Met with skepticism, CBI reaches culmination with championship
OKLAHOMA CITY -- College basketball's third postseason tournament is here to stay.
Rick Giles, the president of the College Basketball Invitational, said Thursday that the alternative to the National Invitation Tournament considers its first year a success and plans a similar event next year.
In the shadows of the Final Four and the NIT, the CBI will crown its champion Friday night when Tulsa (24-14) hosts Bradley (21-16) in Game 3 of the championship series.
Initially met with skepticism as a tournament to crown the 98th-best team in the country, the CBI has gained momentum at least in the cities where the games have been played. Tulsa drew its second-largest crowd of the season in Game 1 of the championship series, and Bradley had 9,014 fans -- about 600 shy of its season average -- on hand for Game 2.
More than 6,300 tickets had been sold for the decisive third game at Tulsa's 8,355-seat Reynolds Center.
Giles called the 16-team tournament a "terrific" success, in part because of competitive games and strong crowds that organizers couldn't have predicted.
For Tulsa and Bradley, it's been a chance to gain momentum after seasons that would have otherwise just been so-so.
"I think as that word gets out to others, I think both coaching-wise and administratively, that's going to have a big benefit for us," Giles said.
The tournament got off to a rocky start. The 16-team bracket didn't get finalized until after midnight on Selection Sunday, less than 48 hours before the first games were to be played.
Giles said one factor was a cease-and-desist letter that the NIT sent to the CBI a day earlier.
"That really got us all screwed up. They were telling teams, 'Don't play in this event. Don't talk to these guys," said Giles, the founder of The Gazelle Group, which operates the tournament.
The NCAA, which runs the NIT, referred questions to tournament director Christine Fallon. She did not return messages left by The Associated Press by phone and e-mail Thursday.
Giles said there are lessons to be learned from the inaugural event. He plans to contact the participants to ask what worked and what didn't, in hopes of improving next year's event. One expected change is that only two first-round games will be played on the Tuesday following Selection Sunday, instead of four. That will give two more teams additional time to prepare to play and also sell tickets.
Giles is happy with the format, which involves playing games on campus sites on days when there are no NCAA tournament games -- similar to the 32-team NIT, but with a best-of-three championship series.
"We're not trying to replace or displace the NIT. We're not trying to run them out of business," Giles said.
Tulsa athletic director Bubba Cunningham admitted having a little apprehension about signing up for the first-year tournament, but the fact that he'd dealt with The Gazelle Group for preseason tournaments -- including this year's College Basketball Experience Classic -- allayed any fears.
"I think it's been a great experience for us. We were hopeful going into the season to go postseason and we thought we had really good momentum toward the end of the season," Cunningham said.
"We were really trying to get into something postseason, and I think that this tournament has really kind of filled the void that the NIT contraction and automatic qualification has created."
After the NIT cut down from 40 to 32 teams and gave out eight automatic bids to regular-season conference champions that didn't win their league tournament, there were 16 teams that didn't have their usual chance to get into the postseason.
"For our program right now, it's perfect," Cunningham said.
When deciding whether to pursue the CBI, Bradley athletic director Ken Kavanagh said he took into consideration the desire of the team's best players, including seniors Jeremy Crouch and Daniel Ruffin, to continue their careers.
Kavanagh called the CBI a positive experience and pointed out that less than one-third of Division I basketball programs play in the postseason.
"The more opportunities there are out there, I think it's good for college basketball," Kavanagh said.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Augusta St. heads for D-II title game after 56-50 victory over Alaska Anch.
SPRINGFIELD, MASS. -- A.J. Bowman scored 18 points and Garret Siler added 17 as Augusta State defeated Alaska Anchorage 56-50 Thursday night to advance to the NCAA Division II men's basketball championship game for the first time.
The Jaguars held Alaska Anchorage to 11 points in the first half, tying a 45-year-old tournament record for the lowest score in a half. Oglethorpe scored 11 in the first half against Philadelphia University in 1963.
Augusta State (27-6) had to withstand a furious second-half 3-point flurry, but moved on to Saturday's title game against Winona State, an 86-75 winner over Bentley in the second semifinal.
the winner of Thursday's late game between Bentley and Winona State.
Carl Arts scored 19 points for Alaska Anchorage (29-6), which shot 19.2 percent in the first half, going 5-for-26 and missing 11-for-12 3-pointers to fall into a 28-11 deficit.
The Seawolves, who lost three games this season to Division I teams, took 19 of their 28 second-half shots from 3-point range, hitting nine. They outscored Augusta State 24-11 to open the second half, and trailed 38-35 with 10 minutes to play.
Baskets by Siler, the 6-foot-11 center, and guard Daniel Dixon made it 42-35, and Alaska Anchorage came as close as three only once more, trailing 44-41 before Bowman and Siler rebuilt the Jaguars' lead.
Bowman had nine rebounds, and Siler had seven for the Jaguars.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
No. 21 Washington State prepares for Winthrop
PULLMAN, Wash. -- The group that revived Washington State's moribund basketball program will get one last ride in the NCAA tournament and set yet another milestone.
Seniors Kyle Weaver, Derrick Low and Robbie Cowgill will lead the No. 21 Cougars against Winthrop of Rock Hill, S.C., on Thursday. This class, which has broken a pack of futility records in its four years, is now the first to lead the Cougars to two consecutive NCAA appearances.
"We're just really excited and thankful to make it to the NCAA tournament again," said Low, who could be speaking for all of Cougar Nation.
How starved are Washington State fans for postseason play? Winthrop, their unheralded mid-major opponent, is making its eighth NCAA appearance in the past 10 years. Washington State will be making just the sixth trip in its history.
Washington State (24-8) received a surprisingly high No. 4 seed and a relatively short trip to Denver to play Winthrop (22-11), winner of the Big South tournament.
"I think it was just pretty special for me and the guys to be there no matter what seed we got," Weaver said.
"I like Denver," he added.
The Cougars were rewarded for finishing third in the Pac-10, which sent six teams to the NCAAs, and for posting road wins against postseason participants Baylor, Gonzaga and Boise State. They also beat Mississippi Valley State and Portland State, which both made the tournament.
Washington State's previous trips to the NCAA tournament were in 1941, 1980, 1983 and 1994. The team suffered a decade of losing records before surprising the basketball world last year by winning 26 games and advancing to the second round of the tournament.
This year they went 12-0 in nonconference play and 11-7 through the rugged Pac-10. They beat Oregon and lost to Stanford in the league tournament.
Coach Tony Bennett has taken the Cougs to the NCAAs in both his seasons at the helm.
The Cougars have lost three of their past six games, and center Aron Baynes is struggling with only 15 points in the past three games.
"Aron is a very important part of this team," Bennett said. "We have to keep finding ways to get him ready."
Winthrop, the 13th seed, is a dangerous opponent. Last year the Eagles upset Notre Dame in the first round in the Spokane Arena.
Winthrop returns two starters from last year's team, including leading scorer Michael Jenkins, who averages 14.3 points.
Winthrop and WSU both played at Baylor, with the Eagles losing 62-54 and the Cougars winning 67-64.
"All I know is they played in the tournament last year, so they'll have experience," Bennett said. "They've been an excellent mid-major program over the last number of years. They are a very high-quality mid-major program."
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Miami of Ohio moves into MAC semifinals by beating Ohio 74-61
CLEVELAND -- Michael Bramos scored 23 points and Miami of Ohio, playing while coach Charlie Coles remains hospitalized following a heart procedure, advanced to the semifinals with a 74-61 win over Ohio in the Mid-American Conference tournament on Thursday night.
The defending champion RedHawks moved on despite an off-night from senior forward Tim Pollitz, their leading scorer averaging 16 points. Pollitz scored a season-low 4 points, missing all six shots -- some from point-blank range -- in the second half.
But with Miami leading by just 63-59, Pollitz's twin brother, Eric, came up big. He dropped a floater in the lane and then made a free throw to give Miami a 66-59 lead with 1:20 remaining. Kenny Hayes made four free throws and Bramos added two more as Miami closed with an 11-2 run.
Miami, the No. 5 seed, will play top-seeded Kent State in Friday's second semifinal. The Golden Flashes advanced by blowing out Toledo 77-57.
In the first semifinal, Akron will face Western Michigan.
Coles, Miami's gregarious 66-year-old coach, underwent an unspecified procedure on his heart earlier this week. He had bypass surgery in 1986 and went into cardiac arrest at the MAC tournament in 1998.
Jerome Tillman scored 17 points and senior Leon Williams had 15 for the Bobcats, who shot just 29 percent (9-of-31) in the second half.
Tyler Dierkers scored 11 points with a career-high 13 rebounds for Miami.
The longtime southern Ohio rivals were meeting for the fourth straight year in the tournament and sixth time in eight years.
Freshman Nick Winbush, who started just once all season, came off the bench and scored 10 points -- matching his career-high -- in the first half as Miami opened a 39-35 lead at the break.
The RedHawks fell behind by nine points in the first three minutes before getting three straight 3-pointers and scoring 13 consecutive points to take their first lead.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Horton's 18 points helps Southern Miss down No. 3 seed UCF 68-62
MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- R.L. Horton scored 18 points, including 5-of-8 free throws down the stretch, to lead Southern Mississippi to a 68-62 victory over UCF in the quarterfinals of the Conference USA tournament Thursday night.
Horton's free throws offset a second-half performance by Jermaine Taylor of UCF, who had 20 of his 25 points, including five 3-pointers, in the second half.
The Golden Eagles (19-13) will play the tournament's top seed in No. 2 Memphis, which defeated Tulane 75-56 earlier Thursday evening. It marks the first time Southern Mississippi has reached a conference semifinal since 1998.
The victory capped a day when three of the four higher seeds eliminated the top seeds -- No. 2 UAB, No. 3 Houston and finally No. 4 UCF. Only Memphis, playing on its own court, survived the day of upsets.
It was the third straight loss for UCF ( 16-15 ).
Sai'Quon Stone finished with 14 points and eight rebounds for the Golden Eagles, while Jeremy Wise and Craig Craft contributed 11 points apiece.
Dave Noel finished with 20 points for the Knights.
Southern Mississippi maintained a 5- to 9-point lead through much of the second half, and the Golden Eagles were up 56-47 with 5:11 left matching their biggest lead of the game.
But Taylor did everything he could to keep UCF within striking distance, hitting a trio of consecutive 3-pointers. However, the Knights were never able to get closer than four points the rest of the way.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Weddle's 39 lead Tenn-Martin past Samford 101-94
MARTIN, Tenn. -- Marquis Weddle scored 39 points and Tennessee-Martin made six straight free throws in the last 18 seconds of the third overtime in a 101-94 win over Samford in the first round of the Ohio Valley Conference tourney Tuesday.
With Martin leading 95-94, Weddle made two free throws and Lester Hudson four as the Skyhawks (17-15, 12-9 OVC) finally put the game away.
Joe Ross Merritt kept Samford (14-16, 10-11) in the game with 29 points and late baskets that forced the first and third overtimes.
Tennessee-Martin, the No. 4 seed in the tourney, has now won seven of its last eight. The Skyhawks will make their first appearance in the OVC semifinals Friday in Nashville.
Hudson added 28 points for Tennessee-Martin and Djero Reidewald and Gerald Robinson had 14 each.
Samford, the No. 5 seed, got 20 points from Josh Davis and 18 from Travis Peterson.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Mitchell helps Missouri St. close Hammons Center with impressive win over Drake
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- The emotion rippled through the arena from the start. The fans saluted the seniors before the game and roared with each made basket once it started.
Once it was over, after Deven Mitchell intercepted Drake's last gasp, the fans spilled out onto the Bear emblem at center court, jumping in unison with the players as they celebrated one of the most emotional nights in Missouri State history.
Mitchell scored 20 points and Missouri State closed the John Q. Hammons Student Center with the perfect ending, holding off No. 20 Drake 86-83 on Tuesday night.
"If you looked up the definition tonight of happy in the dictionary, you're probably see a picture of me right now," Missouri State coach Barry Hinson said after choking back tears. "I'm really happy for those five seniors and I'm extremely happy for our fans for 32 years of commitment to this center and their loyalty to this program."
Revved up by a boisterous crowd in the 494th and final game at Hammons -- the $67 million JQH Arena is going up next door -- Missouri State (15-15, 7-10 Missouri Valley) broke out to big leads early in each half, then withstood a barrage of 3-pointers by Drake to beat the Bulldogs for the seventh straight time at home.
Dale Lamberth scored all of his 16 points in the second half and the Bears shot 59 percent, making just enough free throws down the stretch to hold off the charging Bulldogs.
"We feed off their energy, so they got us going," Mitchell said of the crowd for his final home game. "I can't ask for nothing else but to go out on a win."
Drake (24-4, 13-3) made six 3-pointers in a 4-minute span to cut into a 17-point lead, then trimmed it to 85-83 on Adam Emmenecker's driving layup. Missouri State gave the Bulldogs a chance with poor free-throw shooting, but Mitchell stole the long inbound pass with 2.1 seconds left, giving Drake its third loss in five games after a school-record 21-game winning streak.
Josh Young led Drake with 18 points, and Leonard Houston and Jonathan Cox added 17 each.
"They played a very inspired game on their senior night and they deserve a lot of credit for how well they played," Drake coach Keno Davis said. "They made a few shots early and rode that momentum."
The Bears hounded Drake into difficult shots early on and seemed to make everything they looked at on the other end, using an 11-2 run to go up 25-13 midway through the first half. Missouri State blocked five shots -- three by Drew Richards -- and was 15-of-26 from the field in the first half, working the crowd into a frenzy.
"One shot goes in and everybody plays with confidence," Lamberth said.
After withstanding that initial surge, Drake gradually chipped away at the lead, pulling within 38-36 after a failed long pass by Missouri State turned into a 30-footer by Houston at the buzzer.
But any momentum Drake had stayed in the locker room. The Bulldogs started the second half with more poor shooting -- 4-of-13 -- and let Missouri State pull the crowd back into it with open layups and 3-pointers.
The Bears opened the half with an 8-2 run, then poured it on midway through, using a 16-2 spurt -- capped by Lamberth's runner -- to go up 66-49 with just over 8 minutes left.
"The momentum thing at halftime I usually don't put a lot into," Davis said. "When you lose and think about the other team making that shot, you use that as an excuse, but I don't really put anything into that last-second shot at the half."
Still, there were some tense moments down the stretch.
Drake used full-court pressure and some long 3-pointers to get back into the game a second time, trimming a 17-point lead down to three. Missouri State gave the Bulldogs plenty of extra chances, missing three of four free throws in the final 26 seconds, but Drake missed two 3-pointers and had its final gasp end in Mitchell's hands.
"This was a top-10 prayer night," said Hinson, who couldn't watch Lamberth's final two misses. "Boy, if I'd have had rosary beads, I'd have had them out. I was really happy Deven got that interception."
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
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