Quarterfinal Results Day 4 Recaps
Game #16 (2 p.m.) Women
Benedict College 55, Kentucky State University 41
The first women’s semifinal game of the 77th Annual SIAC Basketball Tournament featured the second seed Thorobrettes of Kentucky State University and the third seed Lady Tigers of Benedict College. The winner will advance to the championship contest on Saturday (March 6th) at 5:30 p.m.
After a Thorobrettes field got the flow of the game started, the early lead went to the Lady Tigers of Benedict College. At the 15:49 mark the lead for Benedict stood at seven point, 12-7. The Lady Tiger margin stayed fairly close to that amount for the next 10 minutes.
With less than five minutes remaining, the Thorobrettes drew closer after a Tasia Smith lay up cut the Lady Tiger lead to 18-13. That was followed by a Kiarra Morgan jump shot which made the score 18-15.
At the 3:18 mark, the Lady Tigers took their lead back to five points (20-15) after a Tamara Rogers lay up. However, that lead was quickly diminished after Morgan connected on a three point shot for the Thorobrettes making the score 20-18. After being fouled, Charvez Holmes got the Lady Tiger lead back to four points (22-18) after hitting two free throws. And just before the half, the Thorobrettes narrowed the Lady Tiger lead on a Tasia Smith lay up for a 22-20 score at intermission.
In the second half, the lead quickly changed to the Thorobrette (23-22) after a Morgan free throw and a Stephanie Harper lay up. After that, the teams settled into a back-and-forth scoring affair. It wasn’t until 7:33 left in the game that either team enjoyed more than a three point lead. At that point, Monique Weathers hit a three point shot which game the Lady Tigers a six point lead, 41-35.
With 2:30 remaining, the Lady Tigers had built a 48-37 lead. The 11 point spread was their largest of the game and proved insurmountable by the Thorobrettes. The Lady Tigers Benedict secured a spot in the championship game with a 55-41 win over the Thorobrettes of Kentucky State University.
Shakira Autry and Charvez Holmes led the Lady Tigers in scoring with nine points each. Monique Weathers finished with eight points while Bridget Williams and Brittany Jackson contributed seven points each.
Winners of the 2007 and 2004 SIAC Title, the Lady Tigers of Benedict College will face the winner of the Tuskegee University, Stillman College semifinal game in the championship match up on Saturday (March 6th) at 5:30 p.m.
Game #17 (4 p.m.) Women
Stillman College 70, Tuskegee University 66
In second women’s semifinal game, the fourth seed Tigerettes of Tuskegee University met the eight seed Lady Tigers of Stillman College to determine who would advance to meet the Lady Tigers of Benedict College in the championship game on Saturday (March 6th) at 5:30 p.m.
In a surprise finish to the first half, the Lady Tigers took a 37-26 lead into the locker room at intermission. The first 20 minutes of basketball included three ties and three lead changes.
The Lady Tigers took the half time advantage with a 13 of 35 shooting performance (37%) compared to the nine of 29 effort by the Tigerettes. And while Stillman was 11 of 16 from the free throw line in the first half (68.8%), Tuskegee managed only seven conversion on 16 attempts (43.8%).
In the second half, the Lady Tigers saw their 11 point halftime lead grow to 41-28 with 17:23 remaining in the game after a miniature 4-2 run. With 15:40 left, Tuskegee cut the Stillman lead to 45-36. After another transition basket by Ameila Dorton near the 15 minute mark, Tuskegee had cut the Lady Tiger lead to 45-39. At the 13:50 mark, a lay up by Tuskegee’s Nnenna Eze made it a 45-42 game with the Lady Tiger advantage in serious jeopardy.
While tenuous, the Lady Tigers lead still stood at the 11:27 mark (50-47). With 9:52 left, Stillman still led by three points, 53-50. With 6:44 left, the Stillman lead was 55-53.
After a turnover by the Lady Tigers with 6:21 remaining, the Tigerettes had an opportunity to tie the game with a two point basket or take the lead with a three pointer. They got the latter from Tequila Martin to go up 56-55.
With 4:54 left, the Lady Tigers reclaimed the lead (57-56) after a Siera Dority jump shot. At the 2:51 a time out was called with Stillman leading 61-60. At this point, there had been five ties and nine lead changes in the game.
With a 1:31 left, the teams exchanged baskets with Stillman clinging to a one point advantage, 63-62. With :39 left, the Lady Tigers led 65-64 with Martin at the free throw line for Tuskegee. She sank them both to give Tuskegee a one point edge, 66-65. On the other end of the floor, Jamila McKinnis converted a lay up to give the lead right back to Stillman, 67-66 with :27 remaining.
With Tuskegee forced to foul down the stretch, the Lady Tigers iced the win with three critical free throws by Jasmon Hazley in the remaining seconds to advance to the championship by a 70-66 score.
Jamila McKinnis led the Lady Tigers in scoring with a game high 23 points and 10 rebounds. Phylice Eubanks added 15 points and eight rebounds while Alecia Young finished with 12 points and nine rebounds.
The Lady Tiger win sets the championship stage for tomorrow (Saturday, March 6th) at 5:30 p.m. when they meet the Lady Tigers of Benedict for the SIAC crown,
Game #18 (6 p.m.) Men
Tuskegee University 65, Benedict College 53
The first semifinal match up in men’s basketball could not have been paired any better. The number two seed Tigers of Benedict and the number three seed Golden Tigers of Tuskegee University met in the 6 p.m. contest to determine who would advance to Saturday’s championship game.
The fast paced start favored the Tigers of Benedict College. In the first four minutes of the game, they held a 9-2 lead which forced a Tuskegee time out. With 12:12 left in the first half, Benedict’s lead was now at 10 points, 18-8. At the 8:59 mark, Tuskegee had worked to reduce the Benedict lead to just two points, 18-14. With 8:12 left Tuskegee tied the game at 18 after a Byron Fisher transition lay up.
The game did not stay tied very long. On two successive trips down the floor, Benedict got a lay up and a three point basket from Aubrey Brown to take a 23-18 lead with 6:45 remaining. Including Brown’s baskets, the Tigers of Benedict ended the first half with a 12-5 run which gave them a 29-23 edge at the intermission.
After the break, the Golden Tigers of Tuskegee raised their game to another level. Tying the game at 41 each with 12:30 left, Tuskegee began to dominate play on both ends of the floor. After taking a 46-44 lead with 9:50 left, the Golden Tigers never looked back. With leads ranging from five to eleven points for the remainder of the game, the Golden Tigers advanced to the championship game with a 12 point margin of victory, 65-53.
Tuskegee was led in scoring by Calvin Thomas who finished with 14 points. Derrick White had a double-double for the Golden Tigers with 12 points and 13 rebounds and Aaron Ragsdale chipped in 11 points.
With the win, at least half of the championship participants have been determined. The Golden Tigers will meet the winner of the semifinal match up between Clark Atlanta University and Claflin University. The championship game will be played on Saturday (March 6th) at 8 p.m.
Game #19 (8 p.m.) Men
Clark Atlanta University 70, Claflin University 65
The battle for the final spot in the men’s championship game pitted the SIAC’s number one seed Panthers of Clark Atlanta University and the fourth seed Panthers of Claflin University. And while it was for certain that a Panther would make it to the championship game, the question of the night was which set of Panthers would it be?
From the opening tip, the fans were assured of an extremely competitive contest. In the first 12 minutes, neither team was able to create any sustained scoring separation. After a three minute scoring lull by both teams, the Panthers of Claflin held a 25-19 lead with 4:11 remaining. In a first half in which Clark Atlanta made four of 12 three point shots and Claflin countered five of 12 three point baskets, the Panthers of Claflin led at halftime, 34-30.
After the intermission, Claflin held the lead until the 12:50 mark when Clark Atlanta’s Najee Lane stole a pass and took the ball the length of the floor for a dunk. That was followed by Lane three pointer as Clark Atlanta enjoyed its first lead of the second half, 43-39. At the 10:38 mark, Lane was fouled and extended the Clark Atlanta lead with two free throws, 44-39.
After a three point basket by Clark Atlanta’s David Brown and a steal and lay up by Lane, Clark Atlanta saw its lead balloon to eight points, 49-41 with 8:47 remaining. Seconds later, a Jourdain Blackmon three point basket took the Clark Atlanta lead to 52-43.
At the 5:46 mark, the Clark Atlanta lead was 56-52 as Claflin began to mount a surge. However, a David Brown three pointer from the left corner seemed to quite the push as Clark Atlanta extended its lead to 59-53. At the 4:28 mark, Claflin cut the Panther lead to 59-57.
With 2:08 left, Clark Atlanta took a five point lead, 65-60 before a Claflin time out. After the time out and two offensive possessions, the lead remained the same with 1:21 left.
After an Anthony Pigram tear drop shot in the paint, Claflin trailed by three points, 65-62 with :44 left. On the ensuing trip down the floor, Brown was fouled and made two free throws for Clark Atlanta making it a 67-62 score. That was answered with a Michael Jones three pointer for Claflin to take the score to 67-65 in favor of Clark Atlanta with :30 left.
With :11 left, Clark Atlanta’s Brown was fouled and sank two free throws to make the score 69-65. The Panthers would add one more free throw and win by a final score of 70-65. At last, the question of the night was answered. It would be the Panthers of Clark Atlanta who would be advancing to the men’s championship game on Saturday (March 6th) at 8 p.m. to meet the Golden Tigers of Tuskegee University.
David Brown led the Panthers of Clark Atlanta in scoring with 28 points. He also had seven rebounds. Najee Lane finished with 18 points and six rebounds.