FOR LIFE
Tournament Pairings
Women's Bracket
Men's Bracket
58 thAnnual CIAA Basketball Tournament
Falcons Soar Against Bears
FEBRUARY 27, 2003, Raleigh, NC—In the battle of
cross-town rivals, the No. 2-seeded St. Augustine’s College Falcons
claimed bragging rights in the quarterfinal match-up against the Shaw
University Bears, winning by an unforeseen 78-63 margin.
The Falcons (18-8) controlled the tempo and the momentum throughout the
game. Trailing 7-4 in the first half, SAC went on a 14-0 run, essentially
knocking the wind out of the Bears early. St. Augustine’s increased
their lead, and were on top 39-24 at the half.
The Falcons were on fire shooting an incredible 61.5 percent from the
field in the first half. SU didn’t help their cause, turning the
ball over nine times.
2003 CIAA player of the Year Patrick Pope had 10 points in the first half,
and Desmond Peoples had 11 for the Falcons as they built the lead that
the defending CIAA champions would ultimately not recover from. The Falcons
controlled the middle from the onset, outscoring the Bears (20-8) 44-24
in the paint.
“They out played us on both ends and they out hustled us from beginning
to end,” said Bears head coach Mike Bernard. “(Patrick) Pope
showed why he is player of the year.”
All-CIAA player Kenyon Booker kept the Bears within shouting distance
in first half scoring a team high 12 points.
St. Augustine’s poured in on in the second half, and a put-back
by Travis Richardson gave them a 23-point lead (63-40), the largest of
the game. SAC’s red-hot shooting continued in the second half, finishing
at 57 percent from the field for the night.
“We are very, very happy to come out with a win,” said Falcons
head coach Thomas Hargrove. “We didn’t want this to end today…we
beat a very talented team.”
Pope finished with a team-high 23 points, and Jay Chapman added a team-high
eight boards. Desmond Peoples chipped in with 16 points, six rebounds
and two blocked shots while Richardson finished with 10 points.
“It wasn’t easy, I think we just played well together as a
team,” said Pope.
Booker was the lone bright spot for the Bears with game-highs of 24 points,
and 12 rebounds. Guard Alphonso Riley hit five 3-pointers for his 15 points,
and Michael McLeod finished with 11 points before fouling out.
St. Augustine’s will meet top seeded Virginia Union University in
the tournament semi-finals at 9 p.m. Friday night.