MEAC Early Rounds
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament Recaps
First Round
No. 6 Morgan State 77, No. 11 Maryland-Eastern Shore 56
No. 6 Morgan State proved that balance and teamwork can overcome a spectacular individual performance in the Bears’ 77-56 opening round win against No. 11 Maryland-Eastern Shore. The Bears had four players reach double figures in scoring, and the team shot better than 53 percent from the field. Their effort overcame a 30-point performance by the Hawks’ junior guard Corey Brown. Brown hit four three-pointers and hit 10-of-17 field-goal attempts.
But Morgan State pulled away in the second half after leading by only two at halftime. The Bears did not allow another Hawk to reach double figures and held Maryland-Eastern Shore to 34 percent shooting from the field. Senior guard Sam Brand led the Hawks with 18 points, and senior center Aaron Andrews recorded a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
The Bears advance to play No. 3 Coppin State Thursday. Morgan State lost at home to Coppin State 66-62 but won on the road 59-57 less than a week ago. The rubber match will earn one team a trip to the semifinals.
No. 7 Florida A&M 80, No. 10 Howard 56
The No. 7 Rattlers moved forward in their defense of the MEAC title by beating No. 10 Howard 80-56. Florida A&M ambushed the Bison with great shooting, making more than 57 percent of the shots from the field. Junior forward Darius Glover and senior center Michael Harper led the team with 13 points apiece. Harper came off the bench, which scored 40 of the team’s 80 points.
Howard struggled on offense all night, making less than 36 percent of the team’s field-goal attempts. Sophomore guard Will Gant came off the bench to lead the team with 16 points. Forced to come from behind, Howard jacked up three pointers that just wouldn’t fall. The Bison were 9-of-27 from beyond the arc, and Florida A&M cleaned the glass for a 33-24 rebounding edge.
The Rattlers advance to the quarterfinals to play No. 2 Hampton Wednesday night. Florida A&M lost both regular-season games to Hampton, but the Rattlers haven’t played Hampton since the team ended the season by winning six of seven games.
No. 8 Bethune Cookman 76, No. 9 North Carolina A&T 62
No. 8 Bethune Cookman relied on junior guard Antonio Webb and senior forward Diondre Larmond to carry the Wildcats to a 76-62 win against No. 9 North Carolina A&T. Webb led all scorers with 24 points, and Larmond added 22, the only other Wildcat to reach double figures in scoring.
While Bethune Cookman lacked offensive balance, the Aggies lacked offensive stability, as 21 turnovers disrupted the team’s ability to function consistently. Sophomore guard Sean Booker led the team with 16 points in the losing effort. The Aggies attempted to rally with a perimeter-oriented attack that produced a mediocre 7-of-27 three-point ratio.
Bethune Cookman plays top-seeded Delaware State Wednesday. The Wildcats dropped the only regular-season meeting in a tight 63-61 home loss.
Quarterfinal Recaps
No. 1 Delaware State 66, No. 8 Bethune Cookman 43
No. 1 Delaware State annihilated No. 8 Bethune Cookman in nearly every facet of the game in a 66-43 quarterfinal romp. The Hornets shot better than 60 percent from the field, twice as good as the Wildcats’ 30 percent. The Hornets out-rebounded Bethune Cookman by seven. The only blemish on their box score was 21 turnovers. But the Wildcats failed to capitalize on the Hornets’ mistakes.
Junior guard Darrin Shine led three Hornets in double figures with 13 points. Junior guard Antonio Webb was the only Wildcat to reach double figures with 10 points. The Wildcats managed to score only 17 points in the first half, and poor shooting doomed in hope of a comeback. Delaware State will play South Carolina State in the semifinals. The Hornets swept the season series.
No. 2 Hampton, 81, No. 7 Florida A&M 72
No. 2 Hampton overcame a poor shooting performance to beat No. 7 Florida A&M 81-72, ending the Rattlers’ attempt to repeat as MEAC champs. Junior guard Jeff Granger and senior guard Devin Green had great games for the Pirates as Granger scored 26 points and Green added 24. Hampton shot only 36 percent from the floor, but the Rattlers committed 27 fouls, leading to 34 points from the free-throw line for Hampton.
The Rattlers were led by junior guard Tony Tate, who scored 18 points. Hampton’s bigger lineup dominated the Rattlers on the glass as the Pirates grabbed 38 rebounds to Florida A&M’s 26. The Rattlers shot the ball well – 50 percent from the floor – to hang around longer than the Pirates would have preferred. Hampton moves on to play Coppin State, which the Pirates beat on the road in the teams’ only meeting during the regular season.
No. 3 Coppin State 60, No. 6 Morgan State 43
No. 3 Coppin State overcame an ugly first half in which the Eagles scored only 19 points to beat No. 6 Morgan State 60-43. Free throws helped Coppin State rally, as the Eagles hit 19-of-26 attempts. Morgan State only went to the line 11 times in the game. Freshman forward Darryl Proctor was especially adept at finding his way to the line. He led the team with 21 points, 11 of which came at the free-throw line. Proctor also grabbed nine rebounds.
Morgan State struggled on offense for the entire game, shooting less than 36 percent from the field and committing 20 turnovers. With no offensive balance, Morgan State allowed the Eagles to rally in the second half. Senior center Aaron Andrews was the lone Golden Bear to reach double figures with 18 points. Coppin State advances to play Hampton in the semifinals.
No. 4 South Carolina State 76, No. 5 Norfolk State 59
No. 4 South Carolina State grinded out a 76-59 quarterfinal win against No. 5 Norfolk State. The Bulldogs used a combination of suffocating defense and fresh players to squash the Spartans. South Carolina State’s bench out-scored its counterpart 25-6. The Spartans shot less than 37 percent from the field. Norfolk State hit 21 field goals. In comparison, South Carolina State made 27 free throws. The foul disparity allowed the Bulldogs to score 15 more points from the line than the Spartans, a significant contributor to the outcome.
Senior swingman Thurman Zimmerman led the Bulldogs with 16 points and seven rebounds. Freshman guard Derrick Davis came off the bench to score 13 points for South Carolina State. Norfolk State couldn’t keep pace with the Bulldogs’ depth. Freshman guard Tony Murphy offered a glimpse of good times to come for the Spartans by scoring 21 points in the loss. Junior center Karandick Ogunride registered a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. South Carolina State moves on to play top-seeded Delaware State in the semifinals.
Semifinal Recaps
No. 1 Delaware State 61, No. 4 South Carolina State 48
It wasn’t pretty, but No. 1 Delaware State dispatched No. 4 South Carolina State 61-48. The Hornets overcame a sluggish first half that produced a 23-23 tie at the half. The second half was a different story as the Hornets continued to play strong defense but also found enough offensive consistency to outscore the Bulldogs by 13. Senior guard Bruce Davis sparked the offense with 12 points off the bench, tied for the team high with junior guard Darrin Shine.
South Carolina State was plagued by terrible shooting as the Bulldogs made less than 28 percent of their field-goal attempts. They made only one three-pointer in 13 attempts. Delaware State’s 4-of-13 from long range wasn’t much better, but it was more than enough against the Bulldogs. Sophomore guard Brian Mason scored 20 points to lead South Carolina State. With no shooting touch, the Bulldogs couldn’t afford many turnovers, and they committed 20 to help Delaware State seal the deal. The Hornets advance to the MEAC championship where No. 2 Hampton awaits. Delaware State swept the Pirates during the regular season.
No. 2 Hampton 62, No. 3 Coppin State 50
No. 2 Hampton moved within a game of the NCAA Tournament after beating No. 3 Coppin State 62-50 in the MEAC semifinals. After trailing by two at halftime, the Pirates shut down Coppin State in the second half, outscoring the Eagles 36-22. Senior swingman Devin Green helped rally the Pirates with a game-high 19 points and amazing 16 rebounds. Proving he could do everything, Green also hit 3-of-4 from three-point territory. The rest of the team was 1-of-15.
Coppin State’s bid for a semifinal upset was led by freshman forward Darryl Proctor, who scored 15 points. Proctor also grabbed seven rebounds, but the Eagles lost the rebounding battle 39-29. And after the Eagles made less than 31 percent of their shots, there was a plethora of rebounds to collect. The combination of bad shooting, mediocre rebounding and the unstoppable Devin Green spelled defeat for Coppin State. Hampton will play Delaware State for the right to play in the NCAA Tournament and claim the MEAC championship.
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