Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
ETSU punches ticket to NCAA Tournament
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — T.J. Cromer (left) scored 23 points, and East Tennessee State beat top-seeded UNC-Greensboro 79-74 to win the Southern Conference Tournament championship Monday night.
The Buccaneers ( 27- 7), who are coached by Steven Forbes, a 1988 graduate of Southern Arkansas University, rallied in the second half to secure their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2010.
Francis Alonso made five three-pointers and scored 28 points for UNC- Greensboro ( 25- 9), which beat East Tennessee State twice during the regular season and led by seven at halftime.
CHARLESTON, S.C. — C.J. Bryce scored 24 points and UNC-Wilmington clinched its second consecutive NCAA Tournament berth with a 78-69 victory over College of Charleston in the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament final Monday night.
The Seahawks ( 29- 5) grabbed control with an 18-5 run in the second half. Bryce sparked the decisive surge with a three-pointer and finished it off with another long-range basket, making it 65-50 with 8:25 remaining.
College of Charleston closed to 76-69 on Evan Bailey’s three-pointer with 17 seconds left, but it ran out of time for a comeback.
The Cougars ( 25- 9) dropped to 0-6 in conference tournament finals since it last went to the NCAAs by winning the Southern Conference title in 1999.
Seahawks fans rushed the court to join the celebration when the buzzer sounded. .
“We’re not done yet,” Bryce told the crowd.
Davontae Cacok had 15 points and 14 rebounds for the Seahawks, who extended their single-season record with their 29th victory. It was Cacok’s 12th game this season with at least 10 points and 10 rebounds.
UNC-Wilmington is 1-5 in its five previous NCAA tournaments, winning its first-round game in 2002 against No. 4 seed Southern California before falling in the next game to Indiana.
The Seahawks lost 93-85 to fourth-seeded Duke a year ago. Bryce had 16 in that game.
Denzel Ingram had 11 points for UNC-Wilmington (29-5), which has won three CAA regular-season titles in a row.
Joe Chealey had 21 points for the Cougars, and Jarrell Brantley finished with 20.
SOUTHERN ETSU stamps ticket
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — T.J. Cromer scored 23 points, and East Tennessee State beat top- seeded UNC- Greensboro 79-74 to win the Southern Conference Tournament championship Monday night.
The Buccaneers ( 27-7), who are coached by Steven Forbes, a 1988 graduate of Southern Arkansas University, rallied in the second half to secure their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2010.
Francis Alonso made five three-pointers and scored 28 points for UNC-Greensboro (25-9), which beat East Tennessee State twice during the regular season and led by seven at halftime.
But the Spartans were unable to stop the Buccaneers down the stretch. East Tennessee State shot 59 percent from the field in the second half. A.J. Merriweather had 11 of his 13 points after halftime, including seven consecutive during a crucial 17-4 run in the half.
Tevin Glass finished with 12 points and nine rebounds, helping the Buccaneers to their first Southern Conference title since 2004.
UNC-Greensboro had a chance to tie the game in the final frantic seconds after a steal in the backcourt. But Alonso missed a wide-open three-pointer from the left wing before Merriweather knocked down two clinching free throws.
Cromer, who had 41 points in East Tennessee State’s semifinal victory over Samford, was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.