Category: News

BLC Holds MACU at Bay 92-83

ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. – Blue Lights College continued to stake its claim for the top seed in the upcoming NSAC men’s basketball tournament with a 92-83 conference win at Mid-Atlantic Christian Saturday afternoon.

MACU (5-15 overall, 2-3 NSAC) opened up a 5-0 lead in the first minute and 21 seconds, but the Thoroughbreds (12-5, 5-1) would tie the game three times before taking a 16-14 lead on a Jaye Bookhart field goal at 13:55. Elijah Cox would tie the game again for the Mustangs on two free throws 13 seconds later, but a 2-pointer by Sam Benton Jr. at 13:15 to play in the first would give BLC a lead they would never relinquish.

Blue Lights would hold a 50-45 advantage at halftime and extend it to as many as 14, 80-66, with 7:54 remaining.

Benton’s double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds led a balanced attack for the Thoroughbreds, who had five players in double-figure scoring. Noah Richardson-Keys led MACU with a double-double of 26 points and 10 boards.

Image courtesy USCAA Sports Network and MACU Athletics

Teams Enter Final Week of Conference Play

In a scheduling anomaly, New South teams are entering the final week of conference play more than three weeks ahead of the season-ending tournament.

The four teams atop the standings highlight Saturday’s schedule with two games tipping at 2:00 pm. In Newport News, Virginia, defending NSAC champion and top-ranked Apprentice hosts number 7 Atlantis. Just an hour to the south in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, Mid-Atlantic Christian looks to even the score with Blue Lights College after losing to the Thoroughbreds in a shootout 120-113 on January 30 in Apex.

On Sunday, Atlantis continues its road trip with a visit to MACU, then the Mustangs visit Apprentice on Tuesday night.

Lighthouse begins a three-game conference gauntlet on Tuesday, February 13 by visiting BLC with a quick turnaround to make a noon Wednesday tip against Central International in Richmond. The Makos will wrap up the NSAC regular season at Apprentice Thursday night.

After that, conference teams will conclude the year by facing regional rivals with the final game, MACU at Regent, taking place Thursday, February 22, leaving eight full days to rest and prepare for the NSAC Tournament starting March 1. Tournament seedings will be set by a coaches poll following the completion of the regular season.

Photo by Matthias Cooper on Unsplash

Atlantis Tripped Up at Clinton 125-98

ROCK HILL, S.C. – Senior guard Cam Shannon poured in a career-high 41 points to lead Clinton College to a 125-98 win over Atlantis Thursday night.

Clinton (14-7) raced to a 63-36 halftime lead and maintained that 27-point margin at the final buzzer.

Tyric Francois led the Atlanteans with 27 points.

The game was the first of a four-game series through the Carolinas and Virginia for Atlantis (9-12 overall, 1-0 NSAC), which will face NSAC foes Apprentice on Saturday and MACU on Sunday before closing the trip with a non-conference tilt at Regent on Monday.

Image courtesy auatlanteans.com

Royals Stun Mustangs with Game-Winning Layup

ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. – Mid-Atlantic Christian led by as many as 16 points in the second half but a buzzer-beating layup closed the deal as the Mustangs fell to non-conference rival Regent 82-80 Wednesday night.

MACU (5-14 overall, 2-2 NSAC) started with a strong lead and led by 14 points at halftime, pushing the margin to 16 early in the second half, but the visiting Royals (1-14) began to chip away and took their first lead at 69-68 with less than six minutes to play. Neither team could gain separation after that, and a Darrin Clark layup with 2.7 seconds remaining was the difference maker.

Leading the Mustangs was sophomore Noah Richardson-Keys with 27 points, four steals, and seven rebounds. Senior Talik Totten followed with 19 points while sophomore Joshua Tyler added 17.

Clark led the Royals with 19 points.

MACU hosts Blue Lights College Saturday at 2:00 pm.

Image courtesy regentroyals.com

Benton’s Record-Breaking Game Leads to POTW Honors

Point guard Sam Benton, Jr. has been a constant for Blue Lights College the past two years, starting every game he’s played in and averaging 38 minutes per game. This past week though, Sam did something no other Thoroughbred has done before: Benton scored 47 points in one game, breaking the school single-game scoring record.

Benton totaled 47 points, seven assists, four boards, and three steals in Tuesday’s win over conference rival MACU. Benton’s onslaught and BLC’s win kept them undefeated at home this season, and for his record-setting effort, the Thoroughbred guard has been named the New South Conference Player of the Week.

Congratulations, Sam!

Blue Lights Holds Off MACU Rally in Shootout 120-113

APEX, N.C. – It was an offense-lover’s dream.

Blue Lights College and Mid-Atlantic Christian set a new record for points scored in an NSAC contest Tuesday night as the Thoroughbreds held off a late Mustang rally 120-113.

BLC (10-5 overall, 3-1 NSAC) scored the first five points and continued the scoring onslaught until halftime, leading 63-47 at the break. They increased the lead to as many as 19 in the second half before MACU began to chip away at the margin.

Mid-Atlantic (4-13, 2-2) maintained its poise and began to convert turnovers into points, eventually trimming the lead to four before the Thoroughbreds used the free throw line to seal the deal in the final minute.

Point guard Sam Benton, Jr. set a new BLC scoring with 47 points, eclipsing the old mark of 45 set by Jorge Garcia in 2018.

The win puts Blue Lights in a tie with Apprentice for second place in the NSAC standings at 3-1 with both teams claiming a win over the other. Atlantis remains technically at the top, having won its only conference game to this point.

Harriers Pull Away from Atlantis 93-68

HAMILTON Oh. – Miami Hamilton raced out to a 20-point lead in the first eight minutes and never looked back in cruising to a 93-68 win over visiting Atlantis Sunday afternoon.

The Harriers, ranked 13th among USCAA Division 2 schools, seemed to have little trouble getting the ball in the basket against the Atlanteans, who were wrapping up a two-game road trip in Ohio and currently ranked 6th in USCAA Division 1.

Atlantis (9-11 overall, 1-0 NSAC) has more than a week off before heading to the Carolinas and Virginia for a four-game stand, opening February 8 at Clinton College.

Image courtesy Miami Hamilton Athletics

Atlantis Runs Past Middletown 76-61

MIDDLETOWN, Oh. – Sixth-ranked Atlantis trailed by three at the half but took control after intermission to put away Miami Middletown 76-61 Saturday afternoon.

The Atlantean’s Grevaughn Goodman led all scorers with 27 points.

Atlantis (9-10 overall, 1-0 NSAC) is back in action Sunday at #13 Miami Hamilton.

FINALLY!

Apprentice Defeats JWU for First Time in Program History

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – For the first time in program history, the Apprentice School men’s basketball team defeated Johnson & Wales Saturday afternoon 84-65.

The game was never in question as the Builders (15-4 overall, 3-1 NSAC) jumped out quickly to a 23-13 lead eight minutes in. From there, Apprentice continued to hit shots while forcing 24 Wildcat turnovers on the day to lead by as many as 28 points with six minutes to go.

The win over the Wildcats (8-9) puts Apprentice as winners of 10 of the last 11, one of the best stretches of games in program history.

Apprentice is ranked number one in USCAA Division 1, while JWU is ranked 11th in Division 2.

Adrion Wall led the way for the Builders with 17 points, including three made threes. Kurij Harrell added 15 off the bench, while Kelby Saunders, Jr. had 13, including three shots from distance of his own. Donovan Means had six steals, marking the 39th time in program history a player has had six or more steals in a game.

The two sides had met eight times prior to Saturday, including multiple matchups as part of the former Eastern States Athletic Conference. Seven of the previous eight matchups were decided by single digits.

The Builders will next hit the road to take on USCAA D1 5th-ranked Manor on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Story courtesy Walker McCrary/Apprentice Athletics; Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash

MACU Knocks Off #5 Manor 98-91

JENKINTOWN, Pa. – Mid-Atlantic Christian put together what could arguably be its best performance of the season in defeating Manor College on the road Saturday afternoon 98-91.

The Mustangs (4-12 overall, 2-1 NSAC) trailed by six at the half, but regrouped after the intermission to take the lead and pull away for the win over the USCAA fifth-ranked Blue Jays (7-3).

“This game had a lot on the line for the team,” said MACU coach Charles Sims. “Another opportunity, this time facing the number five-ranked team in USCAA DI men’s basketball. The players each knew how much this game meant in order for us to turn around the season. They made up in their minds that we would not go back to Elizabeth City with a loss, and we didn’t.”

Three Mustangs recorded double-doubles, led by Noah Richardson-Keys who lit it up for a game-high 37 points with 11 rebounds and five assists. Josh Tyler drained 23 points with 10 boards, and Carlos Raven contributed 17 and 10, respectively.

MACU continues its road stretch Tuesday at NSAC opponent Blue Lights College.

Photo credit Charles Sims/MACU Athletics