Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Northern Kentucky wins Horizon
DETROIT — Dantez Walton had 15 points and 14 rebounds, leading second-seeded Northern Kentucky to a 77-66 victory Tuesday night over top-seeded Wright State in the Horizon League Tournament final and into the NCAA Tournament for the second time in three years.
The Norse (26-8) had control of the entire game with four starters and a reserve scoring in double figures. Jalen Tate scored 17 points, Zaynah Robinson had 15 points off the bench, Horizon League player of the year and tournament MVP Drew McDonald had 13 points, eight rebounds and five assists, and Tyler Sharpe added 11 points.
The Raiders (21-13) struggled to score, making it difficult to come back in a game they trailed for nearly 39 minutes.
All-Horizon League player Loudon Love was 2 of 13 and scored nine points, reserve Bill Wampler had 16 points and Mark Hughes and Cole Gentry each scored 15 points for Wright State, which shot 37.5 percent.
The Raiders scored first and didn’t lead again in a matchup of teams that shared the regular-season title after each team won by four points on its home court.
Early on, it didn’t look like the series-breaker was going to be closely contested.
The Norse led by 18 points with 5:02 left in the first half, and Gentry made a three-pointer from about 30 feet to cut the Raiders’ deficit to 44-34 at halftime. Northern Kentucky went on an 11-3 run midway through the second half to lead by 19 points.
NORTHEASTERN 82, HOFSTRA 74
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. — Vasa Pusica had 21 points, all on three-pointers, and Northeastern regrouped after blowing a double-digit lead to defeat top-seeded Hofstra and win the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament.
The second-seeded Huskies (23-10) won the league’s automatic NCAA Tournament berth for the second time in five seasons — and perhaps exorcised a bad memory from last year’s finals.
Then, Northeastern held a 17-point second half lead over College of Charleston in the finals, but wound up losing in overtime. It appeared the same thing might happen this year, too. Hofstra used a 28-12 run over the first 10 minutes after halftime to erase a 16-point deficit and tie the game 54-54.
That’s when the senior Pusica took charge. His fourth three-pointer put the Huskies back in front. Pusica added another long-range basket three minutes later for a 66-58 lead. By the time he made his sixth three-pointer, Northeastern led 71-60.
The Pride (26-8) could not recover despite 29 points from the nation’s second-leading scorer, Justin Wright-Foreman.
Northeastern is headed to its ninth NCAA Tournament while Hofstra, as the CAA regular-season champions, has a guaranteed spot in the NIT. The Pride were seeking their first NCAA berth since 2001 when Villanova Coach Jay Wright was leading Hofstra’s program.
FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON 85, ST. FRANCIS (PA.) 76
LORETTO, Pennsylvania — Darnell Edge scored 21 points, Kaleb Bishop and Jahlil Jenkins added 20 points apiece, and Fairleigh Dickinson earned its second trip to the NCAA Tournament in four years with a victory over St. Francis (Pa.) in the Northeastern Conference Tournament championship.
The second-seeded Knights (2013) shot 64 percent (30 of 47) from the field and beat the top-seeded Red Flash (18-14) on the road for the second time this season. All five starters for the Knights scored in double figures. Elyjah Williams and Mike Holloway Jr. scored 12 points each for Fairleigh Dickinson, which used a 17-8 run to close the first half to take control and never let St. Francis get closer than three in the second half.
Jamaal King led St. Francis with 21 points and eight assists. Isaiah Blackmon
finished with 13 points, but the Red Flash made just 4 of 17 free throws while Fairleigh Dickinson converted 18 of 20 at the line.