North Carolina Central held off Norfolk State 69-67 Saturday in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference men’s basketball opener in Durham.
Devon Ellis scored 18 points and Elijah Jamison 15 for NSU (6-11). Ellis had eight rebounds, four assists and two blocks.
Khouri Carvey had 24 points and 11 rebounds for Central (5-11).
NSU trailed by single digits for about the game’s last 30 minutes. Tekao Carpenter’s 3-pointer gave NCCU a 68-64 lead with 50 seconds left, but the Spartans’ Elijah Jamison sank a 3 to make it 68-67 with 30 seconds left.
Central’s Dionte Johnson went 1 of 2 free throws with 13 seconds to go. NSU called timeout but was harassed throughout its final possession, and a missed 3-pointer by Anthony McComb III appeared just after the buzzer anyway.
UNC Wilmington 49, Hampton 45: In a clash of half of the four teams that began Saturday tied for the Coastal Athletic Association lead, the Seahawks (14-2, 3-0) held off the Pirates (8-8, 2-1) before 5,220 at Trask Coliseum despite UNCW’s lowest point total of the season.
UNCW’s Patrick Westler had 19 points, hitting 9 of 11 field-goal tries, 14 rebounds and six blocks.
Etienne Strothers paced Hampton with 12 points, and Xzavier Long had nine points and 15 rebounds. Daniel Johnson added 10 points.
UNCW led 12-2, but a 10-0 Hampton burst got the Pirates even. The Seahawks’ defense stiffened, leaving them ahead 27-18 at halftime.
But Etienne Strothers netted eight points during another 10-0 run that put Hampton ahead 28-27. A 9-0 surge put the Seahawks ahead 44-39, and they played strong defense to maintain the lead.
The other teams unbeaten in CAA play, William & Mary and the College of Charleston, will square off Monday in South Carolina.
Christopher Newport 77, Stockton 57: Tied at 34 at the half, the Captains (13-3) took control against the Ospreys (6-6) in the second half at the Stockton Classic in Galloway, New Jersey.
Junior Toa Hollenbeck, a day after scoring his 1,000th CNU point, scored 25 points and hit all 10 of his free throws for the Captains. Ethan Ward had 12 points without missing a shot, while Isaiah Dozier and Collin Hines added nine points each. All four are from Hampton Roads.
Eriq Campbell had 18 points and eight rebounds for Stockton, which couldn’t recover after yielding 11 consecutive points to fall behind 63-47.
Franklin and Marshall 71, Virginia Wesleyan 69: The Marlins (7-4), ranked 12th by d3hoops.com, fell at TowneBank Arena to the Diplomats (10-1) of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, as Kevin Nowoswiat sank a buzzer-beating shot in the lane after a steal.
VWU lost despite 20 points apiece from Amari Moorer and Omari DeVeaux, who led the Marlins with seven rebounds. F&M hit 29 of 54 field-goal tries to VWU’s 28 of 54.
Steve Donahue had 16 points for the Diplomats, while Nowoswiat had 14 points and nine rebounds. VWU erased a 55-47 deficit to go ahead 69-65 but didn’t score in the final 3:46.
Penn State Altoona 92, Regent 79: The Royals’ losing streak reached nine as they lost in Gateway Christian’s gym to the Lions (6-5). Braelen Cage scored 22 points to lead four Altoona players in double digits.
Five players for Regent (2-11) scored in double figures: Dorian Tema (17), Darrin Clark (16), Chauncey Gilliam (15), Brendan Goods (12) and Antoine Brown (10). Tema had seven rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
VCU 93, Duquesne 80: Terrence Hill Jr. scored 21 points off of the bench in Pittsburgh for the Rams (11-4, 2-0 Atlantic 10), who led for the final 33 1/2 minutes. Lazar Djokovic added 18 points while going 9 of 10 from the free-throw line and also had 11 rebounds. Ahmad Nowell added 14 points for VCU, whose 9-0 run provided a 63-53 edge.
Tarence Guinyard finished with 22 points and five assists for the Dukes (9-6, 1-1). Jimmie Williams added 20 points.
George Mason 61, Rhode Island 50: Stas Sivka came off the bench to provide 17 points and six rebounds and help the Patriots (14-1, 2-0 Atlantic 10) hold off the Rams (9-6, 0-2) in Fairfax. His 3-pointer with 17:10 on the clock put the hosts ahead 34-33, and they remained on top.
Kory Mincy and Fatt Hill added nine points apiece and Nick Ellington had eight for the Patriots, who shot just 43% (19 of 44). But they limited URI to 35% (19 of 54), though the Rams’ Myles Corey scored 12 points.
James Madison 78, Arkansas State 74: Cliff Davis scored 24 points and Justin McBride had 21 points and seven rebounds as the Dukes (8-7, 1-2 Sun Belt) ended a three-game slide by upsetting the Red Wolves (10-5, 2-1) in Jonesboro. Gabe Newhof added 15 points on 7-of-9 shooting.
JMU went ahead to stay, 73-71, on Eli Wilborn’s layup with 1:43 to go. The Dukes shot 53% (27 of 51), including 8 of 17 from 3-point range. Davis was 5 of 7 from beyond the arc.
Matt Hayman had 23 points for A-State, whose three-game winning streak ended. The hosts shot 36% (25 of 70) despite committing eight turnovers to JMU’s 15.
High Point 80, Longwood 67: Terry Anderson’s 29 points, eight rebounds and three steals propelled the host Panthers (14-3, 2-0 Big South) as they ended Longwood’s three-game winning streak and extended their winning streak to six. Owen Aquino scored 15 points and added eight rebounds and four blocks.
Emanuel Richards led the Lancers (9-8, 1-1) with 16 points and six rebounds. The Lancers also got 15 points from Redd Thompson.
VMI 79, Chattanooga 71: Tan Yildizoglu’s 22 points and six assists propelled the Keydets (6-9, 1-1 Southern Conference) in Lexington. TJ Johnson added 17 points, five rebounds and three steals. Billy Smith led the Mocs (6-9, 0-2) with 17 points and three steals.
Navy 65, Holy Cross 58: Austin Benigni’s 23 points and five assists led the Midshipmen (10-5, 2-0 Patriot League) in Worcester, Massachusetts. Aidan Kehoe scored 18 points while shooting 9 of 10 from the field and added nine rebounds and three blocks.
The Crusaders (6-9, 1-1) were led by Tyler Boston, who finished with 16 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Colgate 76, Army 69: Sam Wright, Ben Tweedy and Kyle Carlesimo — son of longtime college and NBA coach and broadcaster P.J. Carlesimo — each had 18 points for the Raiders (8-7, 2-0 Patriot League) as they won in West Point, New York. Ryan Curry led the Black Knights (7-8, 1-1) with 24 points and seven assists.
