Norfolk State Men's Basketball - MEAC Tournament Semifinals
NORFOLK, Va. - After surviving South Carolina State's upset bid in overtime on Wednesday in the quarterfinal round, the No. 2 seed Norfolk State men's basketball team will compete in the MEAC tournament semifinals on Friday. The Spartans take on No. 11 seed Howard, as NSU has now reached the semifinals for the sixth time in the past seven years. Game time against the Bison from Scope Arena is set for 8 p.m.
Howard advanced after taking out No. 6 seed Coppin State on Monday, 79-73, and then No. 3 seed Morgan State on Thursday, 68-65. The Bison improved their overall record to 10-23. NSU stands 16-15.
Media Coverage
All games at the MEAC tournament will be shown live on
ESPN3 and WatchESPN. Wednesday's contest will also be broadcast live on Star 1310 AM as well as Hot 91.1 FM with Ross Gordon and Julee O'Neal on the call. Live audio is available through
www.star1310.com as well as
hot91.nsu.edu:8000/128. 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
live stats.
Series History
Norfolk State won the first meeting between the two teams this year at home, 73-65 on Senior Night on Feb. 25. The victory improved NSU's record to 42-10 all-time against the Bison, the best overall record against any MEAC opponent for the Spartans. They have won 13 of the past 14 against Howard and 22 of the last 25.
NSU has faced Howard twice in the MEAC tournament. The Spartans won 68-53 in 2011 as the No. 6 seed in the first round and then 71-61 in the quarterfinals as the No. 2 seed in 2012.
About Howard
The Bison knocked off a pair of Baltimore schools in Coppin State and Morgan State in a pair of upsets to advance to the semifinals. Solomon Mangham had 18 points on Monday and he ranks third on the team in scoring at 9.8 and first in rebounding at 7.0. Charles Williams, the MEAC Rookie of the Year, scores a team-best 15.7 points, and James Miller is second at 14.9. Woeful shooting has been the Bison's downfall, as they hit just 39 percent from the field, including 29 percent from 3-point range. They also own a -2.3 turnover margin and a 0.6 assist-turnover ratio. Damon Collins is another name to look out for with 9.6 points and 5.0 rebounds. Marcel Boyd had a double-double of 15 and 10 to lead Howard against Morgan State on Thursday. The Bison defeated No. 5 seed Maryland Eastern Shore twice in the regular season as well as No. 3 seed Morgan State once before defeating the Bears again in the tournament.
Last Time Out
No. 7 seed South Carolina State fell behind by 15 in the second half and was down by 12 with 2:09 left. The Bulldogs used a 14-0 run to take the lead before
Jonathan Wade sank two free throws with 24.7 seconds to send the game into overtime. NSU held the Bulldogs to 1-of-11 shooting in the extra session to win 93-88 in the teams' quarterfinal matchup on Wednesday night. A year after NSU trailed by 21 in the second half to the Bulldogs in the semifinals, only to take the lead and lose it in the last minute of play, the Spartans returned the favor. Wade's two free throws ended a stretch in which NSU had missed seven of its last nine attempts. He finished with 26 points on 9-of-13 shooting, including the go-ahead layup with 1:38 left in overtime. He also added eight rebounds and seven assists and helped NSU shoot 32-of-57 overall (56.1 percent).
Zaynah Robinson added 20 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, and he and
Kyle Williams each shot 3-of-5 from deep. South Carolina State shot 55 percent in the second half and outscored NSU 49-38, the second most points the Spartans have given up in a second half this season.
MEAC Tournament History
Friday will mark the eighth time in the last 10 seasons that the Spartans have reached the semifinals of the tournament. They are attempting to reach the final for the second time ever along with the 2009 team and the championship squad of 2012.
This year also marks the ninth time in those last 10 years that the Spartans entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed or better (see table page 10).
Conference Standings
Norfolk State finished 12-4 and in sole possession of second place this year in the MEAC. It marked NSU's third-straight 12-4 conference record. The Spartans also continued their streak of finishing no worse than tied for third each of the last six years now, the only program in the league to do so. NSU has now finished fourth or better in the MEAC in 10 of the last 11 seasons.
This season, NSU finished behind first-place North Carolina Central (13-3) and ahead of Morgan State and Hampton (11-5). Savannah State also went 10-6 but was ineligible for the MEAC tournament. The Spartans ran off 10 straight MEAC wins at one point, tied for the second-longest win streak in the school's Division I history.
Best in the Conference
Since the start of the 2011-12 season, NSU is 76-20 in regular season conference play (39-9 at home, 37-11 on the road), tied with North Carolina Central (76-20) during that time for the best record in the league. Counting MEAC tournament games, the Spartans are 84-23, while the Eagles are 83-24 during that time. NSU also owns a 119-83 overall record since the start of the 2011-12 season, second in the conference to North Carolina Central (128-65).
Player Tidbits
Jonathan Wade
 • Earned 1st-Team All-MEAC honors
 • Scored 26 against S.C. State in the MEAC tournament, the 16th game this season with 20+ points, with a career-best 7 assists
 • Averaging 10.3 rebounds last 9 games
 • Has made 62-of-80 from the free throw line last 9 games, including career-best 12-of-14 at South Carolina State
 • Has scored in double figures in all 31 games
 • Averaged 8.0 rebounds in MEAC play
 • Ranks 4th in the nation in largest increase in points per game from last year (+13.9) behind Hofstra's Justin Wright-Foreman (+16.5), Northeastern's T.J. Williams (+14.6) and Hawai'i's Noah Allen (+14.5)
 • Ranks 2nd in the MEAC in scoring (19.8), 3rd in defensive rebounds (5.3), 4th in rebounding (6.9), 6th in field goal percentage (48.8) and minutes (34.7) and 7th in 3-point field goal percentage (38.7)
 • Ranks 41st in the nation in points per game (19.8), No. 103 in minutes (34:44), No. 120 in double-doubles (7), No. 129 in field goal percentage (48.8), No. 155 in defensive rebounds (5.26) and No. 196 in rebounds (6.9)
 • Stands No. 555 in NCAA Division I career records in points (808)
 • Ranks 2nd in NSU Division I records in free throws made (155) and free throw attempts (210), 5th in points (614) and scoring average (19.8), 8th in field goals made (202), 10th in field goal attempts (414), 12th in 3-point field goal percentage (38.7), 13th in 3-point field goals (55), 14th in rebounding average (6.9) and 15th in 3-point field goal attempts (142)
 • Ranks 10th all-time at NSU in 3-point field goal percentage (37.4), 15th in free throw percentage (76.1) and 20th in 3-point field goals (74)
Zaynah Robinson
 • Earned 2nd-Team All-MEAC honors
 • Grabbed career-high 8 rebounds vs. S.C. State in the MEAC tournament and had 20 points for 8th 20+ point game this year
 • Averaging 16.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 2.6 steals last 9 games
 • Averaged 14.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 2.0 steals in MEAC games
 • Has played at least 36 minutes in 13 of the last 16 games, including all 40 minutes in four contests and more than 40 in two recent overtime games
 • Has tallied 12 or more points in 14 of the last 18 games
  • Ranks 1st in the MEAC in assist-turnover ratio (3.0) and steals (1.6), 3rd in minutes (35.3), 4th in assists (4.5), 13th in free throw percentage (75.8) and 17th in scoring (13.1)
 • Ranks 16th in the nation in assist-turnover ratio (2.98), No. 63 in minutes (35:20), No. 94 in assists (4.5) and No. 109 in steals (1.63)
 • Stands No. 168 in NCAA Division I career records with 271 assists and No. 747 in points (690)
 • Ranks 4th in NSU Division I records in assist average (4.47), 5th in assists (134), 12th in 3-point field goal attempts (159) and 13th in steals (49)
 • Ranks 14th all-time at NSU in 3-point field goal attempts (276), 15th in assists (271) and 17th in 3-point field goals (92)
Kyle Williams
 • Had 13 points against S.C. State in the MEAC tournament for 7th game this season with 10+ points
Jordan Butler
 • Averaging 8.5 points on 12-of-21 shooting with 1.5 assists the last 4 games
 • Averaged 7.9 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in MEAC games
 • Ranks 1st in the MEAC in blocks (1.8), 6th in rebounding (6.7), 8th in offensive rebounds (2.1) and 9th in defensive rebounds (4.6)
 • Ranks No. 51st in the nation in blocks (1.85) and No. 233 in rebounds (6.7)
 • Ranks 23rd in NCAA Division I career records with 158 total blocks, 37th with a 1.70 blocks-per-game average, No. 211 in rebounds (502) and No. 1,093 in points (532)
 • Ranks 8th in NSU Division I records in blocks (48)
 • Ranks 3rd all-time at NSU in blocks (158)
Alex Long
 • Had 13 points against S.C. State in the MEAC tournament for 9th game this season with 10+ points
 • Averaging 8.8 points on 17-of-35 shooting the last 5 games
 • Ranks 3rd in the MEAC in blocks (1.4), 12th in defensive rebounds (4.0) and 15th in rebounding (5.5)
 • Ranks No. 116 in the nation in blocks (1.37)
 • Stands No. 1,483 in NCAA Division I career records in points (400)
 • Ranks 10th in NSU Division I records in blocks (41)
 • Ranks 14th all-time at NSU in blocks (76)
Dan Robinson
 • Averaging 4.5 points last 12 games and 5.0 rebounds last 8 games
 • Ranks 10th in the MEAC (1.0) and No. 237 in the nation in blocks (1.03)
Micah Goss
 • Averaging 3.8 points last 4 games
Bryan Gellineau
 • Averaging 4.4 points last 7 games
Winning Record
With its win on Wednesday, NSU is guaranteed its sixth straight non-losing season, barring any postseason play. 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.
Clean the Glass
The Spartans were +4.6 on the glass in conference games. They own a 3-10 record this year when getting outrebounded but are 13-5 when ahead or tied in the rebound column. They also have a +1.4 rebounding margin in first halves this year but a -0.6 in second periods.
Overall, NSU ranks 33rd in the nation in defensive rebounds per game (27.58) and No. 60 in total rebounds per game (38.06).
MEAC Rankings
The Spartans rank first in the MEAC in blocks (5.4), with the next highest team being Howard at 3.8. NSU also ranks second in scoring margin (-1.7), field goal percentage defense (40.6), defensive rebounds (27.6) and defensive rebound percentage (70.1).
MEAC Offense
Overall, the Spartans averaged 72.8 points per game and shot 43.5 percent in MEAC games this year. The one area where NSU struggled was at the 3-point line, where the Spartans made just 31.8 percent against conference opponents. NSU was shooting just 27.2 percent from deep in the previous five games before hitting 7-of-15 against South Carolina State.
Play Some 'D'
On the other side, NSU limited the opposition to 36.8 percent shooting, including 29.2 percent from deep, during conference play. The Spartans also held a 97-61 edge in blocks.
Overall on the year, the Spartans rank 33rd in the nation in field goal percentage defense (40.6) and 98th in 3-point field goal percentage defense (33.4).
Rejected
NSU has had more blocks than the other team in 15 of the last 18 games and 21 of the last 26. On the year, NSU ranks 14th in the nation in blocks per game at 5.4 and 19th with 167 total blocks.
The top five seasons in NSU history in terms of total blocks have all come within the last six years prior to this season, as the program averaged 163.3 blocks per year during that time.
NSU's current 5.4 blocks-per-game clip stands second all-time in program history behind the 5.7 average in 2010-11.
Share the Ball
NSU had a season-high 19 assists on 32 baskets against South Carolina State. The Spartans shot a season-best 56.1 percent from the floor on Wednesday, their fifth game this season better than 50 percent.
And You're on the Paint?
NSU outscored South Carolina State 40-32 in points in the paint on Wednesday, the second-highest total for the Spartans this year. They had 42 against Elizabeth City State.
Get Out and Run
NSU outscored the Bulldogs 20-9 in fastbreak points, tied for the most this year by the Spartans. Like points in the paint, NSU's best performance in transition this year also came against Elizabeth City State with 20.
Good from Deep
NSU has 204 3-pointers this season, the second-most in the program's history. Only last year's squad (242) made more.
Second Chances
NSU is averaging 13.0 second-chance points over the last eight games, above their season average of 9.9 on the season.
Bench Production
So far this year, the opposition's bench is outscoring NSU's, 23.1-18.0. Most recently, South Carolina State held a 40-22 advantage in bench points.
