BUI
TELLING IT LIKE IT REALLY IS!.
A thought to remember: He who lives at high tension
usually blows a fuse!....
This is the week when Black Americans, especially those
who reside along the eastern seaboard, focus their
attention on the city of Norfolk, Virginia.
That s because this is the week the famed Central
Intercollegiate Athletic Association stages its annual
Basketball Tournament in the Norfolk Scope, an impres
sive arena that comfortably seats about 11,000 fans It’s
also the week when the merchants in Norfolk area sing
mernly aU the way to the banks, with an estimated $5
million in revenues derived from this gala attraction.
Neither the city of Norfolk, its popular sports arena, nor
the hotels and motels and restaurants in the area are
equipped to accomodate the influx of the basketball-mad
.crowd that will converge on this seaport town this
weekend.
Early estimations are that 20,000 spectators will trek to
Norfolk and little less than half of them will not be fully
aware of the fact that basketball is being played in town
during the week. Traditionally, the other half shows up
aimuaUy just for the brag rights of having been on or near
the scene of action. Consequently about 9,000 will spend
their time in pursuit of arm-bending pleasantries.
It s the biggest show on earth for blacks. Some experts
even compare it with the top five college-sponsored
tournaments in the Americas.
The Hoopla began Wednesday when 12 of the confe
rence s 14 schools opened battle for the championship
Norfolk State won a year ago. It will continue through
Saturday night, and into Sunday morning, long after the
championship has been decided.
Virginia Union, a team that whipped everybody enroute
to a 27-0 record, has been chosen by the experts as the
team that will win it all. The Panthers, they predict, are in
a class by themselves. In short, the 1984-85 CIAA
basketball race turned out to be a chase between Virginia
Union and the “others.” No league team has offered stiff
competition. Nor have non-league opponents provided the
kind of opposition that hampered Dave Robbin’s Team’s
run to its first unbeaten season in modern times.
They won the northern division title by a wide margin
and they have knocked off each opponent with relative
ease.
Led by Charles Oakley and Jamie Waller, Virginia
Union leads the conference in team scoring, team scoring
defense, team scoring margin, team rebounding and team
rebounding margin. In addition, the Panthers hold the
individual lead-in scoring, rebounding and field goal
percentage.
Oakley is setting the pace in individual scoring, with a
24.3 scoring average. Waller is slightly behind, in third
place among the league’s top point producers, with a 20j9
scoring average. Oakley has hauled down 17.8 rebounds
per game to lead in that vital department and Waller has
hit the nets with 64.1 percent of his floor shots.
As a team, the Panthers have been shooting the lights
out, having averaged 90.6 points per contest. They’ve
outscored their opponents by the wide margin of 21.5 points
a contest. Their rebounding margin is 15.3 per game.
The 40th CIAA tournament will have numerous road
blocks and upsets are expected to be as plentiful as
spectators who do not attend the famed dribble session.
Norfolk State, Winston-Salem State and Elizabeth City
State are the teams mostly likely to succeed in keeping the
Panthers away from their seventh championship since this
tourney began back in 1945.
Norfolk, State, with the classy Ralph Tally setting the
scoring pace, is the team the experts rate a strong secohd
to powerful Virginia Union. The Spartans have posted a
commendable 19-5 record and have mildly threatened the
Panthers throughout the campaign. They’re 9-3 in the
northern division.
Another plus factor is the great coaching of head coach
Charles Christian, who has won 83 percent of his
tournament games, including the 1984 championship.
Christian had won four tourney crowns prior to capturing
the 1983-84 title.
Clarence “Bighouse” Gaines, who has a lineup that’s
populated with “little men”, is another threat. Bighouse’s
Winston-Salem State Rams won five of their last six
contests to finish first in the southern division, with a 9-3
mark. Overall, they’re 14-10. However, Gaines leads the
CIAA both in tournament games and titles won. He owns
eight crowns and has 50 victories in 29 tournament
appearances.
The true “darkhorse” of the 40th CIAA Tournament
could be the Shaw Bears, who made a serious run for the
southern division title until the final game. Coach Warren
Reynolds’ crew is headed by such “good people” as David
Lacy, Vincent Johnson, Andre Sheppard and Wayne
Dubose. Lacy is the circuit’s fifth best point maker with a
20.5 scoring average. He has found the nets with a
respectable 59 percent of his shots from the floor. Johnson
is the team’8 top rebounder and shot blocker.
To Find Out
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Wharf'9 Cookin',
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In CIAA Tournament
Bob Moore Looks For Impressive Showing
By LaShun Lawson
Post Staff Reporter
Bob Moore went into the 40th CIAA
Basketball Tournament at the
Norfolk Scope Wednesday morning
with high hopes of making an
impressive showing.
His Johnson C. Smith Golden Bulls
which finished the year with a 7—5
Southern Division record, met Vir
ginia State in the opening rounds, a
team they whipped 117-113 during
the regular season.
Moore perceives his chances of
winning the conveted title as “very
good.”
“Past records do not matter and
neither does the team’s,” Moore
explained adding, “With better won
loss records all of those things are
thrown out at tournament time.”
The Johnson C. Smith coach is
a veteran of tournament play. In 10
appearances he has posted a non
too-impressive record which in
cludes only four victories and 10
defeats for a lowly .286 percentage.
He won three tournament contests
while coaching at Virginia Union
and he has registered only one
tournament triumph since coming to
J.C. Smith in 1978.
The second Johnson C. Smith
coach to win 100 or more games,
Moore says his team will go in with a
“killer attitude and play to win.”
He pins his hope on sophomore
Dante Johnson and senior Michael
Singleton, the team’s leading scorer
and top guard, respectively. Moore
indicated he will start Reggie
Moses, Keith Green and James
Sharkley, along with Johnson and
Singleton.
Green is getting the call over
Eddie Johnson, who has played
with the regulars most of the cam
paign. David Marks will not be
available. He sustained an injury in
a recent auto accident.
Team spokesman Singleton be
lieves the Bulls will defeat the
Trojans. “Generally we have an
Bob Moore
...J.C. Smith coach
advantage because our opponents stating “We have the potential to
tend to underestimate us. We will go win the title.”
in with a winning attitude and give a The tournament got underway
100 percent effort,” he stated. Wednesday morning (February 27)
John Dennis agrees with Singleton with Bowie State facing Shaw Uni
versity at9 a.m.; Virginia State and
J.C. Smith battled at 11 a.m.;
Elizabeth City met Fayetteville
State at 1 p.m.; N.C. Central and
Norfolk State collided at 7 p.m.; and
Hampton University and Livingston
squared off at 9 p.m.
Virginia Union and Winston-Salem
St. both will by-pass the first round
because they were first in the
divisions.
The action will resume Thursday
at 1 p.m. with Winston-Salem State
competing with the winner of game
three followed by a battle between
the winners of games two and four at
3 p.m. The winners of games one and
six will compete at 7 p.m. Thursday
at 9 p.m. Virginia Union will com
pete with the victors of game five.
Semifinals take place Friday at 7
p.m. and 9 p.m. with the victors of
Thursday games.
The women’s champions game
will take place Friday before the
moment of truth. The men’s cham
pionship game at 8 p.m. Saturday
will determine the CIAA champs.
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