrell to finish that response with a joke.

“20 points leads mostly to their points, so obviously they’re going to choose those.”

• The game marked the final in the storied career of Charleston Southern forward and Player of the Year Taje’ Kelly. There are probably few more qualified to comment on Kelly’s legacy at CSU than Nimley. 

“It’s hard to put into words,” Nimley said. “Taje’ – he reminds you of what’s right about college basketball, even with all the changes going on – extra years, money, transferring – he reminds you of what’s right about it. Regardless of how his career went, wins- and losses-wise, there’s not a doubt that he’s one of the best players to ever play here and has had one of the best individual careers. He’ll be cemented in that because of his loyalty. If you track (his career) year-by-year, he’s the definition of development. This is a kid that, moving forward, has set the table for who we’re going to be.”

Morrell also weighed in on Kelly’s legacy.

“I told Taje’ this – I think he’s the best player in the league outside of (Drew) Pember in just how hard he is to guard. I give him so much credit for – I was at Charleston Southern for a year and I obviously know that place really well – I give him so much credit for staying there for four years and being just a great player. I guarantee you when he gets to my age -- which is 42 -- he will remember that way more. He is just a great player. I’d be remiss if I didn’t say that.”

Solomon led all scorers with 21 for Asheville, connecting on 10-of-11 tries from the deck and grabbing five boards. Marsh added 20, hitting nine shots, grabbing six boards, and dishing six helpers. Abee contributed 16, hitting 5-of-7 from deep. Josh Banks finished with 11.

Three Bucs finished in doubles. Kelly and Anthony Gause notched 11 apiece, while RJ Johnson finished with 10. 

Quick tempo numbers:

Asheville:  1.231 PPP (65 trips), 56.9% scores, 12.3% turns, 54.1% shooting (33-61), 43.8% three-point shooting (7-16), 58.3% free throw shooting (7-12)

Charleston Southern:  .923 PPP (65 trips), 41.5% scores, 24.6% turns, 41.1% shooting (23-56), 25% three-point shooting (6-24), 61.5% free throw shooting (8-13)

Asheville improves to 20-10 and will square off with the winner of sixth-seeded Longwood and third-seeded Winthrop in Saturday’s second semifinal. Tip time is approximately 2:30 (Eastern), with streaming coverage over ESPN+. Charleston Southern finishes its season with a 10-22 record.

Radford survives battle with Presbyterian, advances to Big South semifinals

 

Radford's David Early sank a number of late, key free throws in the Highlanders' Friday quarterfinal victory.  (Photo:  Radford Athletics)

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JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – The drama of Friday afternoon’s quarterfinal surprised no one. The way it got there, though? That may be a different story.

Four Radford scorers finished in double figures and the fourth-seeded Highlanders held off fifth-seeded Presbyterian, 74-69, in extra time. That only happened after a once-comfortable interval advantage vanished.

Radford coach Darris Nichols may have best summed up the contest.

“We’re excited to get out of this game alive,” Nichols said.

Radford (20-12) started the game strong. The Highlanders got 15 first-half points from Jarvis Moss and neutralized the fifth-seeded Blue Hose for much of the period. A 7-0 first-half run helped create separation, followed by a nearly 50 percent shooting effort from Radford in the opening stanza. An additional storyline in the period  that would follow the sides:  Radford went 5-for-5 from the line in the first half, while the Blue Hose were 0-for-6.

“(Free throw shooting) has come in handy all year,” Nichols said. “I think we're 21st in the country in getting to the foul line. You think about the guards we have that can get down there and put pressure on the rim. And then you've got two bigs in there ducking in. You’re going to draw a lot of fouls. That’s kind of what we've hung our hat on the whole year.”

The second half told a bit different story. Presbyterian (14-18) immediately countered out of the break, gradually erasing a 37-23 lead. The Blue Hose scored 25 of the first 35 points of the period, seizing a 48-47 advantage at the 11:29 mark of the period. This set the tone for a tense battle throughout the afternoon.

Presbyterian turned away a late effort as regulation neared its end, then fed ahead to Kobe Stewart for a bucket that tied the contest at 65. Radford had one final look as regulation ended, but the shot refused to fall and five extra minutes were required.

“I’m really proud of my guys,” Presbyterian coach Quinton Ferrell said after the game. “We didn't get the start that we would have wanted in the first half, but in the second half, we looked like the team we've been down the stretch and I just can't say enough about the character of my guys and the way they fought in the second half.”

“We thought that if we got stops, we could hurt them in transition. I thought that was a huge key to the second half. I thought that, in the second half, we were even more aggressive defensively with our ball screen coverage. That kind of propelled our offense, too.”

Stewart knocked down another jumper to start the extra session, only for David Early to nearly immediately counter with a layup to again knot the proceedings at 67. Presbyterian seized back the lead on a Kory Mincy jumper with 1:21 remaining but would not score again. Radford closed the game on a 6-0 burst, including four key makes from Early at the line to ice the game.

“D-Earl’s a handful,” Nichols said. “We see it in practice and, with him, the ability to get to the foul line when we're already in the bonus and then you can give a guy like him the ball and then he can draw fouls -- it's great to have. I think with him, he's starting to understand -- the second go-around in conference play, I think his assist-to-turnover ratio was like 22 to 8. He's making better decisions. That’s why he’s playing well.”

Moss led the Highlanders with 16 on the afternoon, hitting three triples and adding five free throws in six tries. Forward TJ NeSmith booked 15, hitting 5-of-6 from the deck and converting all five of his free throw attempts. Early contributed 14, buoyed by eight free throws. Truth Harris added 11 for the Highlanders. Radford shot 41.1 percent (23-for-56) on the day, adding another 23 makes from the line in 26 tries (88.5 percent).

Presbyterian got 22 from Stewart, who led all scorers. The senior hit 8-of-20 from the field, with four of his eight three-point tries finding the net. Forward Kaleb Scott tallied 14, finishing one board shy of a double-double. Mincy logged 11 on a 4-of-10 shooting effort. The Blue Hose shot 43.3 percent (29-for-67) and 42.1 percent from distance (8-of-19) but managed just three made free throws in 12 tries.

Radford now turns its attention to top-seeded High Point in Saturday’s semifinal. The Panthers swept the Highlanders during the regular season and Nichols knows the Highs will need to be at their best to book a trip to Sunday’s final.

“They're good,” Nichols said. “When you look at the last two meetings, at their place, we didn't play the right way. These guys know that. We didn't pass the ball. We weren’t playing as a connected team.”

“At our place, we played them better. If I remember, we had some bad turnovers down the stretch. The biggest thing with them is they can get out on the run and go on a 10-0 run quickly. You've got to play smarter. You've got to be more disciplined because they can really score the ball.”

Saturday’s semifinal contest is set for a noon (Eastern) tip inside Freedom Hall. Streaming coverage will be provided over ESPN+.

#4 RADFORD 74, #5 PRESBYTERIAN 69 (OT)

PRESBYTERIAN (14-18)

Scott 7-11 0-8 14, King 3-6 0-0 7, Stewart 8-20 2-2 22, Mincy 5-15 1-2 13, Harvey 3-7 0-0 7, Peterson 3-5 0-0 6, Pettaway 0-1 0-0 0, Parrish 0-2 0-0 0, Wilson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-67 3-12 69.

RADFORD (20-12)

J. Harris 1-4 0-0 2, Gaines 2-4 2-2 6, T. Harris 4-10 2-2 11, Moss 4-10 5-6 16, Early 3-13 8-9 14, Davis 1-1 0-0 2, NeSmith 5-6 5-5 15, Yamazaki 1-4 1-2 4, Sirtautas 2-2 0-0 4, Maclin 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 23-56 23-26 74.

Halftime:  Radford 37-23. 3-Point goals:  Presbyterian 8-19 (King 1-1, Stewart 4-8, Mincy 2-5, Harvey 1-3, Parrish 0-2), Radford 5-19 (T. Harris 1-3, Moss 3-8, Yamazaki 1-2, Maclin 0-1)). Fouled out:  NA.  Rebounds: Radford 42 (Gaines 10), Presbyterian 35 (Scott 9). Total fouls:  Presbyterian 21, Radford 12. Technicals:  NA.

Points off turnovers:  Presbyterian 11, Radford 5.  Points in the paint:  Presbyterian 36, Radford 32. Second-chance points:  Radford 11, Presbyterian 8.  Fast-break points:  Presbyterian 20, Radford 5.  Bench points:  Radford 25, Presbyterian 6.

 

 

 

 

Gardner-Webb’s season ends as High Point advances in Big South tournament

By Jacob Conley (@gwujake)

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — A tumultuous season for Gardner-Webb has come to a close after the Runnin’ Bulldogs fell to High Point, suffering an 85-64 loss in the quarterfinals of the Big South Conference tournament.

High Point’s Kezza Giffa led all scorers with 25 points and continually hit big shots whenever Gardner-Webb made a push to get back in the contest.

 

Anthony Selden hit an early three for GWU, and Ademide Badmus came off the bench to score on a pair of post moves to give the eighth-seeded Runnin’ Bulldogs an early 9-6 lead at the first media stoppage. That lead was short-lived, though, as High Point went on a 10-2 run over the next segment to lead 16-11. Jamaine Mann broke the run with a bucket, but picked up his second foul on the other end. The underdog Gardner-Webb tried to stay close as Pharrell Boyogueno hit a three and Isaiah Richards connected on a pair of free throws. Badmus continued to have a good game as he converted an acrobatic three-point play.

Selden scored on a driving layup to cut the deficit to 30-28, but High Point showed its talent with a quick 7-0 spurt. Buddy Simmons hit a pair of threes, but the defense could not come up with a stop. Things fell apart for GWU late in the half, as not only did High Point hit eight of its last nine shots from the field in the first half, but the Panthers would also take a 53-38 lead into the break.

Simmons opened the second half with five quick points and by the time Badmus converted a layup, GWU had cut the deficit to 10 points. The lead quickly grew back to 15 and Gardner-Webb could not cut into the deficit, as the High Point lead refused to shrink. In fact, the advantage went to 74-54 with 9:20 left in the contest.

GWU went to a  press to try to get back in the game, and that resulted in a steal and layup from Jacob Hudson. He also garnered a coast-to coast layup. Boyogueno hit a three to cut the Panther lead back to the halftime margin of 15, but it was too little too late.

Simmons led the way with 17 and Badmus was the only other GWU player in double figures with 11.

Message Of Love & Gratitude: Even though it has been a tough season for GWU (11-20), head coach Jeremy Luther is appreciative of the experience he had with his players.

“My message to the team in the locker room was just of love and gratitude,” he said. “I loved this team and I want to thank them for choosing to come tor come back to GWU. I know we are all emotional right now, but I hope they can take the time over the next few days and reflect. I hope the experience over the last seven months has been a positive one and that they are better men and players because of it”

Hit Me With Your Best Shot: High Point coach Alan Huss admits that the Panthers are the favorite to win the Big South and advance to the NCAA Tournament.

“We have had a target on our back all season long,” he said. “We have been playing in that space for a while. Gardner-Webb punched us in the mouth to start the game. They were really physical with us. Credit to them. But once we got rid of the jitters, we really got things rolling.”

Badmus Finishes Strong: As a senior, Badmus scored a season-high 11 points in his final game.

“Coach Luther and I sat down and talked,” Badmus said. We talked about the adversity of this year and I think I accomplished that. I did not even think about how big High Point is. I was just trying to get in the paint, and my teammates gave me good passes."

Up Next: Gardner-Webb’s season ends at 11-20, while High Point advances to face Radford in the semifinals on Saturday. Tipoff is set for noon Eastern time.

BACK TO BACK: Quinnipiac fends off Mount St. Mary’s to clinch second straight MAAC regular season title

Tom Pecora is all smiles as Quinnipiac coach cuts net following Bobcats’ repeat as regular season MAAC champions. (Photo by Quinnipiac Athletics)

By Connor Wilson (@Conman_815)

HAMDEN, Conn. — Amarri Monroe walked into the press room, something he does after nearly every Quinnipiac home game, but this time, he was holding a piece of the M&T Bank Arena net in his right hand.

“I’m not sure what I’m going to do with this yet,” Monroe chuckled when asked what he’d do with his new souvenir. “Maybe I’ll give it to my mom.”

Quinnipiac’s magic number to clinch an outright regular season title was two coming into Thursday’s clash with Mount St. Mary’s. The only way the Bobcats could clinch that before the weekend was with a win over the Mountaineers and a Marist loss at home against Merrimack. With about two minutes remaining in Hamden, Merrimack’s 22-point victory over the Red Foxes went final. All Quinnipiac had to do was hold on for the win.

And hold on, the Bobcats did.

Behind 22 points and 10 rebounds from Amarri Monroe, and 20 off the bench from Khaden Bennett, Quinnipiac defeated Mount St. Mary’s, 79-70, to clinch the 2024-25 MAAC regular season championship.

Coming into the year, the Bobcats were picked first by the coaches to repeat as MAAC regular season champions. It’s one thing to be predicted to pull off a big accomplishment. It’s another to actually finish the job, which Tom Pecora’s bunch did Thursday.

“We work hard and are super proud of each and everyone on the team, from walk-ons to trainers,” Monroe said. “That’s why I love this place so much. We’re a big family.”

As Pecora often notes, it was an up-and-down non-conference run for the Bobcats. Plagued by injuries and inconsistent play overall, Quinnipiac finished 4-7 and brought some doubt upon itself heading into league play. All doubt is out the window now, as the team has won 15 of 19 in the MAAC and will once again be the team to beat in Atlantic City.

“Over time, you appreciate things more,” Pecora said. “Basketball season is a marathon compared to other sports. I appreciate all the hard work my assistants do and my players do for that long of a time.”

On a night of celebration for the entire team, Paul Otieno hit a notable benchmark in his scoring career. The senior big man notched his 1,000th career point with a free throw in the second half and finished with 16 points, along with a season-high tying five blocks.

“I’m so proud of him, he’s put great work in over the past three years,” Savion Lewis said. “He worked so hard for that.”

After the game, Quinnipiac did something it wasn’t able to do last season: Cut down the nets. In their final home game in 2023-24, the Bobcats only clinched a share of the MAAC regular season title before formally clinching it on the road in the season finale against Saint Peter’s. This time around, clinching at home, they were able to get a souvenir.

“Obviously, the job is not finished yet,” Lewis said. “We have the main goal of winning the whole thing, but it’s definitely a blessing.”

“I’ve never done this before,” Monroe said. “It’s a blessing and it caught me off guard when we did it. It was awesome to be on that ladder, but we know we’re not finished.”

Each Bobcat took turns cutting down the net, starting with senior walk-on Quinn Guth. Pecora was the last one to go, cutting down what was remaining and putting it around his neck in celebration.

“One net down, one to go,” the coach said. “We learned how to do it today, hopefully.”

Even with the celebration tonight and the fact that the Bobcats technically won’t be playing for anything on Saturday on the road against Fairfield, Pecora isn’t going to have his team going through the motions against its in-state foe.

“I don’t really think we’ve hit our stride yet,” Pecora said. “The best game we played all year was down at (Mount St. Mary’s) and we’ve been winning ugly for the past three weeks, just finding a way.”

The Bobcats now know when they’ll play their first game in Atlantic City. After Saturday’s game in Fairfield, Quinnipiac will open up its MAAC tournament run at 6 p.m. Wednesday against the winner of the 8/9 game.