WASHINGTON (AP) Freshman Preston Edmead scored a season-high 26 points and Hofstra is returning to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 25 years after defeating Monmouth 75-69 for the Coastal Athletic Association Tournament championship on Tuesday night.
With his team's season at stake, UNCW basketball point guard Donovan Newby went for reassurance.
Ahead of his two trips to the free-throw line in the final 13 seconds in the CAA championship game on Tuesday night, Newby could be seen talking to himself as he set up for each pair of critical shots.
"I was telling myself, 'You're built for this,'" he said.
Newby coolly drained all four shots, finally pushing back the last chances at an upset by Delaware and sending UNCW back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in eight years. The Seahawks grabbed a 76-72 victory at CareFirst Arena in Washington, D.C., and head back to the Port City, ready to create even more March Madness.
"We could have wilted at any point," coach Takayo Siddle said. "We got through any adversity that was in front of us and got the job done.
"We've experienced two of these where it didn't work out. But we always talk about learning life lessons."
Led by Newby, the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, UNCW returns to the NCAA field for the first time since their back-to-back trips in 2016-17. It will learn its opponent during Sunday's NCAA Selection Show, which begins at 6 p.m.
This was the Seahawks' third CAA final in four seasons under Siddle, and they finally broke through.
"We are a program that is prideful," Siddle said. "We have a championship culture, and we always feel like if we don't win it all, we fail. At least I do. ... To be back up top is very special."
No. 2 seed UNCW had as much as a 15-point lead in the first half, but the 12th-seeded Blue Hens ― playing their fifth game in five days ― refused to give in and took a four-point lead with 13:23 to play.
The Seahawks (27-7) were led in scoring by Newby with 17 points as four Seahawks finished in double figures. Newby finished the tournament 18-for-18 from the free-throw line over three games.
Noah Ross had 14 points, Bo Montgomery had 13 and Khamari McGriff had 10. Newby had six of the final seven points for UNCW in the final 35 seconds. Newby was joined on the all-tournament team by Ross and McGriff.
Reigning CAA Freshman of the Year Izaiah Pasha was excellent for Delaware, finishing with 21 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Delaware (16-20) was attempting to become only the third team to win five games in a conference tournament, and the highest seed to ever win a conference tournament.
UNCW outscored Delaware 32-0 on bench points, as the Hens played only their starters for nearly all of the final 30 minutes of the game.
For the postgame press conference, Siddle was joined by McGriff, the program's only four-year player, as well as Ross, Newby and Nolan Hodge, who've all been here three years. One reporter noted that three of them weren't even starters.
"Our depth is a big weapon for us," Ross said. "Anyone can deliver for us. That's everyone's mindset going into the game."
WASHINGTON, D.C. (AP) – The College of Charleston (CofC) Men’s Basketball team is heading to the Big Dance.
CofC’s Ryan Larson scored 23 points and his effort at both of ends of the floor late helped send Charleston past upset-minded UNC Wilmington 63-58 on Tuesday night in the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament championship and clinch an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
It’s Charleston’s first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2018 and sixth overall.
Larson, a 6-foot-1 senior, scored 15 points after halftime, making 4 of 7 from 3-point range after missing his first two 3s before the break. He came up with all four of his steals after halftime, too.
Larson had pair of steals — one of which led to a breakaway layup — and banked in a 3-pointer with the Cougars (31-3) in the midst of a late 12-0 run they used to secure the win.
“I’m just so proud of this team,” said Larson, who transferred from Wofford where he played from 2018-22. “Everyone doubted us all year and we kept proving them wrong; kept winning games. Total team effort today.”
Ante Brzovic scored 16 points for Charleston which currently has the highest win total in Division I-play this season.
UNC Wilmington led 27-24 at intermission before Charleston outscored the Seawolves 18-7 over the first 5:53 of the second half for a 42-34 lead. The Seawolves countered with 15-0 run with Trazarien White scoring eight and Amari Kelly six and UNCW led 49-42 with 9:52 left. Charleston took the lead for good on Larson’s breakaway layup off the steal for a 55-53 lead with 3:33 left and the Seawolves went into an almost four-minute scoring drought.
The Cougars entered the tournament as the second seed against fourth-seed UNCW (24-10), which was coming off an overtime win the night before against top-seeded Hofstra.
Kelly and White each scored 16 points for the Seawolves.
WASHINGTON -- — Jyare Davis scored 18 points, Andrew Carr had 17 points and 12 rebounds for his second career double-double and fifth-seeded Delaware beat No. 2 seed UNC Wilmington 59-55 on Tuesday night to claim the Colonial Athletic Association tournament championship.
Delaware (22-12) won its sixth conference tournament title, along with the teams from 1992 (NAC), 1993 (NAC), 1998 (America East), 1999 (America East) and 2014 (CAA). The Hens will be looking for their first NCAA Tournament victory in six tries.
Delaware took its first lead, 44-43, since 19-7 on a Kevin Anderson layup with 8:44 remaining in the second half.
Davis, the CAA rookie of the year and tournament MVP, made a shot in the lane with 1:01 left to give Delaware a 56-55 lead. UNCW had two shots at the other end, but neither fell and Carr collected the rebound before getting fouled. Carr went 1 of 2 at the free throw line, but Ebby Asamoah grabbed the offensive rebound and made two free throws for a four-point lead. Jaylen Sims was short on a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Jameer Nelson Jr. and Ryan Allen each added 10 points for Delaware, which shot 39.3% including 2 of 13 from distance. Davis was 8 of 15 from the field.
Sims scored 18 points on 4-of-15 shooting for UNC Wilmington (23-9), which swept the regular-season series with Delaware. Mike Okauru added 10 points.
Sims, UNCW's leading scorer, only played 10 minutes in the first half due to two fouls but the Seahawks still led 34-30. Sims opened the second-half scoring with a 3-pointer, and he scored six straight UNCW points, the last coming on a jumper for a 55-53 lead with 2:30 left.
Delaware was just the second No. 5 seed to advance to the CAA tournament final in the league's 40 years. Fifth-seeded William & Mary advanced to the 2008 final before falling to third-seeded George Mason, 68-59.
HARRISONBURG, Va. -- — Mate Okros scored 14 points with four 3-pointers and sixth-seeded Drexel is headed to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 25 years after defeating eighth-seeded Elon 63-56 in the championship game of the Colonial Athletic Association tournament on Tuesday night.
The Dragons, whose last NCAA appearance came in 1996 as a member of the America East Conference, were 10 of 17 from 3-point range and went 29 of 51 in their three wins.
Xavier Bell added 11 points, and was one of three players with two 3s for Drexel (12-7), which played four games at James Madison's Atlantic Union Bank Center this season and only two at home due to COVID issues.
Hunter McIntosh scored 19 points for Elon (10-9), which had its seven-game winning streak end in a bid to be the first team to win four straight in the CAA tourney. Ikenna Ndugba added 16 points for the Phoenix, who have never been to the Division I Big Dance.
Elon beat top-seeded James Madison by one in the quarterfinals and defending champion Hofstra by 18 in the semifinals.
Elon was within 57-53 following a McIntosh 3 with 1:02 to play but the Dragons went 6 for 6 from the foul line, making them 16 for 16 in the final minute of its last two games.
Drexel is now 8-7 against Elon but they didn't play this season because of COVID issues.
Drexel took a 32-27 halftime lead, making 6 of 11 from 3-point range to 1 of 8 for the Phoenix. Okros hit 3 of 4 from distance and Zach Walton hit one from the left corner in the closing seconds for the Dragons.
Neither team shot a free throw in the first half but Drexel was 11 of 14 in the second when Elon was 2 of 3.
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