WELCOME SELECTION COMMITTEE MEMBERS!!! We are here to make your lives easier!!
It was semifinal night in the Ohio Valley, together with Quarterfinal action in the Big South and Missouri Valley We review those games and all the rest of the action plus preview an exciting slate of Saturday games, including our first automatic bid scheduled to be handed out!
Check out the HOOPS HD SURVIVAL BOARD, which shows who is a lock, who is on the bubble, and who needs the auto-bid
Also, don’t miss our CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT PAGE, which has brackets, times, and viewing information for all 32 conference tourney
Conference tournaments are about basketball but also so much more: the fans, parents, bands, cheerleaders, etc. The CAA Tournament is taking place this weekend in Washington, DC, and we could not be more excited to be there in person! HoopsHD will be covering all the angles so you can look forward to an abundance of articles in the days ahead. Jon Teitel continues our coverage with a recap of the 1st round doubleheader on Friday.
I was not even sure if they would feed us during the 1st round games but it was delicious AND healthy: gourmet chicken Caesar salad with multiple veggies and 2 kinds of dressing! Let’s tip it off:
GAME #1: William & Mary vs. North Carolina A&T North Carolina A&T has a very balanced offense and it showed during the 1st 20 minutes as big men Nikolaos Chitikoudis/Evan Joyner made a ton of layups/scoops while SG Landon Glasper made everything else including a pair of threes. William & Mary SG Gabe Dorsey already set a school record this year with 104 3PM in 1 season and continued his hot shooting with a trio of trifectas in the 1st half to help his team build a 35-30 halftime lead. Aggie FR Jalal McKie tried to keep his team in it by himself as he made multiple jumpers/layups but it is hard to win when you score ZERO bench PTS (due in large part to multiple injured players). Dorsey and his backcourt mate Trey Moss kept knocking down threes all afternoon, combining to make 8 while their opponents only made 3-19. The star of the day was Tribe SO Chase Lowe, as the 6’5” SO converted multiple and-1 opportunities and put up a sensational stat line of 18 PTS/16 REB/6 AST (becoming only the 6th player in the nation this year to reach those numbers!) in addition to 2 BLK/2 STL on defense while playing only 31 minutes as his team cruised to a 79-62 win and a date with Towson on Saturday afternoon.
In the postgame press conference I asked Lowe if that was the best performance of his career. He agreed that it was, “especially with the win on top of that,” as he was able to get his teammates involved while scoring as well.
I told W&M coach Dane Fischer that I could not believe that Lowe did all that while standing just 6’5”. He chuckled and confirmed that Lowe is 1 of the most unique players he has ever coached. He is “a winner who has winning qualities,” just plays to his identity, and is terrific at getting to the foul line.
GAME #2: Hampton-Elon The Hampton crowd won the award for best vocal support of the day. When 6’9” FR Jerry Deng scored a basket (which included a pair of dunks and a corner 3 in the 1st 20 minutes) the fans would start chanting “JERRY, JERRY!”: love it! The Pirates finished dead-last in the conference this year but perhaps they were saving their best for the postseason as they took a 34-24 halftime lead into the locker room. Elon refused to throw in the towel, as JR big man Sam Sherry dominated the paint including a REB/tip-in to give his team a 52-51 lead with 4:16 left. The game went back and forth in the final 4 minutes, and his teammate TK Simpkins drilled a 3 with 25 seconds left to retake the lead 55-54. Hampton huddled up with 7.9 seconds left to draw up the final play and some of their guys were screaming at each other. Pirate SO Kyrese Mullen had missed the previous 4 games with a shoulder injury but finished his triumphant return by banking in a short jumper with 6.3 seconds left to take a 56-55 lead. The Phoenix brought the ball up court and got the ball to FR Isaac Harrell but he missed a 3 at the buzzer, so it is Hampton who will face Delaware on Saturday night.
In the postgame press conference I asked Mullen about both his shoulder and his game-winner. He confirmed that his shoulder was up to par but did not count it as a game-winner because is just put his team up 1. I hoped that Hampton coach Ed Joyner Jr. would share his secret for success in March, as he won 3 MEAC tourneys in a 6-year stretch from 2011-2016. He smiled because it seemed like those tourney wins came a long time ago and said the 2 keys are “understanding and expectations”: you need to have mental toughness because it is win-or-go-home:
That is a wrap for today but check back tomorrow for the 2nd round quadruple-header featuring both the #13 AND #14 seeds.
Posted inNews and Notes|TaggedCAA|Comments Off on All-Access at the CAA Tournament: 1st Round Friday
Conference tournaments are about basketball but also so much more: the fans, parents, bands, cheerleaders, etc. The CAA Tournament tips off this week in Washington, DC, and we could not be more excited to be there in person! HoopsHD will be covering all the angles so you can look forward to an abundance of articles in the week ahead. Jon Teitel continues our coverage with an interview of North Carolina A&T cheerleader Alivia Barrow.
You are from Greensboro, NC: what made you choose NC A&T? There were 2 main factors: engineering program, and my wish to stay close to home.
You are majoring in Chemical Engineering: why did you choose that subject? It is the broadest engineering degree so I can do anything with it. I want to go into sustainability and environmental process engineering.
You are a senior: what is the post-graduation plan? I will be working for Sonoco Products Company in Hartsville, SC. I will be a process engineer doing environmentalism.
Why are issues like sustainability/recycling so important in 2024? It is due to the growing population of our planet: as we get more people, we also get more trash that is not biodegradable. We need to better our community and make sure that we have a planet left for future generations.
You have spent time volunteering at a food pantry and with the Red Cross: how much importance do you place on community service? It is so important, especially in the African-American community. Being able to show your face is important for young people to see: we need to help each other and better our world.
Last summer you received a Blue Cross NC Finish Line Scholarship as a female student athlete who exemplifies leadership/integrity/community: what was your reaction when you learned the good news? I have received small scholarships in the past but when they told me I would be getting $25,000 it did not seem real!
You are a co-captain of the cheer team: what is the key to being a good leader? Communication is key. Empathy is also important: you need to hear people out so you can understand the situation.
Last year at the National Cheerleading Association College Nationals your team finished .0925 of a point shy of 1st place: what will it take to win a ring next month? Dedication to the desire to redeem ourselves: we know it is coming our way this year.
Your basketball team is 7-24 this year: does it make your job harder when the team is not winning more games? It does…but also makes it fun for me to motivate everyone by getting louder and doing whatever I can to support the team.
Any predictions for your CAA tourney game vs. William & Mary today? I hope we win: both teams are good…but A&T all the way!
Conference tournaments are about basketball but also so much more: the fans, parents, bands, cheerleaders, etc. The CAA Tournament tips off this week in Washington, DC, and we could not be more excited to be there in person! HoopsHD will be covering all the angles so you can look forward to an abundance of articles in the week ahead. Jon Teitel continues our coverage with an interview of Charleston cheerleader Peyton Raybon.
You are from Mount Pleasant, SC: what made you choose Charleston? I chose the College of Charleston to stay close to my family. We are all so close so it is a blessing to see them as often as I do!
In 2020 you were tear-gassed by police at a protest: what impact did that experience have on you? Getting tear-gassed in Marion Square gave me feelings very similar to the Emmanuel AME shooting back in 2015: you never think it is going to happen in your hometown until it does. Charleston is just as tainted by hate and it is up to my generation to keep pushing for change.
In 2021 your team was named Intermediate Small Co-Ed D-1 National Champions at the National Cheerleaders Association Collegiate National Championship: where does that rank among the highlights of your career so far? Winning Nationals in 2021 is at the top of my list! It was an absolute honor to contribute to CofC’s first cheer national championship in school history, especially since we worked so incredibly hard to get there.
You are majoring in exercise science: how did you choose that subject? I chose exercise science because I looked up to my athletic trainers in high school. They contributed to wellness and happiness during my high school athletic career, and it caused me to want to do the same in the future.
What is the post-graduation plan? I plan to take a gap year before applying for my Master’s in athletic training!
You made the school’s honors list last semester: how do you balance your work in the classroom with your work on the cheer team? I basically try to plan out every hour of my day to make sure that I am always using my time wisely! My teammates also do a fantastic job of holding me accountable and always helping me out whenever I need it.
1 of your hobbies is reading: any book recommendations? I am a big fan of romances, especially those that feature LGBTQ+ characters! I recommend anything written by Casey McQuiston or Ali Hazelwood.
Last year you got to experience a legendary 31-win basketball season: did you get to cheer during the CAA title game win over UNCW and/or the NCAA tourney loss to San Diego State? I had the honor of getting to travel to March Madness in Orlando! It was so tough losing to San Diego State but the whole experience was so much fun! That is the biggest crowd that I have ever cheered in front of: it was electric.
What has been the best part of this season: beating Liberty in Florida, the Senior Night win over Hofstra last Saturday, other? My senior night went over Hofstra was 1 of the best parts of this season. It was so fun to watch the basketball team have such a confidence boost with a great win over Hofstra, and I really use that game to outweigh any bittersweet moments. Not a lot compares to cheering in TD Arena! The Cougars are the #1 seed in the CAA tourney: any predictions? I predict that we are going to be back-to-back CAA Tournament Champions!
Posted inNews and Notes|TaggedCharleston, Peyton Raybon|Comments Off on All-Access at the CAA Tournament: HoopsHD interviews Charleston cheerleader Peyton Raybon
-Washington State pulled off one of the single most impressive wins that any team has managed all season when they won at Arizona. Since then, they’ve been anything but impressive. They lost, at home, to a Washington team 74-68 who will only be going to the NCAA Tournament if they buy tickets. Wazzu has had a great year overall, and they will be playing in March, but their seed is taking a bit of a hit. This was also the last time these two will play as conference rivals for the foreseeable future.
-Colorado picked up a nice, and much needed, win on the road against Oregon to help keep them on the right side of the bubble. The Buffs still have some work to do to lock themselves in, but this game helps a ton.
-Utah fell on the road to Oregon State 92-85. I wasn’t all that big on the Utes before this loss, and am even less big on them now.
MAC: -One of Ball State, Kent State or Western Michigan will be eliminated. Ball State is definitely out with a loss at Bowling Green or with wins by both Kent State (at Toledo) and Western Michigan (vs Akron). If Ball State wins and one or both of Kent State and Western Michigan lose, the tiebreakers get very complex but one of the three will be out.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-VCU AT DAYTON (Atlantic 10). Dayton is a virtual lock and is now just playing for seeding. Any loss to a team that’s outside the bubble will knock them down the seedlist, so they’re going to want to hold serve in this one.
-BOISE STATE AT SAN DIEGO STATE (Mountain West). Both teams are virtual locks and both should land in the top half of the bracket. Boise State could really boost their seed if they’re able to pull this one off on the road. It would be their best win of the year so far.
WELCOME SELECTION COMMITTEE MEMBERS!!! We are here to make your lives easier!!
It was semifinal night in the ASUN, together with Quarterfinal action in the Horizon, Patriot League and OVC. We review those games and all the rest of the action plus preview an exciting slate of Friday games!
Check out the HOOPS HD SURVIVAL BOARD, which shows who is a lock, who is on the bubble, and who needs the auto-bid
Also, don’t miss our CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT PAGE, which has brackets, times, and viewing information for all 32 conference tourney
