CI A A Tourney promises thrills aplenty
Parity is more than just a word or part of a catch
phrase used to describe what's been happening in
CI A A roundball this season. It's a fact of life. Fot that
reason, the '91 CtAA Basketball Tournament should
give hoops connoisseurs a full taste of slam-jammin',
high fivin\ thrill by the heartbeat action they so des
perately crave.
Virginia Union, which had lost only one of 15
conference games at presstime, rates as a slight
favorite. However, the Panthers are not a sure pick to
reign supreme. Hampton's Pirates will be an obstacle,
primarily bccause of their defense and because they
were the only league team to hang a loss on Union
NORTHERN DIVISION
Virginia Union - Union has an edge because of
- offensive balance and depth. The Panthers are one of
the top scoring teams in the league at 91.7 ppg. But
they are also true marksmen. They lead the loop in
team field goal percentage (.519) and are second in
three-point percentage (.448).
Walter Hurd, who was No. 2 in Division II scor
ing two years ago at Johnson C. Smith, isn't as prolif
ic at 15.7 ppg, but he makes every shot count ? 46.9
shooting percentage from three-point range, 84.6 per
cent from the foul line, which is best in the league.
Reggie Jones (15 ppg) and Derek Johnson are
option for Hampton.
Norfolk State ? The Spartans haven't forgot
ten what it was like to stand in the winner's circle as
last year's tourney victors. However, the Spartans
could find it very difficult to repeat this time around.
Jerome Coles (22.5 ppg, 12 rpg) is the pillar of
this team. But without enough help coming from his
backcourt mates, Coles' effectiveness has been
reduced. Spartans opponents have opted to double and
triple team Coles and dare someone else to beat them.
In the meantime, NSU hasn't been able to adjust and
make foes pay for that kind of strategy.
But if Norfolk is able to consistently assert itself
Tourney Notes
Photo by Max Dunhill
Sheldon Owens of Shaw University Is one of
the league's top all-purpose players.
This year's CIAA basketball festival promises to pro
duce more than a thrill a minute for die-hard conference
fanatics. The parity of the league makes picking a sure-fire
winner a difficult task at best.
The action for the men takes place at the Richmond
Coliseum in Richmond, Va., Feb. 20 - Feb. 23 with the win
ner getting an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II play
- offs. ??
It's reasonable to predict that Virginia Union, Norfolk
State, Shaw University and Johnson C. Smith will be the
teams that will comprise the final four. Who will win it? The
edge goes to Union. Picking a darkhorse is even more
arduous. There are several teams very capable of stealing
the show ? Hampton University, St. Augustine's or Fayet
teville State all have the tools to pull it off.
This year's event has been sold out since last July.
Because of the overflow demand; the league has set up a
big screen TV party at the Richmond Center (across the
street from the tournament site), which will show the action
on closed circuit television on Feb. 22 and 23 ? the night
of the semi-finals and championship finals.
Black Entertainment Television will air the the champi
onship game live on Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. There's no need to
call the CIAA office for tickets, they haven't had any for
quite a few months.
Bui while conference observers have become
accustomed to seeing the Northern Division walk off
with the CI A A prize, there are rumblings coming
from the Southern Division.
This lime it's no smokescreen.
Johnson C. Smith, Shaw University, and St.
Augustine's are legitimate contenders. All three
teams have a better than average chance of claiming
the tournament championship. And if Fayetteville
Stale can return to the winning form it had in January
before injuries set in, the Broncos will stampede a few
folks and become the Cinderella of this year's confer-^
cnce party.
Now let's get down to basics concerning the
tournament field.
norses around tne basket. Johnson is tops m field goal
accuracy (717 percent) as welt as a tmoriaag-sha
blocker. Jones scores 15 ppg and hits 53.6 percent of
his shots.
Hampton ? This group isn't as free-wheeling
at the offensive end as Union. But what they do best is
defend and rebound.
As a superior shot blocker, Marvin Childs
smacks most shots that come his way into the rafters.
Childs, Hi rpg, is a major reason why the Pirates
limit teams to 68.6 ppg and why they outrebound
opponents by a +8. .
Offensively, point man Kenny Brown is the
headliner at 16.6 ppg. Brown also makes 5.9 assists a
night, hits 2.4 threes a game and shoots 84.2 percent,
from the foul line. Keith Hunter (52.4 percent shoot
ing from the floor) is another dependable scoring
in the paint, they are as dangerous as anyone. Cola
grabs the lion's share of rebounds, but Clint Wright
(8.6 rpg) is also highly skilled in that phase of the
game. ?'
Virginia State ? The Trojans will come in and
play with a lot of grit. But they have to be hurting
from the loss of top scorer Torraine Sears, whose sea
son ended last month because of eye surgery. Everett
Watkins has carried on in Sears' absence. Watkins
(14.9 ppg, .545 FG percentage) surpassed the 1,000
points in a career milestone vs. Elizabeth City State in
late January.
St. Paul's ? Good fortune hasn't been a con
stant companion in the Tigers camp. But they've had
some good moments, one of those being an 82-81 vic
tory over Johnson C. Smith. Tim King's jumper with
one second left to play put the Golden Bulls away.