Norfolk State Men's Basketball
MEAC Tournament Quarterfinal Round
Wednesday, March 11; 8 p.m.
NSU vs. South Carolina State, Scope Arena
TV: ESPN3 | WatchESPN
Radio: Star 1310 AM, Live Audio | Hot 91.1 FM, Live Audio
Live Stats | Game Notes

NORFOLK, Va. - The No. 2 seed Norfolk State men's basketball team will begin its quest for a MEAC title on Wednesday night when the Spartans play No. 7 seed South Carolina State at 8 p.m. in the quarterfinal round of the MEAC tournament at Scope Arena in downtown Norfolk.

It will mark the seventh time in the past eight years the Spartans will enter the tournament as a No. 4 seed or better.

Media Coverage
The game will be shown live on ESPN3 with Charlie Neal and Jon Laaser on the call. Fans can also follow the game live through WatchESPN.

The contest against the Bulldogs will also be broadcast live on Star 1310 AM and Hot 91.1 FM with Ross Gordon and Terrell Ducre' on the call. Live audio is available through the Star 1310 website as well as through the Hot 91.1 website. Both feeds are available on smartphones through the Star 1310 website or through www.TuneIn.com or the TuneIn Radio App (search for "WNSB") for Hot 91.1.

Fans can also follow along with the live stats here.

Series History
NSU's regular season victory this year at South Carolina State tied up the all-time series record at 17-17. The Bulldogs are the only MEAC school NSU does not have a winning record against. The Spartans have won five of the past seven meetings. The teams have also split their two all-time meetings in the tournament. The Bulldogs won in the 2005 quarterfinal round, while the Spartans returned the favor against No. 2 seed S.C. State in the 2009 semifinals.

About South Carolina State
The Bulldogs defeated No. 10 seed North Carolina A&T by a 63-54 score on Tuesday night in the tournament first round. S.C. State lost six of its last seven regular season games to drop to 7-9 in conference play and 11-21 overall following the victory over the Aggies. S.C. State scores a little less than 60 points per game thanks to shooting clips of 38 percent overall, 30 percent from 3-point range and 60 percent from the foul line. The Bulldogs are led by MEAC All-Rookie team member Edward Stephens, the only double figure scorer at 11.9 points per game. Greg Mortimer chips in with 9.1 points, while Darryl Palmer adds 7.7 points and 6.9 rebounds. S.C. State does commit less than 13 turnovers per contest, although opponents do shoot better than 44 percent overall.

Last Time Out
Thanks to a big run late in the first half that completely turned the game 180 degrees, the Norfolk State men's basketball team was able to come away with an 80-69 win over rival Hampton last Thursday in the second Battle of the Bay contest this season. The Spartans closed the first half on a 24-6 run at the HU Convocation Center after Hampton led 23-12 to start the game. The Pirates only had one field goal over the last 10 and a half minutes before the half. Jeff Short tallied 17 first-half points and finished with 26 points on the night on 9-of-14 shooting. RaShid Gaston added 22 points on 9-of-15 shooting with 12 rebounds. The victory gave the Spartans the season sweep of their rivals.

Player Tidbits
Jeff Short
 • Named first-team All-MEAC
 • Averaging 21.7 points on 21-of-41 field goals in the last three games
 • Averaging 2.9 assists last 11 games and 4.8 rebounds in last 10 games
 • Shooting 42-of-47 from the free throw line the last six games, including career-high 12-of-14 at Morgan State
 • 14th 20-point game of season with 26 at Hampton
 • Tallied at least 15 points in 23 of last 26 games; Scored 13 in two games and 14 in the other
 • Has scored in double figures in 26 straight and all but one game this year
 • Shooting 133-of-230 (57.8 percent) from 2-point range
 • Has sank a 3-pointer in all but four games this year
 • Ranks 2nd in the MEAC in scoring (19.3), 3rd in free throw percentage (83.7), 4th in minutes (34.1), 7th in 3-point field goal percentage (39.1), 8th in 3-point field goals (2.0) and 8th in field goal percentage (50.1)
 • Stands 23rd in the nation in scoring (19.3); Also ranks in total points (17, 599), total field goals (35, 196), free throw percentage (62, 83.7), field goal percentage (71, 50.1), minutes (159, 34:03) and 3-point field goals per game (205, 2.03)
 • Ranks 10th in the nation among guards in shooting percentage; Would rank 45th in 3-point field goal percentage but does not have enough makes on the year
 • Stands 4th in NSU D-I single season records in points scored (599); Also stands 1st in free throw percentage (.837), 2nd in free throws (144), 5th in scoring average (19.3) and 3-point field goals (63), 6th in free throw attempts (172), 7th in field goals (196), 8th in 3-point field goal attempts (161), 9th in 3-point field goal percentage (.391), 10th in field goal attempts (391) and 15th in field goal percentage (.501)
 • Also ranks 2nd in free throw percentage for overall single season records and 9th in 3-point field goals (See table page 6)
 • Stands 18th in NSU career records with 63 3-point field goals (See table page 7)
 • Averaged 19.3 points, 53.2 percent shooting, 37.3 percent 3-point shooting, 82.7 percent free throw shooting, 4.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists in MEAC games this year

RaShid Gaston
 • Averaging 19.6 points and 10.7 rebounds while shooting 64.9 percent overall and 37-of-57 (64.9 percent) from the free throw line in the last seven games
 • Recorded 17th double-double of season, and fourth straight, with 22 points and 12 rebounds at Hampton; 8th games this season scoring 20 or more points
 • 96-of-146 field goals (65.8 percent) last 14 games
 • Has at least one block in 16 of last 17 games
 • Has scored in double figures in 11 straight and 14 of the last 15 games
 • 19 10+ rebound games this season
 • Ranks 2nd in the MEAC in rebounds (9.9), defensive rebounds (6.4), offensive rebounds (3.4) and field goal percentage (61.7), 7th in scoring (15.7) and 8th in blocks (1.2)
 • Stands 5th in the nation in field goal percentage (61.7) and 9th in double-doubles (17); Also ranks in offensive rebounds (24, 3.45), total rebounds (23, 287), rebounding (20, 9.9), defensive rebounds (30, 6.45), scoring (160, 15.7) and blocks (200, 1.17)
 • Ranks 28th in NCAA Division I in career double-doubles (22), 32nd in field goal percentage (.572), 39th in rebounding average (7.7) and 106th in rebounds (605)
 • Stands 6th in NSU records with a .572 career shooting percentage and 16th in blocks (64) (See table page 7)
 • Ranks 3rd in NSU D-I single season records in field goal percentage (.617), 3rd in rebounds (287), 4th in rebounding average (9.9), 9th in field goals (185), 10th in blocks (34) and 13th in scoring average (15.7)
 • Also ranks 6th in field goal percentage for overall single season records (See table page 6)
 • Averaged 17.8 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.1 blocks and shot 66.1 percent in MEAC games this year

Jamel Fuentes
 • Averaged 6.8 points and 3.5 rebounds and shot 11-of-21 in four games from Feb. 14-March 2
 • Ranks 3rd in the MEAC in assists (4.2) and 4th in assist-turnover ratio (2.0)
 • Stands 101st in the nation in assists (4.2) and 110th in assist-turnover ratio (2.00)
 • Ranks 15th in NCAA Division I in career assists (540), 27th in assist-turnover ratio (1.92) and 64th in assist average (4.15)
 • Ranks 2nd all-time at NSU in assists with 540 (See table page 7) behind Billy Walker (1980-85)
 • Stands 2nd in games played (130) at NSU and 10th in career steals (147)
 • Ranks 4th in NSU D-I single season records with a 4.20 assist average and 4th in assists (126) (See table page 6)

D'Shon Taylor
 • Averaging 5.9 rebounds in the last 11 games and shooting 21-of-27 from the free throw line in the last five games
 • Has tallied at least one block in nine of the last 12 games
 • Ranks 11th in the MEAC in 3-point field goal percentage (35.9), 14th in field goal percentage (45.0), 16th in scoring (12.8) and 20th in rebounds (4.9)
 • Ranks 250th in the nation in double doubles (3)
 • Averaged 13.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and shot 47.5 percent overall and 34.2 percent from 3-point range in MEAC games this year

Malik Thomas
 • Ranks 15th in the MEAC in blocks (0.9)
 • Averaging 2.4 assists with a 19-8 assist-turnover ratio in the last eight games
 • Stands 15th in NSU D-I single season records with 26 blocks (See table page 6)
 • Ranks 172nd in NCAA Division I in career rebounds (530)

Jordan Butler
 • Member of the MEAC All-Rookie team
 • Ranks 9th in the MEAC in blocks (1.1) and 225th in the nation (1.10)
 • Stands 11th in NSU D-I single season records with 33 blocks (See table page 6)

LaTre'e Russell
 • Averaging 3.8 points, 2.3 rebounds in last 12 games

Zaynah Robinson
 • Career-high 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting at Hampton

MEAC Standings
The Spartans finished second in the MEAC this season at 12-4, their third-best MEAC record ever behind 2012-13 (16-0) and 2011-12 (13-3). NSU finished fourth or better in the standings for the eighth time in the past nine seasons as well as in the top 2 for the third time in four years.

All-Conference
Jeff Short was named first-team All-MEAC this year, marking the seventh time in eight years the Spartans had a player named to the first team. It was also the 12th straight season the program has had at least one player named all-conference.

Better From the Line
After hitting less than 70 percent from the free throw line in 12 of the prior 13 games, NSU has now shot a combined 119-of-158 (75.3 percent) over the last six games.

Winning Big in the MEAC
Overall in conference play, NSU averaged 74.4 points per game while shooting 50.8 percent overall and 35.2 percent from 3-point range. NSU outrebounded foes by an average of 5.9 boards per contest while also holding them to 39.3 percent shooting and 28.5 percent from beyond the arc. A total of 10 of NSU's 12 MEAC wins were by double digits, the first time in the Division I era the Spartans won even eight conference games by 10 or more points and the first time overall winning at least 10 by double digits since 1995-96.

Winning Record
NSU has already secured its fourth straight winning season this year. Prior to the start of that streak in 2011-12, NSU had a winning record just twice in 14 seasons since moving to Division I in 1997. The Spartans own an 85-49 record over the last four seasons, the best four-game stretch for the program since 1993-97 (94-26). NSU ranks second to North Carolina Central (91-36) during that time for the most overall wins in the MEAC.

NSU has also reached the 19-win plateau for the fourth straight season, tied for the third most victories in the D-I era.

Conference Streak
NSU finished with its 17th straight season with a .500 or better record in the MEAC. In fact, in Norfolk State's 60 seasons in a conference, the program has had just one losing conference record (9-10 in the CIAA in 1990-91).

NSU is now tied with Wisconsin for eighth in the nation for the longest streak of .500-or-better conference records in a row in Division I (See table page 6). NSU has posted 23 straight .500 or better conference records, dating back to its D-II CIAA days.

MEAC Rankings
The Spartans rank No. 1 in the MEAC in rebounding margin (+4.9) and blocks (5.0). They also stand second in scoring margin (+4.3), field goal percentage (46.9), defensive rebounds (25.3), defensive rebound percentage (69.6) and assist-turnover ratio (1.0), as well as third in scoring offense (70.3), field goal percentage defense (40.7), rebounding (36.4), opponent rebounding (31.5), offensive rebound percentage (35.1) assists (13.4).

NSU is the only school in the MEAC with three players ranked in the top 20 in scoring.

Best in the Conference
Since the start of the 2011-12 season, NSU is 52-12 in regular season conference play (25-7 at home, 27-5 on the road), second in the MEAC over that period of time behind North Carolina Central (56-8). Counting MEAC tournament games, the Spartans are 57-14, while the Eagles are 60-10 during that time.

Shoot the 3
The team's 174 3-pointers on the season stand as the fourth-most all-time. The top 5 seasons have all come within the last five years, including 2011-12 (198), 2013-14 (187), 2010-11 (176) and 2012-13 (172).

Block Party
Over the last 19 contests, the Spartans are averaging 6.0 blocks per game and have outblocked the opposition by a collective 114-67 margin.

NSU has 156 blocks this season, the third-most ever for the program. In fact, the top 4 seasons have all come within the past five years, including 2010-11 (183), 2011-12 (169) and 2012-13 (151).

Thanks for the Points
NSU has outscored 12 of its last 16 opponents in points off turnovers and has had fewer turnovers than the opposition in seven of the last eight games. NSU has had at least 12 points off turnovers in 13 of the past 14 games.

Limit Those Turnovers
The Spartans have committed 13 or fewer turnovers in six of the last eight games. NSU is currently averaging 13.8 giveaways per contest this season. The school record for fewest turnovers per game was set in 1987-88 at 13.1. Only four times since 1978-79, when the stat was first kept, has NSU had less than 14 turnovers per game. The Division I record was set last year at 13.4.

On Fire
NSU's current 46.9 percent clip from the field is best since the Spartans connected on 48.1 percent of their shots in 1998-99. The team's 34.1 percent effort from 3-point range is behind last year's 35.2 percent clip, the best since 1998-99 (35.7). So far this season, NSU has shot 50 percent or better in 14 games, including the most recent, a 50.0 percent night (29-of-58) at Hampton.

So far this season, the Spartans are 18-2 when they outshoot their opponents from the floor and 15-0 this year when outshooting teams from 3-point range.

Winning the Rebounding Battle
The Spartans have had the rebounding edge or been even on the glass in 25 of the 31 games this year. Dating back to last season, it also includes 36 of the last 43 opponents. On the season, the Spartans have a +4.9 rebounding margin, although they have grabbed just one more offensive rebound total this year than the opposition.

Nationally Ranked
The Spartans rank 32nd in the nation in blocks (5.0) as well as in the top 150 in total blocks (27, 156), rebound margin (35, +4.9), field goal percentage (37, 46.9), defensive rebounds (54, 25.29), field goal percentage defense (74, 40.7), total rebounds per game (76, 36.35), scoring offense (98, 70.3), win-loss percentage (101, 61.3), assists (109, 13.4), scoring margin (115, +4.3), 3-point field goal percentage defense (121, 33.2), offensive rebounds (140, 11.06) and scoring defense (150, 65.9).

Specialty Stats
NSU has outscored the other team by an average of 7.2 more points in the paint (31.5-24.3). On the year, NSU has outscored or been even against 26 of its 31 opponents in points in the paint, including 11 straight from Nov. 22-Dec. 22. NSU has averaged 34.3 points in the paint in the last 10 games.

Opponents have attempted 174 more 3-pointers on the season than NSU.

Better After the Break
NSU has tallied more points in the second half than the first half in 21 of the last 28 games. On the season, NSU has scored 135 more points in the second half than the first.

Doubling Up
The Spartans have had 23 double-doubles on the season this year, including the most recent, a 22-point, 12-rebound effort by RaShid Gaston at Hampton.