Men’s Basketball Notes, March 8, 2010

Men's basketball notes and game recaps for week ending March 7, 2010

BREVARD - The Brevard College Tornados men's basketball team finished the 2009-2010 regular season as the third-seed in the 2010 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament, then defeated Wingate, Carson-Newman and Catawba to capture the Conference Tournament Title and the automatic qualifying bid to the 2010 NCAA DII Tournament ... The Tornados make the tournament for the first time in school history, having only been a full member of the NCAA and Division II for two years ... Brevard opened tournament play by hosting sixth-seeded Wingate on Wednesday ... Led by Josh Roper's 30 points and eight assists, the Tornados went up by 17 early in the first half on their way to a 47-38 halftime lead ... Wingate would score the first seven points of the second half en route to taking a 52-51 lead, but the Tornados battled back on the free throw line as Darin Dellinger and Jonathan Whitson each hit late free throws and Whitson sealed the game with a layup as Brevard advanced to the semifinals with the 88-79 win ... On Saturday, the Tornados took on seventh-seed Carson-Newman ... Brevard closed out the first half and opened the second half with a 20-4 run to take the 43-37 lead, but the score remained close the remainder of the game with neither team able to get more than a two possession lead for the final nine minutes of the contest ... Nathan Whitmire carried the Tornados in the second half, scoring 17 of his 20 points in the final 20 minutes and Whitson hit the eventual game-winner on a runner in the lane to put the score at 73-69 ... Brevard would have one final scare in the contest, losing their inbounds pass to Carson-Newman's Jordan Dixon with eight seconds left, but a final Eagles' shot attempt was waved off as Brevard advanced to the tournament final, 73-72 ... Brevard held a 19-point lead over Catawba in the second half of the championship game, going up 74-55 on a layup by Drew Schauss with under 10 minutes remaining ... The Indians battled all the way back, gaining a 92-91 lead with under 10 seconds to play, but BC sophomore guard Jermichael Tanner took the ball coast-to-coast and flipped in the game-winning layup to give Brevard College its first South Atlantic Conference Championship ... Jonathan Whitson was named the 2010 Food Lion SAC Tournament Most Valuable Player, while Josh Roper was also recognized on the team ... The Tornados continue their season as the eighth-seed in the Southeast Region, traveling to take on top-seed and Southeast host Augusta State on Saturday, March 13th, with game time set for 6 p.m.

CARSON-NEWMAN - The Carson-Newman Eagles wrapped up their 2009-10 season with a 1-1 week, splitting a pair of games in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament … The No. 7 Eagles beat rival Tusculum, 76-60, on Wednesday night, before falling in the tournament semifinals to No. 3 Brevard, 73-72 … Senior forward Tray Okoth (Richmond, Va.) fired in a career-high 25 points to lead Carson-Newman to a 76-69 victory over Tusculum in the first round of the 2010 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament on Wednesday night at Pioneer Arena … Okoth went 9-of-13 from the floor, including 2-of-3 from 3-point range, to lead C-N. As a team, the Eagles shot 51 percent (23-of-45) from the field … Sophomore guard Cameron Sharp (Knoxville, Tenn.) tossed in 18 points for the Eagles, while seniors Jordan Dixon (Clinton, Tenn.) and Darron Maxtion (Huntsville, Ala.) added 15 and 14 points, respectively, in the win … The Eagles led for most of the first half, but a Jimmy Boone (Greeneville, Tenn.) 3-pointer tied the game at 28 with 4:09 remaining. However, C-N closed out the half on a 10-2 run capped off by a Dixon 3-pointer that gave the Eagles a 38-30 lead at the break … C-N pushed its lead to as many as 15 points in the second half, as Okoth sank a jumper at the 7:06 mark to give the Eagles a 60-45 advantage … The Pioneers scrapped back and were able to trim C-N's lead down to four points on a made Boone jumper with 1:26 left, but the Eagles went 14-of-16 at the free-throw line down the stretch to seal the win … Brevard College's Josh Roper had 23 points and Carson-Newman's Cameron Sharp (Knoxville, Tenn.) buzzer-beater was waved off at the third-seeded Tornados beat the seventh-seeded Eagles, 73-72, in the semifinals of the 2010 Food Lion Men's South Atlantic Conference Basketball Tournament on Saturday afternoon in Hickory, N.C. … Carson-Newman had a number of opportunities, including one that came a moment too late, on the game's final possession ... After a Sharp three-pointer closed the game to its final score, senior Jordan Dixon (Clinton, Tenn.) stole the ensuing inbounds pass following a C-N timeout … The Eagle guard would miss a jumper with eight seconds to play, but the Eagles kept possession after BC lost the ball out of bounds … Sharp missed a corner jumper with five seconds to play, but C-N's Quinche' Dowdell (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) ended up with the rebound … His put back attempt was blocked back to Sharp, who buried a jumper from the free throw line as the horn sounded, but was immediately waved off for being after the buzzer … In all, the lead changed 16 times and the game was tied nine times … In all, Brevard made 23-of-29 free throw attempts. C-N was just 9-of-14 at the line … Carson-Newman jumped out to a 10-point lead in the first half behind hot long-range shooting … The Eagles knocked down 7-of-15 three-pointers in the first half, including making four-straight to build to a 33-23 lead at the 3:58 mark of the first half … BC would close the half on a 9-4 run, including two buckets in the final minute of the half by Roper, to cut it to 37-32 at the break. He had 13 points in the half … Brevard would continue its run, and open its largest lead of the game in the opening moments of the second half … A Whitson jumper at the 17:39 mark capped a 20-4 Tornado run as they moved out to a 43-37 lead … Whitmire was 3-of-3 from the floor during the stretch and had 10 points during the run … The Eagles bounced back as steals by Dowdell and senior Tray Okoth (Richmond, Va.) led to a Dixon three-pointer and an Okoth layup, to cut the BC lead back to two at 44-42 … Whitson finished the game with 17 points and eight rebounds for Brevard. He also had five blocked shots … Okoth led five Eagles in double figures with 15. Sharp added 14, while Dixon chipped in 13, as did junior Erwin Staten (Huntsville, Ala.), who was 3-of-7 from behind the arc … The Eagles finish the season 11-18.

CATAWBA - The Catawba men earned an at-large bid to the NCAA II Southeast Region Tournament and joins Wingate (1999-02) as the only men's teams to make the regional field four straight seasons ... The Indians failed in their quest to become the first team to win three straight men's tournament titles, but staged an epic rally to nearly pull things off ... The Indians were down 13 with 2:41 remaining before storming back to take a 92-91 lead in the final 10 seconds only to see Brevard answer the comeback on a basketball with 2.1 seconds left ... Dominick Reid, who scored the final five points for the Indians hit the back rim on a desperation shot from beyond half court at the buzzer ... Reid canned a three-pointer with 22 seconds left and a jumper with eight seconds left after a turnover to give Catawba its only lead of the day ... Brevard scored the first seven points and held a double-digit margin most of the second half ... Down by 19 with 9:53 left, Catawba got within 10 at the 6:21 mark, but fell down by 16 heading into the final four minutes ... Reid led Catawba with 24 points, while Donald Rutherford posted a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds ... He earned a spot on the all-tournament team along with Antonio Houston, who led the Indians to a semifinal win over Lincoln Memorial with 18 points and five assists ... Catawba overcame a sluggish start to post a 70-60 win over the Railsplitters to make its fourth straight final ... Rutherford had a double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds in an opening round win over Newberry where the Indians led by 20 or more the entire second half of the 87-60 victory ... Houston became Catawba's No. 2 all-time scorer during the tournament final, moving past Bill Bailey with 2,144 points ... He earned first team All-SAC honors for the third straight year ... Rutherford and Rob Fields were named to the second team ... Stephen Coles was selected to the SAC All-Freshman team ... The Indians will face the newest SAC member in the opening round of the Southeast Regional, paired with Anderson, who will begin league play next season ... Augusta State will again host the regional for the fourth consecutive year ... Catawba is 3-0 in previous meetings with Anderson, but the teams have not meet since the 1997-98 season opener .. The Indians are the No. 4-seed for the tournament and will play Anderson in the final game on Saturday night with the tip set for 8:30 p.m.

LENOIR-RHYNE - The Lenoir-Rhyne University men's basketball team (7-19, 5-11) suffered its first losing season since the 2001-02 campaign … Senior forward D.J. Blackmon (Albemarle, N.C.) finished the year as Lenoir-Rhyne's leading scorer (20.5 ppg), rebounding (6.8 rpg) and assists (2.7 apg) and scored in double figures in every game this year and 27 dating back to last year … Blackmon also ended the year with 1,095 total points. Blackmon was named to the All-Conference first team.

LINCOLN MEMORIAL - Wednesday night's quarterfinal game of the 2010 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament between No. 4 seed Lincoln Memorial University and No. 5 seed Mars Hill College was everything that was expected and then some as the Railsplitters emerged with an 83-70 win over Mars Hill to advance to the tournament semifinals … Mars Hill came out of the gates in the first half with a strong start behind the perimeter shooting of All-South Atlantic Conference guard Danny Sanders. Sanders scored 16 of his game-high 28 points in the first half, and was 4-5 behind the 3-point line in the first stanza … Although it took a while to get the perimeter game going, Railsplitter freshman Cameron Carden came in off the bench to give LMU a boost from the outside by hitting five first half 3-pointers and a 2-pointer for 17 points as the Railsplitters took a narrow 32-30 lead in the locker room … When the second half got underway, Sanders' relentless outside shooting kept the Lions in the game but that's when the Railsplitter inside attack got going with D'Mario Curry and Desmond Johnson. Curry scored 17 of his team-high 25 points in the second half while grabbing 12 boards in the final twenty minutes of play. Curry eventually finished the game with his 16th double-double of the year of 25 points and 22 rebounds along with eight blocked shots and four assists and one steal … Desmond Johnson was also one of the deciding factors in the outcome of the game, scoring 15 points on 6-12 shooting from the floor and hitting three free throws while Cameron Carden finished the game with a season-best 23 points and six 3-pointers … In the semifinals against Catawba, Antonio Houston poured in 18 points and dished out a game-high five assists to lead the top-seeded Catawba College men's basketball team to a 70-60 win over fourth-seeded Lincoln Memorial University in the semifinal round of the 2010 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament at CVCC Arena … Lincoln Memorial's D'Mario Curry led all scorers with 22 points, knocking down 7-of-11 attempts from the floor and pulling down nine rebounds to pace the Railsplitters. Desmond Johnson added 19 points and pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds to record a double-double … Lincoln Memorial started off strong, scoring 12 of the game's first 14 points to jump out to a 12-2 lead with 16:58 to go in the first half on a fast break three-pointer by Wally Jones. Catawba responded with a 7-2 run over the next two and a half minutes to cut the lead to 14-9 on a three-pointer by Reid, and continued to battle back over the next seven minutes, launching a 17-8 spurt to take a 26-22 advantage with seven minutes left in the half … The Railsplitters responded with a 4-0 spurt to knot the score at 26-26 before reclaiming the lead at 29-26 on a three-pointer by Brandon Armstrong with 5:09 to play in the period. Catawba then answered with a 13-4 run over the next four minutes to retake the lead at 39-33, before Curry converted a pair of free throws for LMU to trim the margin to 39-35 heading into the intermission … Catawba never trailed in the second half, opening its largest lead of the game at the 10:27 mark when Houston knocked down a three-pointer on the heels of a 13-4 run over a seven minute period. The Railsplitters responded with a 15-6 run to cut the margin to 59-56 with 4:39 to play. Lincoln Memorial continued to apply pressure over the next two minutes, cutting the lead to 61-60 on a layup by Johnson before Catawba answered with a 9-0 spurt over the final 2:25 to secure a spot in Sunday's championship game … LMU's season comes to an end with the loss as they did not make the NCAA field of 64…. They finish the season with a 20-9 record, their best since the 1988-89 season.

MARS HILL - Mars Hill went 0-1 last week. The Lions lost to Lincoln Memorial on the road in the first round of the SAC Tournament, 83-70 … Mars Hill ends the 2009-10 season 15-13 overall and 10-6 in the SAC … Mars Hill placed Danny Sanders on the All-SAC first team and Stoney Polite on the All-SAC second team … Jarred Pickering was named the SAC Scholar Athlete … Against LMU, Danny Sanders (Shelby, N.C.) led all scorers with 28 points. He was 7-11 from behind the arc and added four rebounds, five steals and three blocks … Stoney Polite (Morganton, N.C.) followed with 16 points, six rebounds and three assists … The Lions led most of the first half. Mars Hill led by as many as six points on two occasions in the first half of play … Polite hit a pair of free throws to put the Lions ahead 17-11 at the 8:02 mark and then a Sanders 3-pointer gave MHC a 20-14 advantage with 6:56 left in the first period … LMU then went on an 18-10 run in the final seven minutes of the first half to take a two-point lead (32-30) into the locker room at the intermission … Neither team shot well in the first half. MHC hit 35.3 percent (12-34) while the Railsplitters converted on only 37.1 percent (13-35) of their field goal attempts. The Lions hit 4-7 (57.1 percent) shots from behind the arc while LMU went 5-15 (33.3 percent) from 3-point range … MHC edged LMU in rebounds in the first frame, 23-22. Sanders had 16 first-half points to lead the Lions … In the first seven minutes of the second half, neither team led by more than a couple of points. After the scored was tied at 42-all with 12:58 left to play, LMU scored five unanswered points to lead 47-42 with 10:52 on the clock after Desmond Johnson hit a shot in the lane … The Railsplitters would not trail again. LMU went on a 15-7 run to enjoy their largest lead of the contest of 13 points (62-49) with 7:23 left in regulation after Johnson hit a layup … The Lions then went on a 16-8 run of their own to cut the deficit to just five points (70-65) with 3:03 left in the contest, but that would be as close as they would get … The Lions were forced to foul and LMU converted on 9-14 shots at the charity stripe in the final minutes of play to hold on to the victory and advance to the SAC Tournament semifinals … MHC converted on only 34.3 percent (24-70) of their field goals as opposed to LMU who hit 44.1 percent (30-68) of their shots. The Lions were 10-24 (41.7 percent) from bend the arc and hit 92.3 percent (12-13) of their foul shots. The Railsplitters hit only 55.6 percent (15-27) of their free throw attempts. LMU won the battle of the boards, 49-40. The game saw seven lead changes and four ties.

NEWBERRY - The Newberry College men's basketball season came to a close on Wednesday as eighth-seeded Newberry fell to top-seeded Catawba, 87-60, in Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament quarterfinal action in Salisbury, N.C. … Newberry finishes the season at 10-18 in the first year under head coach Steve DeMeo … Ray Robinson and Danny Huffor led the team with 13 points apiece in the quarterfinal loss … Robinson finished as the team's leading scorer with 11.4 points per game … Senior Stephane Bakinde scored 10.1 points per game and led the squad in rebounding (6.5 rpg) and blocked shots (58) … Ryan Barnes was named to the SAC All-Freshman team after averaging 8.7 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.

TUSCULUM - The Tusculum Pioneers (16-12) lost 76-69 to seventh-seeded Carson-Newman in the quarterfinal round of the Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament, ending Tusculum's season … The Pioneers finished the season strong winning four of its last six games … Leading the charge for Tusculum this season was two-time SAC Player of the Year Kyle Moore … Moore earns this honor for a second straight season and becomes only the third player in conference history to be named SAC Player of the Year multiple times (Sean Barnette - Wingate; Roman Davis - Lenoir-Rhyne) … Moore led the league in scoring for a second straight year, averaging 24.8 points per game, which is currently third in NCAA Division II and fifth nationally for all NCAA divisions … Moore's scoring average is the second highest in league history and fifth in school history … Moore accounted for 693 points this year, while leading the Pioneers to finish second in the conference standings for a second straight season … His point tally this year is the second most in recorded school history and third in the league record book … The three-time All-SAC selection established a new school and SAC record with his 117 three-point field goals made this season. His 4.18 treys per game average are also third in the country, while shooting 45.3 percent from beyond the arc (2nd in SAC/9th in NCAA II) … In just 87 games in a Pioneer uniform, Moore connected on 306 career three-point field goals, which are the most in conference history and the second-most ever by a Pioneer … He connected on 43 percent of his long-range attempts at Tusculum, which is the fourth-highest average in school history … In his three seasons at Tusculum, Moore scored 1,813 points, ranking him fourth on the TC scoring list and the seventh-leading scorer in SAC history. He averaged 20.8 points per game at Tusculum, which is the third highest scoring average ever by a South Atlantic Conference player. Including his rookie campaign at NCAA Division I Winthrop University, Moore scored 1,863 points as a collegiate player … Moore has been the model of consistency during his career, scoring 20 or more points an amazing 45 times in his three seasons at Tusculum, including 19 times this year … He has also poured in 30 or more points on 15 occasions, including 10 times this season … The Buchholz High School graduate was named SAC Player of the Week four times this season and nine times in the last two years combined … The 2009 Division II All-American holds the school record with his 447 made free throws … While at Tusculum, Moore shot 85 percent from the foul line (447-of-526), which is the second highest career percentage in school history and third in SAC history. His .862 free throw percentage this season was second in the conference and 37th in the nation … He finished his career at Tusculum similarly to how he started it at the charity stripe … He opened his TC career making his first 24 free throws … Moore finished the same way, connecting on his final 24 trips to the foul line … In his last 11 contests, Moore went 64-of-68 from the free throw line (94.1 percent), including a string of 33 in a row … At the end of the regular season, the South Atlantic Conference recognizes its statistical champions … The Pioneers had two players earn multiple honors, while the team cashed in on four team awards … Moore was recognized as the SAC Statistical Champion for points per game and three-point field goals made per game … Sophomore guard Justin Steigerwald led the league in assists per game (5.26 apg) and assist to turnover ratio (2.54) … The Pioneers led the conference in scoring defense (61.0 ppg), three-point field goal percentage (.414), free throw percentage (.744) and assist/turnover ratio (1.08) … Moore and teammates Jimmy Boone (Greeneville, Tenn./Greeneville HS), Josh Bennett (Snow Hill, Md./Cecil College/Snow Hill HS) and Wes Taylor (Oregon, Ohio/Owens Tech CC/Clay HS) were recipients of the SAC Senior Award … This group led the Pioneers to 62 victories, including back-to-back winning seasons … Last year's 20-11 campaign was the program's first 20-win season in 16 years … The team also earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament … The Pioneers have made a three-point field goal in 639 consecutive games … Tusculum coach Jim Boone has recorded 397 career victories, which are the 30th most in amongst active NCAA Division II coaches.

WINGATE - Wingate University freshman center Odell Turner is the 2010 South Atlantic Conference men's basketball Freshman of the Year … Four Bulldogs received honors from the league this year. Sophomore guard Jaime Vaughn is an All-SAC second team performer. Vaughn was a SAC All-Freshman team pick in 2009. Turner headlines the All-Freshman team with classmates Quan Alexander and Paidrick Matilus. Turner and Alexander were teammates at Charlotte's Myers Park High School before joining the Bulldog family in 2009 … Turner led the Bulldogs in scoring (12.1 points per game), rebounding (7.0 boards per game) and blocked shots (1.36 rejections per contest). On the SAC charts, Turner was the top freshman scorer in the league. He is listed in the top 15 in scoring (14th), rebounding (fifth), field goal percentage (13th, 49.0 percent) and blocked shots (seventh) … One of three Bulldogs to start every game this season, Turner also led the team in double-doubles (points, rebounds) with three. Wingate was 3-0 when Turner posted a daily double. He had 15 points and a career-high 17 rebounds in an 85-62 SAC victory over Mars Hill Feb. 17. Turner also recorded double-doubles in regional victories over Mount Olive and Georgia College. He had a career-high 22 points at Catawba Jan. 6 … Vaughn belongs in the top 10 in three league statistical categories. He is third in three-point field goal percentage (43.7 percent), fourth in free throw percentage (81.2 percent) and eighth in three-point field goals made per game (1.86). The Eagle's Landing (Ga.) High School product led the Bulldogs in each of the aforementioned categories. He is second on the team (and 15th in the SAC) with his 11.7 points per game average … In SAC games, Vaughn was the top Wingate player with his 12.2 points per game contribution. Vaughn shot better from the floor (48.1 percent to 45.1 percent) and from three-point land (49.3 percent to 43.7 percent) in league contests. He topped the 20-plateau five times this season. Vaughn collected a career-high 26 points in a home contest against Tusculum Jan. 23 … Alexander contributed 10.7 points per game and 4.9 rebounds per game to the Bulldog cause this season. His rebounding total was second on the team charts. Alexander is 14th in the SAC in rebounding and field goal percentage (48.8 percent) … In SAC play, Alexander elevated both his field goal percentage (52.6 percent) and his free throw percentage (73.8 percent to 80.3 percent). He will remember his first-ever college game, as he scored a career-high 21 points as the Bulldogs defeated visiting Armstrong Atlantic State 94-77 Nov. 15. Alexander hit double-figure points 15 times this season. Alexander joins Turner and Vaughn as the only Bulldogs to start all 28 games this year … Matilus posted the top scoring effort for Bulldogs this season, pouring in a career-high 27 points as Wingate defeated visiting Belmont Abbey 73-71 Nov. 28. Matilus contributed 11.6 points per game this season, third on the team charts to Turner and Vaughn … The Grandview Prep product was Wingate's number two long-range threat, as he swished 39 three-point field goals this season. Matilus was also second to Vaughn in three-point field goal percentage rate, converting 35.8 percent of his shots from downtown … Matilus hit double-figure points 17 times this season, including Wingate's final eight games of the season. His eight-game double figure scoring streak is the longest active streak for players who will return in 2010-11. Matilus' top SAC scoring output was Feb. 24, when he hit 19 points at Lenoir-Rhyne.