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[jaytuomi]

Looks like The Five are all rolling this season again. As an aside, curious for someone newer to the game, what do you think is the biggest factor to these coaches' year-over-year success in this universe? Do you assist with their transfers or is that hands-off like the recruiting? Or are we just seeing a run of good luck?

Looking forward to the first time two coaches meet in the NCAA tourney!!

[PointGuard]

Looks like The Five are all rolling this season again. As an aside, curious for someone newer to the game, what do you think is the biggest factor to these coaches' year-over-year success in this universe? Do you assist with their transfers or is that hands-off like the recruiting? Or are we just seeing a run of good luck?

Looking forward to the first time two coaches meet in the NCAA tourney!!

Yes, I have been doing the transfer portal process for all 5 coaches (as opposed to NOT doing any of the recruiting). i did that because since CB2022 has the new transfer portal, I wanted to actually do it for the 5 coaches to see how successful those type of basketball programs could be with regard to getting transfer players (and also: (1)l giving me the opportunity to try my hand at getting transfer playersl and (2) giving me a new ay to test the new transfer portal). But, yeah, it's resulted in all 5 teams getting much better transfer players that they would have if the AI had been doing it for them. This has helped me confirm my initial impression that it is much too easy for the human player to take advantage of the AI as the Transfer Portal is presently set up...so it's something that needs to be tinkered with by Gary for CB2023. I also have NOT been playing out the games, but letting those be simmed...so game play I have not helped (or hindered) that for the 5 coaches/teams. Anyway, good observation on your part...my doing the transfers has been a major factor in the 5 coaches' success. If I were to do this type of association again, I believe I would let the AI also handle the transfer portal for the coaches/teams.

[PointGuard]

Summary of Games During the Week of February 12-18, 2039

Conference J

Coastal Carolina Chanticleers—78, Georgia State Panthers (14-9, 7-4)—77 (This game had big swings in momentum throughout the entire 40 minutes. At the half, Coastal Carolina led 37-35 and then took a 10 point lead 5 minutes into the 2nd half. The Panthers ground their way back into the lead but a last second field goal by Coastal Carolina sunk Georgia State. SF David Selby scored 19 and reserve guard James Jupiter tossed in 13 points.)

Georgia State Panthers (15-9, 8-4)—77, Colgate Raiders—61 (The lead went back and forth during the first 6 minutes, but Colgate then rolled to a 35-27 halftime advantage. Georgia State clawed their way back into the game and passed the Raiders with 14 minutes to go and pulled away for an easy victory. C Marshall Sanders scored 18 and grabbed 11 boards. SG Clint Strohm scored 14 and PF Josh Shelton added 13 points.)

Conference P

SE Louisiana Lions (17-5, 11-0)—100, Incarnate Word Cardinals—68 (Southeast Louisiana romped to lead 57-36 at halftime and bury the hapless Cardinals in the 2nd half. The Lions hit 70% of their shots and were +10 in rebounding. PF Jason Nee poured in 23 points plus pulled down 6 rebounds. C Darius Lawson and reserve guard Thomas Matthews both hit for 14 points, reserve Fred Morant and SG Will Collins each added 12 points, and PG Jimmy Smith had 11 points and 11 assists.)

SE Louisiana Lions (18-5, 12-0)—76, Norfolk State Spartans—72 (The Lions found their 2nd road game of the week more difficult with 13 lead changes and 7 ties. But SE Louisiana outscored the Spartans in the final 2 minutes to continue their win streak. PF Jon Sales had 17 points and 8 rebounds, SF Morris Few and reserve guard Joey Thomas both scored 10 points, and C Jason Nee had 8 points and 10 boards.)

Conference S

MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (15-7, 7-4)—67, Campbell Camels—62 (MD-Eastern Shore held the lead throughout the first half and for the first 13 minutes of the 2nd half, but then the lead shifted 6 times before the Hawks were able to make a final run to win at home. Reserve C Shawn Wilson scored 13 points in 11 minutes of play and SG Carl Hancock added 12 points.)

Eastern Illinois Panthers—64, MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (15-8, 7-5)—60 (This game was close the entire 40 minutes with the Panthers edging ahead late in the game and holding the Hawks off to win by scoring 8 more points at the free throw line. SF Winston Morant had 17 points and 8 boards, C Jim Taflinger tallied 12 points, and PF Luke Feeley added 10 points.)

South Carolina Upstate Spartans—62, Western Illinois Leathernecks (16-6, 8-3)—57 (The first half was close but the Spartans carved out a 29-23 halftime lead. Western Illinois continually tried but was unable to catch up in the 2nd half. C Joe Bergmann and SG Mohamed Ammons both scored 14 points.)

Western Illinois Leathernecks (17-6, 9-3)—65, Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs—52 (Following 6 lead changes, the Leathernecks were finally able to take and hold the lead 13 minutes into the first half and led 30-23 at the break. They stubbornly held onto the lead throughout the 2nd half. SG Bill Shin scored 16, PG Mohamed Ammons tallied 11 points, and SF Ty Wilfork added 10 points.)

Conference T

UC San Diego Tritons (17-5, 8-3)—84, Idaho State Bengals—70 (After trailing for the first 6 minutes of the game, the Tritons then took the lead and gradually expanded it throughout the remainder of the game. C Jameel Wells scored 20 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. SF Jeremiah Mason scored 18 points, SG DeVante Botts tossed in 14 points, and PG Calvin Henderson added 11 points.)

UC San Diego Tritons (18-5, 9-3)—72, Hampton Pirates—59 (The Tritons pulled off a 2nd straight road 0win by outshooting the Pirates 49% to 36% and outrebounding Hampton 37-29. SF Winston Morant scored 15 points and C Jameel Wells scored 13 points in 14 minutes of play before breaking his wrist. Tommy Jordan came in to play C for 20 minutes and had 8 points and 8 boards.)

Injuries: UC San Diego’s C Jameel Wells suffered a broken wrist and will miss the remainder of the season.

Awards: None.

Comments: MD-Eastern Shore is in a 4-way tie for 4th place and needs to put together a string of wins to ensure a promotion this coming year. Three of their final four regular season games are at home, so that gives them a good chance of moving up in the standings. “Losing Jameel Wells is a huge loss. Jameel was averaging 12.6 ppg and 4.2 rpg and will be tough to replace,” said Coach Ken Yamoto of UC San Diego. It’s anticipated that the Tritons will replace Wells with a combination of 7’1” sophomore Tommy Jordan and 6’9” junior Camara McWilliams. Jordan was a starter for Dartmouth last season and averaged 23.5 ppg and 6.4 rpg and has averaged 8.2 ppg and 2.9 rpg while playing just 13.1 mpg this season. McWilliams started for the Tritons last season and averaged 7.8 ppg and 6.6 rpg but has only started once this season and is averaging 3.7 ppg and 3.1 rpg while playing just 13.1 mpg.

[PointGuard]

Summary of Games During the Week of February 19-25, 2039

Conference J

South Florida Bulls—83, Georgia State Panthers (15-10, 8-5)—54 (The Bulls defense shut down the Panthers in the first half and allowed South Florida to roll up a 37-19 halftime advantage. Although Georgia State’s offense got going in the 2nd half, the Bulls’ offense, led by PG Jason Durden’s 25 points, was hotter and the Panthers steadily fell further and further behind. Georgia State was outshot 58% to 32%. SG Clint Strohm scored 11 and SF David Selby and PG Terrell Hunter both added 10 points for the Panthers.)

Georgia State Panthers (16-10, 9-5)—61, Indiana State Sycamores—48 (In their 2nd road game of the week, the Panthers got off to a good start and steadily pulled away from Indiana State. Again Georgia State shot poorly (34%) but held the Sycamores’ shooting to just 28% and they held a 24-14 turnover advantage. SF David Selby scored 20 points and PG Terrell Hunter hit for 12 points.)

Conference P

SE Louisiana Lions (19-5, 13-0)—86, Kansas City Kangaroos—73 (SE Louisiana’s offense was on target the entire game, as they hit 56% of their FG’s and 40% of their 3’s. But the game was pretty close with 10 lead changes and 5 ties with the Lions not pulling away until the final 5 minutes. PF Jon Sales had 15 points, 8 boards and 4 assists. SG Will Collins also scored 15 points. C Jason Need put in 14 points and PG Jimmy Smith had 12 points.)

SE Louisiana Lions (20-5, 14-0)—86, Robert Morris Colonials—66 (The visiting Lions ran away from the Colonials from the start and were never threatened. SE Louisiana again shot well, hitting 53% of their FG’s and 54% of the 3’s. They were also +16 in rebounding. PG Jimmy Smith had 19 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists. C Jason Nee scored 17, reserve C/PF Darius Lawson had 13 points and 6 rebounds, and PF Jon Sales scored 11 points even though he played just 15 minutes due to foul trouble.)

Conference S

MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (16-8, 8-5)—60, Jacksonville Dolphins—47 (The Hawks took the lead early and held a double digit lead for much of the game. C Jim Taflinger had 17 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals. SF Winston Morant scored 11 points.)

MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (17-8, 9-5)—65, North Carolina A&T Aggies—56 (This game was close the entire way even though the Hawks held a small lead most of the way. MD-Eastern Shore hit 12 of 20 of their 3’s. Reserve forward Rob Evans led the scoring with 13 points in just 8 minutes of play. SF Winston Morant had 11 points and 8 boards and PF Luke Feeley added 10 points.)

Western Illinois Leathernecks (18-6, 10-3)—65, Cornell Big Red—48 (Western Illinois led for most of the first half but their lead shrunk to just 30-29 at the break. Cornell then took control early in the 2nd half. After 17 lead changes, the Leathernecks pulled ahead with 9 minutes to go and ran away with the game by applying a stingy defense. PF Orvo Haapajarvi scored 11 points while the Leathernecks’s defense outscored the Big Red bench 28-7.)

Western Illinois Leathernecks (19-6, 11-3)—80, Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens—57 (The Leathernecks stormed to a 44-23 halftime advantage and pulled further away in the 2nd half to cut down the Fightin’ Blue Hens. SF Ty Wilfork scored 16 points, C Joe Bergmann had 14 points and 8 rebounds, and SG Bill Shin scored 12 points.)

Conference T

Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles—67, UC San Diego Tritons (18-6, 9-4)—63 (The two teams repetively exchanged the lead in the first 10 minutes, but then the Tritons edged ahead to lead 26-24 at the end of the half. UC San Diego then built a 17 point lead in midway through the 2nd half, only to let the Golden Eagles roar back and capture the lead for good with 2 minutes to go. C Tommy Jordan scored 16 points and had 5 rebounds and 4 assists and PF Brad Sanders had a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards. “We failed to get off good shots and letting an opponent out-rebound us 36-27 while playing on our home court put the nails in our coffin,” said coach Ken Yamoto.)

UC San Diego Tritons (19-6, 10-4)—80, Navy Midshipmen—59 (Navy was in command for most of the first half, but the Tritons tied the score at 38-38 at the break. Then after 9 lead changes, UC San Diego forged ahead early in the 2nd half and clamped down defensively to sink Navy. The Tritons outshot the Midshipmen 54% to 37%. PG Calvin Henderson scored 15, C Tommy Jordan had 14 points, 9 boards and 5 assists, PF Brad Sanders scored 14 and grabbed 6 rebounds, and SF Jeremiah Mason scored 13 points.)

Injuries: MD-Eastern Shore’s SG Ray West has a strained hamstring that will take 5 days to fully recover.

Awards: None

Comments: Southeast Louisiana now sports a 15-game win streak and leads Conference P by 4 games. Western Illinois now resides alone atop Conference S with a 1-game lead over 2 teams tied for 2nd place with 2 games to play. MD-Eastern Shore took over sole possession of 4th place in Conference S after winning both games this week, and the Hawks are now a game behind the two teams tied for 2nd and one game ahead of 3 teams tied for 5th place. UC San Diego is tied with North Alabama for 2nd place in Conference T to and is one game behind conference-leading Tennessee Tech. Georgia State is also tied for 2nd place (with Colgate) in Conference J and is a game behind 1st place Bradley. “Ramon has wrapped up the conference title for his Southeast Louisiana team, but the four others of us need to put together wins this final week of the regular season to cement good placements in our respective conferences,” said Coach Dontell Spencer of Georgia State.

[PointGuard]

Summary of Games During the Week of February 26-March 4, 2039

Conference J

Georgia State Panthers (17-10, 10-5)—75, Towson Tigers—52 (Georgia State blasted ahead early and held a big 45-25 halftime advantage. They never let the Tigers get any closer as they stomped Towson. Their defense held the Tigers’ shooting to just 32% and they totally dominated the boards 49-32. C Marshall Sanders scored 20 points and pulled down 10 rebounds. SG Clint Strohm popped in 13 points. PF Josh Shelton scored just 5 points but he grabbed 14 boards.)

Georgia State Panthers (18-10, 11-5)—67, Green Bay Phoenix—61 (Neither team could gain more than an 8 point advantage and the game see-sawed back and forth until the Panthers slipped ahead in the final 3 minutes to finish the season with a big road win. SF David Selby scored 13 and C Ernest Lloyd and SG Clint Strohm both scored 10 points.)

Conference P

Cal Poly Mustangs—71, SE Louisiana Lions (20-6, 14-1)—63 (The Lions cruised to a 41-33 halftime advantage and continued to hold a solid lead for the first 10 minutes of the 2nd half, but then let the Mustangs claw their way back and pull ahead and stop SE Louisiana’s win streak at 15 games. Cal Poly hit 10 3-pointers to none by the Lions. C Jason Nee scored 17 and pulled down 8 boards. PF Jon Sales scored 13 and SF Morris Few had 11 points and 7 rebounds. “Hopefully this was a wake-up call for our players. We have to play hard the entire 40 minutes,” said Coach Ramon Montez. “Losing like this at home makes it perfectly clear that we can’t just show up and expect to win.”)

SE Louisiana Lions (21-6, 15-1)—65, UC Riverside Highlanders—57 (The teams bludgeoned each other for the first 15 minutes with the score extremely close even though there were just 6 lead changes. But then the Lions exploded to take a 33-22 halftime lead. SE Louisiana’s lead grew to as much as 22 points before the Highlanders, with their home crowd cheering them on, put on a late run that closed the gap. But there was too little time to catch up. A 48% to 36% shooting advantage for the Lions was the difference in this game. SG Jimmy Smith scored 18 points, reserve C Darius Lawson scored 14, and PF Jon Sales had 11 points and 8 rebounds.)

Conference S

San Jose State Spartans—66, MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (17-9, 9-6)—51 (The Hawks fell behind early and trailed 35-27 at the end of the first half and fell behind by as much as 21 points in the 2nd half to suffer a devastating home loss. C Jim Taflinger scored 14 points and had 6 rebounds. “We failed to show up,” said Coach Mike McMillan. “Poor shooting and poor rebounding pretty much guarantees a loss.”)

MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (18-9, 10-6)—79, Wagner Seahawks—73 (The lead wavered back and forth throughout the game. The Hawks led 33-29 at the half but then fell behind by 6 points with 9 minutes to go and had to mount a comeback to gain this victory on the road. PF Luke Feeley had 18 points and 7 rebounds, SG Ray West scored 17 points by hitting 8 of his 10 FG’s, SF Winston Morant scored 12 points, and reserve SG Carl Hancock added 11 points.)

Western Illinois Leathernecks (20-6, 12-3)—90, Purdue Fort Wayne Mastadons—70 (Following 9 lead changes, the Leathernecks broke away 7 minutes into the game to take a 45-31 halftime advantage and then open a 21 point lead midway through the 2nd half and hold that big lead to the end. Western Illinois hit 56% of their FG’s and 64% of their 3’s and held a 20-11 turnover advantage. SF Ty Wilfork led their scoring with 20 points, PG Mohamed Ammons had 19 points and 9 assists, and SG Bill Shin scored 12 points.)

Western Illinois Leathernecks (21-6, 13-3)—67, Appalachian State Mountaineers—65 (With the home crowd urging them on, the Moutaineers went ahead by 19 points at the midpoint of the 1st half. Western Illinois cut into that lead but still trailed 35-28 at the break. Appalachian State again opened a big 14 point lead with 14 minutes to play. The Leathernecks then gradually cut into the lead and edged ahead with 2 minutes to go. But with the game tied, Western Illinois’ Ty Wilfork put up a contested shot with 4 seconds to play that fell through the hoop and gave them the win. SG Bill Shin scored 15 points and had 7 rebounds and SF Ty Wilfork added 11 points.)

Conference T

Tennessee Martin Skyhawks—69, UC San Diego Tritons (19-7, 10-5)—65 (The Skyhawks ground out a 40-36 halftime lead. UC San Diego fought back to edge ahead early in the 2nd half and go ahead by 8 points with 7 minutes to play. Tennessee Martin chipped away and recaptured the lead with under 2 minutes to play and hold on to win on their home court. The Skyhawks were sent to the foul line 15 more times where they scored 11 more points than the Tritons. C Tommy Jordan scored 20 points, SF Winston Morant hit for 14 points, and PF Brad Sanders and SG DeVante Botts each scored 13 points.)

UC San Diego Tritons (20-7, 11-5)—102, North Alabama Lions—78 (UC San Diego scored first and then steadily increased their lead to win with ease. The Tritons hit 64% of their FG’s and were +11 in rebounding. C Tommy Jordan scored 30 points, hitting 15 of his 16 FG’s. SF Winston Morant scored 20 points and reserve C/PF Camara McWilliams had 18 points and 8 rebounds. “Tommy Jordan has really demonstrated his scoring ability since taking over the starting role,” said Coach Ken Yamoto. “In the four games he started at the end of this season he averaged 20 ppg and hit 70% of his shots.”)

Injuries: C Ernest Lloyd of Georgia State is nursing a sore arm but expects to be ready for their upcoming playoff games.

Awards: None.

Comments: Georgia State’s 3-game winning streak to close out their regular season moved them into a tie with Bradley for 1st place in Conference J. Even though their win streak was broken, Southeast Louisiana was the runaway winner of Conference P. Western Illinois won Conference S by a single game over Charleston Southern. MD-Eastern Shore finished tied with Gardner-Webb for 4th place in Conference S. But because the Hawks lost their only game against the Runnin’ Bulldogs, they’re the 5th seed in the conference and will have to win the conference tournament to gain a promotion to a higher conference. UC San Diego finished in a tie with North Alabama for 2nd place in Conference T.

[PointGuard]

CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT RESULTS for the FIVE MUSKETEERS’ TEAMS:

Conference J

Quarter-finals:

Rider Broncs—85, Georgia State Panthers (18-11)—69 (The Panthers defense fell apart completely in the first half as Rider ran away to a 50-36 halftime lead. Georgia State fell further behind in the 2nd half and were outshot 55% to 37% and out-rebounded 33-26. PF Josh Shelton had a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. SF David Selby scored 14 points and C Ernest Lloyd had 10 points and 7 boards. SG Clint Strohm injured his hand which will take 5 days to heal.)

Conference P

Quarter-finals:

Southeast Louisiana Lions (22-6)—80, Northwestern State Demons—73 (The Demons controlled the game throughout the first half and held a 39-36 halftime advantage. The Lions finally were able to wrest control early in the 2nd half, creeping ahead with 17 minutes to play and then stubbornly refusing the determined efforts by Northwestern State to retake the lead. A 12-0 run late in the game gave the Lions all the margin they needed to hold off the stubborn Demons. C Jason Nee had 21 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals. SF Morris Few and SG Will Collins both scored 13 points with Few also picking up 6 rebounds. “Northwestern State gave us we could handle. We will need to pick up our play if we want to go further in this tourney,” said Coach Ramon Montez. PG Joey Thomas suffered a sprained to that will take 11 days to fully recover.)

Semi-finals:

Kansas City Kangaroos—72, Southeast Louisiana Lions (22-7)—61 (Kansas City scored first and never gave up the lead. By the end of the half the Lions trailed 39-36. The Kangaroos then hopped to a 13 point lead midway through the 2nd half and held SE Louisiana at bay to gain the upset victory. The Lions hit just 33% of their FG’s and 12% of their 3’s which derailed their 40-31 rebounding advantage. Kansas City’s PG Andre Taylor hit 9 of 10 from the field and scored 24 points. SF Morris Few scored 18 points and had 10 rebounds for the Lions and C Jason Nee and reserve guard Jimmy Smith added 12 and 10 points, respectively.)

Conference S

Play-in Round:

MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (19-9)—74, North Carolina A&T Aggies—54 (Two minutes into the game, the Hawks grabbed a lead they would never relinquish. By the end of the half, they were ahead 42-27. They then steadily pulled further ahead in the 2nd half to advance to the quarter-finals. They outshot the Aggies 55% to 35%. SG Carl Hancock scored 15 and grabbed 8 boards. SF Winston Morant had 12 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks. C Jim Taflinger scored 12 and reserve guard Rick Miller added 10 points.)

Quarter-finals:

Western Illinois Leathernecks (22-6)—74, San Jose State Spartans—55 (After 6 lead changes, the Leathernecks pulled out to a 29-21 lead at halftime. Their lead grew to as much as 26 points in the 2nd half and they coasted to a decisive win primarily by holding a 37-20 rebounding advantage. PG Mohamed Ammons scored 17 points, SF Ty Wilfork dropped in 13 points plus had 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals, PF Orvo Haapajarvi had 11 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists, and C Joe Bergmann recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards.)

MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (20-9)—71, Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs—64 (The Hawks held a slim lead throughout nearly all the first half and were up 33-30 at the break. But the lead shifted back and forth during the first 15 minutes of the 2nd half. MD-Eastern Shore then crept ahead and drove to a successful finish due to out-rebounding the Runnin’ Bulldogs 29-23 and holding a 15-11 turnover advantage. SG Carl Hancock was deadly accurate and scored 21 points plus pulled down 6 rebounds. C Jim Taflinger added 14 points. Along with the win came injuries to PG Ivoree Spence—sprained finger, 10 days; SF Winston Morant—strained hamstring, 14 days; and PF Rob Evans—sprained finger, 10 days.)

Semi-finals:

Western Illinois Leathernecks (23-6)—63, MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (20-10)—59 (Western Illinois controlled the first half and lead 40-30 at the break. But the Hawks fought back to take small leads in the 2nd half. After 11 lead changes, the Leathernecks were able to outscore the Hawks 8-4 in the final 2-1/2 minutes to gain the win. Leading Western Illinois was C Joe Bergmann who had 18 points and 7 rebounds with PG Mohamed Ammons adding 10 points. C Jim Taflinger and SG Carl Hancock both scored 14 points to top the scoring for MD-Eastern Shore with C/PF Luke Feeley getting a double-double with 12 points and 11 boards. “Helluva game,” said Western Illinois’ coach Terry Morillo. “The Hawks were definitely a formidable opponent. We were fortunate to get to the free throw line more and that was the ultimate difference in this game.” SG Ray West injured his hand to add to MD-Eastern Shore’s spate of injuries.))

Championship:

Western Illinois Leathernecks (24-6)—70, Charleston Southern Buccaneers—63 (There were 18 lead changes and 8 ties in this game. The score was tied at 32-32 at halftime. The Leathernecks were finally able to pull away but not until the final 5 minutes. PG Mohamed Ammons led Western Illinois to the championship with 18 points but Coach Morillo got solid contributions from all 10 players he put on the court.)

Conference T

Quarter-finals:

UC San Diego Tritons (21-7)—73, Southern Jaguars—57 (The first half was razer close with the Tritons trailing 32-30 at halftime. No more than 2 points separated the two teams during the first 7 minutes of the 2nd half, but UC San Diego then sprinted to a 22 point lead and won with ease. The Tritons were outshot 53% to 42% but were +15 in rebounding and held a 23-12 turnover advantage. C Tommy Jordan led the team with 19 points and 10 rebounds. SG DeVante Botts tossed in 15 points plus grabbed 8 boards. PF Brad Sanders and SF Jeremiah Mason both scored 10 points with Sanders also pulling down 8 rebounds.)

Semi-finals:

UC San Diego Tritons (22-7)—74, Nicholls State Colonels—59 (The Tritons were able to wrest the lead 4 minutes into the game and hold onto it the rest of the way. At the half they led 39-27 and ballooned their lead to as much as 23 points in the 2nd half. C Tommy Jordan scored 18 points, SG DeVante Botts tossed in 12 points, and PF Brad Sanders added 11 points.)

Championship:

Grambling Tigers—76, UC San Diego Tritons (22-8)—68 (The Tritons held a small lead throughout the most of the first 12 minutes but after 6 lead changes the Tigers gained a 45-40 halftime advantage. Grambling opened an 11 point lead midway through the 2nd half, but UC San Diego cut the lead to 3 with 4 minutes to go. But Grambling held on to win the championship. C Tommy Jordan poured in 29 points plus had 6 rebounds. SF Jeremiah Mason scored 15 points and SG DeVante Botts had 11 points and 7 boards.)

[PointGuard]

Top 25 Rankings:

1-Florida; 2-Notre Dame; 3-Kentucky; 4-Maryland; 5-Michigan State; 6-Temple; 7-Georgetown; 8-UC Irvine; 9-Nebraska; 10-UCONN; 11-Missouri State; 12-UCLA; 13-Oregon; 14-Oklahoma St.; 15-Creighton; 16-Georgia; 17-Clemson; 18-Ohio St.; 19-Boston College; 20-American; 21-Missouri; 22-Brigham Young; 23-Fresno St.; 24-Wisconsin; 25-Western Illinois

Coach Terry Morillo of the Western Illinois Leathernecks said, “To be honest, I was a nearly bowled over to see us ranked in the Media Poll. But all of the players and coaches are thrilled to get into the Top 25. We had a great year, but winning the conference tournament was definitely the impetus for our getting ranked. But now we have to make some noise in the Big Dance. We’re not going to let being ranked keep us from focusing on our next opponent.”


POST SEASON TOURNAMENT SELECTIONS AND SEEDINGS

NCAA

#1 seeds: Florida; Notre Dame; Kentucky; Maryland

Western Illinois is the #6 seed in the East Region

NIT

#1 seeds: Kansas State; Brown; Sam Houston State; Texas El-Paso

SE Louisiana is the 2nd seed in the South Region

UC San Diego is the 6th seed in the West Region

Georgia State is the 6th seed in the East Region

CBI

#1 seeds: California; Butler

CIT

#1 seeds: Southern Methodist; Colorado; Sacramento State; MD-Eastern Shore

MD-Eastern Shore is the #1 seed in the West Region

[PointGuard]

TEAM & PLAYER STATISTICS

Georgia State Panthers—Coach Dontell Spencer

Team:

Season: 18-11; Conference J: 11-5 (tie for 1st place); Home: 11-3; Away: 7-8; NET Ranking: 82

PPG: 71.5 (117th); Opponents PPG: 67.2 (110th); RPG: 35.3 (30th); BPG: 5.3 (36th)

NIT Tournament: 6th seed in East Region and opens against #3 seed Penn State

Players:

PPG: David Selby: 12.6; Terrell Hunter: 9.8; Clint Strohm: 9.2; Marshall Sanders: 9.1; Josh Shelton: 8.0; Mike Boxler: 5.2; Aaron Samuels: 5.1; Ernest Lloyd: 4.5; James Jupiter: 3.8; Gerald Payne: 3.0

RPG: Josh Shelton: 7.3; Marshall Sanders: 6.1; David Selby: 4.8; Aaron Samuels: 4.1; Clint Strohm: 3.6

APG: Terrell Hunter: 5.7; Clint Strohm: 2.9; Marshall Sanders: 1.8

SPG: Clint Strohm: 1.8

BPG: Marshall Sanders: 0.9

Southeast Louisiana Lions—Coach Ramon Montez

Team:

Season: 22-7; Conference P: 15-1 (1st place); Home: 11-4; Away: 11-3; NET Ranking: 81

PPG: 72.3 (96th); Opponents PPG: 64.2 (36th); RPG: 34.4 (34th); FG%: 47.3 (39th)

NIT Tournament: #2 seed in South Region and will open against #7 seed Coppin State

Players:

PPG: Jimmy Smith: 13.1; Jon Sales: 11.1; Jason Nee: 10.6; Will Collins: 9.2; Morris Few: 7.0; Darius Lawson: 5.9; Thomas Matthews: 5.7; Shawnelle Allen: 3.8; Fred Morant: 3.1; Joey Thomas: 2.3

RPG: Jon Sales: 6.7; Jason Nee: 6.3; Morris Few: 5.1; Darius Lawson: 3.4; Shawnelle Allen: 3.3; Jimmy Smith: 3.0

APG: Jimmy Smith: 4.4; Will Collins: 2.8; Morris Few: 2.0; Jon Sales: 2.0

SPG: Will Collins: 1.6

BPG: Jon Sales: 1.2

Western Illlinois Leathernecks—Coach Terry Morillo

Team:

Season: 24-6; Conference S: 13-3 (1st place); Home: 15-1; Away: 9-5; Polls: 25th; NET Ranking: 54

PPG: 70.6 (140th); Opponents PPG: 59.3 (1st); BPG: 4.9 (69th); SPG: 9.6 (19th); FG%: 47.1 (44th)

Champion Conference P Tournament; Finished season with 8-game win streak; NCAA Tournament: #7 seed in East Region and will open against #10 seed Old Dominion

Players:

PPG: Ty Wilfork: 10.6; Mohamed Ammons: 9.9; Joe Bergmann: 9.5; Bill Shin: 9.1; Orvo Haapajarvi: 7.9; Jerry Gilmore: 6.1; David Perry: 5.9; James Johnson: 4.3; Idris Bass: 4.0; Tavis Tahid: 2.3

RPG: Joe Bergmann: 6.4; Ty Wilfork: 5.7; Orvo Haapajarvi: 4.3; Idris Bass: 3.2; Bill Shin: 3.0; David Perry: 2.7

APG: Mohamed Ammons: 3.3; Jerry Gilmore: 2.5; Trent Cougar: 2.3; Bill Shin: 2.0

SPG: Bill Shin: 2.3

BPG: Ty Wilfork: 1.3

Maryland-Eastern Shore Hawks—Coach Mike McMillan

Team:

Season: 20-10; Conference S: 10-6 (4th place tie); Home: 12-2; Away: 8-8; NET Ranking: 129th

PPG: 65.8 (265th); Opponents PPG: 59.9 (4th)

CIT Tournament: #1 seed in the West Region against opening against #8 seed Southern Methodist

Players:

PPG: Jim Taflingers: 12.7; Winston Morant: 11.6; Carl Hancock: 11.5; Luke Feeley: 8.1; Ivoree Spence: 6.1; Rick Miller: 3.9; Frank Kessler: 3.7; Shawn Wilson: 2.4; Rob Evans: 2.2

RPG: Luke Feeley: 6.4; Jim Taflinger: 5.6; Winston Morant: 5.5; Frank Kessler: 3.9; Carl Hancock: 3.5

APG: Ivoree Spence: 4.9; Winston Morant: 2.2; Rick Miller: 2.1; Carl Hancock: 1.8; Jim Taflinger: 1.7

SPG: Jim Taflinger: 1.7

BPG: Jim Taflinger: 1.0

CIT Tournament: Seeded #1 in West Region and opens against #8 seed Southern Mississippi

UC San Diego Tritons—Coach Ken Yamoto

Team:

Season: 22-8; Conference T: 11-5 (2nd place tie); Home: 14-2; Away: 8-6; NET Ranking: 106

PPG: 76.1 (27th); Opponents PPG: 66.5 (87th); APG: 19.5 (11th); BPG: 4.7 (83rd); SPG: 9.1 (48th); FG%: 50.3 (6th)

NIT Tournament: #6 seed in West Region and will open against #3 seed Florida Atlantic

Players:

PPG: DeVante Botts: 13.5; Jeremiah Mason: 13.0; Jameel Wells: 12.6; Tommy Jordan: 11.1; Brad Sanders: 8.9; Calvin Henderson: 5.7; Al LeVasseur: 4.8; Camara McWilliams: 4.4; Steve McCrary: 2.0; Marc York: 1.7

RPG: Brad Sanders: 6.7; DeVante Botts: 4.4; Jeremiah Mason: 4.4; Jameel Wells: 4.2; Tommy Jordan: 3.7; Camara McWilliams: 3.3; Calvin Henderson: 2.0

APG: Calvin Henderson: 5.6; DeVante Botts: 2.8; Al LaVasseur: 2.7

SPG: DeVante Botts: 1.0

BPG: DeVante Botts: 1.0

[PointGuard]

TOURNAMENT RESULTS

NCAA-Round 1:

#10 seed Old Dominion Monarchs—89, #7 seed Western Illinois Leathernecks (24-7)—66 (The Leathernecks got off to a good start and led for most of the first half by as much as 18 points. But the Monarchs came roaring back late in the half to pull on top 52-47 at the break. Western Illinois’ offense looked extremely flat in the 2nd half and they steadily fell further and further behind. PF Orvo Haapajarvi scored 14, reserve guard Jerry Gilmore dropped in 13, and C Joe Bergmann and SG Bill Shin each scored 10. SF Jamaal Smith hit 9 of his 10 shots and scored 24 for Old Dominion. “One and done...Damn! You gotta give a lot of credit to Old Dominion. We came out hot, but they turned the game completely around with a robust offense and shutting us down defensively,” said Coach Terry Morillo.)

NIT-Round 1:

#3 seed Penn State Nittany Lions—79; #6 seed Georgia State Panthers (18-12)—71 (The two teams exchanged the lead 10 times in the first 12 minutes of the game, but the Panthers let Penn State of Conference F pull away late in the first half and build a 43-29 halftime advantage. Five minutes into the 2nd half, the Nittany Lions were up by 18 points. The Panthers then began whittling down the lead. They got to within 4 points with 6 minutes to go but could get no closer due to Penn State hitting a devastating 53% of their FG’s and 52% of their 3’s and getting to the line 10 more times and scoring 7 more points than Georgia State. PF Josh Shelton scored 16 points and PG Terrell hunter and SF David Selby added 11 and 10 points, respectively. “We let Penn State get too far in front of us, but I was proud of how the team fought to get back into the game,” said Coach Dontell Spencer.)

#2 seed SE Louisiana Lions (23-7)—73, #7 seed Coppin State Eagles—64 (The Lions jumped out on top and never gave up the lead. At the half it was 41-37 in favor of SE Louisiana. The Lions opened as much as a 17 point lead midway through the 2nd half and then held the Eagles off for a solid victory. SE Louisiana maintained control of the ball with just 6 turnovers the entire game and outshot the Eagles 49% to 42%. PF Jon Sales had 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists. C Jason Need scored 15 points. “Our interior players did their job. We outscored Coppin State 28-16 in the paint and 9-4 on 2nd chance points,” said Coach Ramon Montez.)

#3 seed Florida Atlantic Owls—74, #6 seed UC San Diego Tritons (22-9)—67 (UC San Diego kept up with the Owls in the first half, but let Florida Atlantic edge ahead in the final few minutes to sport a 37-30 lead at the break. UC San Diego fell behind by as much 13 points early in the 2nd half but then crept close but was unable to capture the lead. The difference in the game was the 8 more points that Florida Atlantic scored at the foul line. SG DeVante Botts hit for 17 points with C Tommy Jordan and SF Jeremiah Mason both adding 12 points. Jordan also had 8 rebounds. “A good effort but we just came up a little short,” said Coach Ken Yamoto.)

CIT-Round 1:

#1 seed MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (21-10)—66, #8 seed Southern Methodist Golden Eagles—56 (MD-Eastern Shore took the lead off the opening tip and led all the way, by as much as 18 points and almost all the time by double digits. At the half they were up 42-26. PF Rob Evans led the scoring with 14 points plus he had 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. PG Ivoree Spence and C Luke Feeley both scored 11 points and C Jim Taflingers getting 9 points, 5 boards, 3 steals and 3 blocks. Coach Mike McMillan said, “Our game plan was to control the interior and our guys did exactly that. Now we have to prepare quickly for VMI. We’re still nursing some injuries, but we’ll be ready.”)

NIT-Round 2:

#2 seed Southeast Louisiana Lions (24-7)—64, Virginia Commonwealth Rams—56 (The Lions crushed the Rams throughout the entire first half and came away with a 41-22 lead at the end of the 1st half. SE Louisiana added to their margin in the 2nd half although they let the Rams cut into the lead late in the game. But a 44-31 rebounding advantage and out-shooting the Rams 42% to 32% kept Virginia Commonwealth from being able to come back. PG Joey Thomas was a surprise starter and finished with 19 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. PF Jon Sales had a double-double with 11 points and 11 boards and reserve Shawnelle Allen scored 12 points in his 15 minutes on the floor. “We were on fire for 34 minutes, but I wasn’t pleased with our play in the final 6 minutes,” said Coach Ramon Montez. When asked about starting Thomas rather than regular starter Jimmy Smith, Montez responded, “We just felt Joey matched up better against the Rams’ PG…and Joey ended up playing one helluva game.”)

CIT-Round 2:

#1 seed MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (22-10)—76, #4 seed VMI Keydets—63 (Things looked bad for the Hawks as they trailed 37-31 at the break and by a similar margin for the first 11 minutes of the 2nd half. But then their defense solidified and they went on an 18-2 run that gave them all the margin they needed to win with ease. Five of their players scored in double figures: PF Rob Evans hit 6 of 8 shots and scored 15, SF Winston Morant hit for 13, C Luke Feeley and PG Ivoree Spence both added 12, and reserve guard Ray West added 10. “We had a tough time with VMI. I was really getting worried but then our guys clamped down defensively and surged from way back to a big lead very quickly,” said Coach McMillan.)

NIT-Round 3:

#1 seed Sam Houston State Bearkats—83, #2 seed Southeast Louisiana Lions (24-8)—77 (There seemed to be no end to the lead changes in the first half and the teams ended the stanza tied at 39-39. During the first 10 minutes of the 2nd half, the game continued to be razor close. But then the Bearkats shut down SE Louisiana’s offense and also took control of the boards. Sam Houston State spurted to a 13 point lead with 4 minutes to play. The Lions offense woke up, but it was too late to make up the ground that had been lost. Reserve guard Thomas Matthews had 18 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. PF Jon Sales scored 17 points and PG Jimmy Smith had 14 points and 8 assists. The Bearkats’ PG Neil Walker was high point man with 19 points plus he had 6 assists, 6 , and 6 steals. “If it hadn’t been for that 4-1/2 minute stretch when we couldn’t but a basket, this game probably would have gone into overtime since the two teams were so evenly matched,” said Coach Ramon Montez. “We’re sad to have been knocked out of the tournament, but overall we played well so there’s a lot to be proud of.”)

CIT-Round 3:

#1 seed MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (23-10)—72, #2 seed Oklahoma Sooner—71 (Oklahoma held a small lead throughout most of the first half and was on top 40-35 when the two teams went to the locker room. But the Hawks caught up 5 minutes into the 2nd half and the lead shifted back and forth. MD-Eastern Shore took their biggest lead (6 points) with 2-1/2 minutes to play and then had to hold on for dear life as the Sooners came back to get within a single point and have the last shot which was partially blocked by PG Ivoree Spence to knock it awry just enough to go off the rim. PF Luke Feeley scored 20 and pulled down 7 boards and C Jim Taflinger hit 6 of 7 FG’s and scored 16 points. “What a game! We knew Oklahoma would be a tremendous test for us. It was absolutely critical that we were able to gain small advantages on the boards and with turnovers which allowed us to get off a few more shots than the Sooners and barely edge Oklahoma on shots made even though they hit a higher percentage of their shots. Oklahoma’s guards, Matt Rosser and Stephen Wimbley combined to score 39 points so they Sooners dominated outside while Luke (Feeley) and Jim (Taflinger) gave us control inside,” said Coach Mike McMillan.)

CIT-Semi-Finals:

#1 seed MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (24-10)—67, #2 seed Boston University Terriers—55 (The Hawks took control with a stingly defense very early and led 39-25 at halftime. Their lead expanded to 21 points midway through the 2nd half and then held off a late run by the Terriers to advance to the championship game. SF Winston Morant came up big with 23 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks and a steal. SG Carl Hancock scored 16 points and C Jim Taflinger had 11 points and 8 boards. Coach McMillan said, “It’s sure good we played so strong defensively because we shot poorly tonight. Winston (Morant) was finally back to 100% after nursing an injury in our previous tournament games.”

CIT-Championship:

#1 seed MD-Eastern Shore Hawks (25-10)—69, #3 seed Stetson Hatters—50 (Stetson had knocked of two #1 seeds and a #2 seed to advance to the championship game. There were 8 lead changes in the first half with the Hawks coming out of it with a 32-29 advantage. But Coach McMillan’s charges came out in the 2nd half and by applying a defense that wilted the Hatters’ offense, the Hawks steadily pulled away to gain the tournament championship convincingly. C Jim Taflinger had a big double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds. SF Winston Morant had 14 points and 9 boards. PG Ivoree Spence and SG Carl Hancock each scored 12 points. “Another fantastic defensive game for us plus we also dominated the boards (45-30). Our guys put together 5 well-played games so all praise goes to them. Our opponents averaged under 60 ppg throughout the tournament which reveals how effective our defense was. Winning the CIT Championship is a great way for our 4 seniors (Jim Taflinger, Winston Morant, Luke Feeley and Shawn Wilson) to finish their collegiate careers.”

Tournament Champions:

NCAA: Clemson

NIT: Brown

CBI: South Carolina

CIT: Maryland-Eastern Shore

[PointGuard]

AWARDS:

Ramon Montez, Southeast Louisiana—Conference P Coach of the Year

Winston Morant, MD-Eastern Shore—Conference S Defensive Player of the Year

Mike McMillan, MD-Eastern Shore-- Conference S Coach of the Year

Jim Taflinger, MD-Eastern Shore—Conference S 1st Team All-Conference

Winston Morant, MD-Eastern Shore—Conference S 2nd Team All-Conference

Joe Bergmann, Western Illinois-- Conference S 2nd Team All-Conference

Ken Yamoto, UC San Diego—Conference T Coach of the Year

DeVante Botts, UC San Diego—Conference T 1st Team All-Conference