Thoroughbreds Survive Rally in Downing VUL, 106-101

APEX, N.C. – Blue Lights College saw a double-digit lead wither away down the stretch but held on to defeat Virginia University of Lynchburg 106-101 Tuesday night.

The Thoroughbreds led by as many as 18 points in the second half, but the Dragons trimmed the lead to 11, 104-93, on a second-chance effort with 1:21 to play. A steal by BLC’s Randy Freeman with 34 seconds left should have sealed the deal, but the Herd was then hit with two technical fouls, on the bench and the coach, which allowed VUL’s Christian Goode to score three consecutive free throws. VUL then converted a field goal on the ensuing possession to cut BLC’s lead to five, 104-99, with 11.1 seconds left in regulation. Another Goode follow off a Blue Lights turnover made it a three-point game with five seconds to go, but the Herd’s Wol Yak converted two free throws with 3.6 second left for the final margin.

Goode finished with 27 points to lead all scorers while Yak’s 25 led the Thoroughbreds.

Blue Lights improved to 3-3 on the season and travel to Chapel Hill to face the North Carolina JVs Wednesday night at the Smith Center. VUL moves to 1-12.

Gators Open NSAC Defense with 92-69 Win

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Virginia Peninsula got two double-double performances and a balanced scoring attack in downing Carolina Christian 92-69 Sunday afternoon.

Javion Majette, the 2022 NSAC MVP, scored 23 points and hauled in 12 rebounds to lead the Gators. He was joined by Keshaun Johnson, who posted 16 and 12, respectively. Two other Gators came close to double-squared as Jaquan Majette carded 16 and 9, and Quishaun Brevard added 14 and 9.

It was the conference opener for VPCC, the defending NSAC champs, who improved to 7-3 overall. The Centurions moved to 3-7 overall and 0-3 in league play.

Peninsula continues NSAC action Wednesday night at MACU, while CCC travels to Clinton College for a non-conference game, also on Wednesday.

Image courtesy vpcc.edu

Builders Dominate CIC, Improve to 4-0 in NSAC

RICHMOND, Va. – The Apprentice School men’s basketball team moved to 4-0 in New South Athletic Conference play with an 86-48 win over Central International Saturday afternoon.

After CIC (2-2 overall, 1-2 NSAC) hit a layup off the opening tip, Apprentice went on a 12-3 run to take the lead and not look back, leading for the rest of the contest. The lead got out to 32 by halftime at 50-18 and stretched to as many as 42 points before the final horn.

  • Shawn Eley had a double-double of 26 points and 10 rebounds, while Tony Epps, Jr. finished two assists shy of a triple-double, notching 10 points and 10 boards to go with his eight dimes.
  • Karree Smith also finished in double figures with 11 points.
  • Apprentice (9-5, 4-0) shot 59.2 percent from the floor, hitting 5-of-10 threes along the way.

The game was in stark contrast to the November 12 meeting between the two teams when CIC trailed by only one with less than two minutes to play. The Builders would score the final six points to secure the win, 87-80.

Story and image courtesy gobuilders.com

Apprentice Sweeps Cruzin’ Classic

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – The Apprentice School men’s basketball team went 2-0 in the Cruzin’ Classic this week, taking down third-ranked Atlantis Tuesday before routing Florida Palms on Wednesday.

Tuesday, the USCAA sixth-ranked Builders jumped out to an early lead before Atlantis raced back to take the lead midway through the first half. Apprentice (7-5 overall, 3-0 NSAC) would use an 11-0 run to retake the lead and take it to halftime, up 33-29. In the second half, the Builders pulled away early, leading by as many as 15 and held on to knock off the No. 3 team in the national coaches poll by a final score of 73-60.

Wednesday, Apprentice found themselves in a tight game at halftime, leading 38-37, before clamping down the defense in the second half and sprinting away with an 86-59 win over Florida Palms.

Shawn Eley averaged 23.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per outing in the tournament to lead the way for Apprentice, while Karree Smith put up 16.5 points per game. Against Florida Palms, Jayden Eason, Adrion Wall and Clifton Goode put up double figures as well.

The Builders will now rest through the holiday break before retaking the floor in 2023 against Appalachian Bible at home on January 6 at 7 p.m.

Story courtesy gobuilders.com

Flames’ 3-Point Barrage Burns Mustangs

LYNCHBURG, Va. – Liberty knocked down a season-high 20 three-pointers in its final non-conference game and final game before Christmas, winning 88-50 over visiting Mid-Atlantic Christian at Liberty Arena.

Leading 9-7 in the early going, Liberty used a 22-6 run to build a 31-13 lead with 8:21 to play in the opening half. Jonathan Jackson knocked down his first two threes of the game during that spurt.

Liberty finishes its non-conference portion of the schedule with a 9-4 record. The Flames are 7-1 over their last eight contests. MACU’s record remains at 4-5. The Mustangs counted today’s game as an exhibition.

Liberty Individuals: Jonathan Jackson 23 points, 8-10 FG, 7-9 3FG; Brody Peebles 16 points, 4-7 3FG, 4 assists; Darius McGhee 14 points, 5-10 FG, 4-9 3FG; Zach Cleveland 6 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks

Mid-Atlantic Christian Individuals: Micah Colburn 13 points, 5-10 FG, 3 rebounds; Noah Richardson-Keys 10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals

Story and image courtesy liberty.edu

Apprentice Takes Down Cheyney, 69-59

CHEYNEY, Pa. – Three Builders finished in double figures as the Apprentice School men’s basketball team took down Cheyney Saturday afternoon, 69-59.

Cheyney scored the first six points of the game, but from then on, the Builders controlled the game, taking the lead with a 9-2 run and never relinquishing it throughout the first half.

Cheyney (2-9) retook the lead briefly in the second half, but again Apprentice (5-5, 3-0 NSAC) used a big run to seize back control, cruising through the final eight minutes to take the win.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

  • Shawn Eley led all scorers with 18 points, while Karree Smith added 16. Adrion Wall came off the bench to contribute 14 points.
  • The Builders shot 44 percent from the floor.

NEXT UP

Apprentice will travel to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to take part in the Cruzzin’ Classic starting Tuesday against Atlantis. Tip off is set for 4 p.m.

Story and image courtesy gobuilders.com

Majette’s 21 Leads Gator Romp

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Sophomore guard Javion Majette scored 21 points as Virginia Peninsula rolled over Mountain Gateway 107-58 in non-conference men’s basketball Saturday afternoon in Hampton, Virginia.

The game was in stark contrast to the Gators’ nailbiting 68-64 win over the Roadrunners on December 3.

Quishaun Brevard added 16 points for VPCC (5-2 overall, 0-0 NSAC) while Jhalen Harris had 14 and Tekomin Williams chipped in 11.

The Gators host Monroe College (Bronx) today as they wrap up the fall semester.

Thoroughbreds Pour it on New Hope, 126-85

APEX, N.C. – Freshman point guard Sam Benton, Jr. poured in 38 points as Blue Lights College pounded visiting New Hope Collegiate 126-85 in a non-conference contest Tuesday night.

Benton recorded clinical numbers, going 16 of 20 from the floor including 6 of 7 from the bonusphere while also adding eight assists.

BLC’s Wol Yak claimed 26 points along with six boards, five assists and two blocks. Victor Ngong had a double-double with 23 points and 13 rebounds. Malek Ngong scored 15 points on 4-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc, plus three blocks. Keyshawn Bryant came off the bench for 11 points.

Risko Brooks led New Hope with 30 points.

BLC’s point total tied the second-highest output in Thoroughbreds history, eclipsed only by the 141 points scored in a win over Lake Raleigh Prep last season on February 19.

BLC (2-3 overall, 1-2 NSAC) ends the semester with a win as the NSAC game at Carolina Christian scheduled for Wednesday night has been postponed.

Builders’ Eley Named POTW

Senior swingman Shawn Eley has been named Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for his outstanding work in three games for Apprentice last week.

At Virginia Wesleyan, Eley scored nine points and hauled in 12 rebounds, but he was just getting started. At the NSAC game against Blue Lights College, the Outside Machinist worked inside and out for 21 points and 10 boards. The Elizabeth City, North Carolina native then turned it up against his hometown rival, pouring in 24 points, grabbing eight rebounds and nicking five steals against Elizabeth City State.

Congratulations to Apprentice senior Shawn Eley, our New South MBB Player of the Week!

Mustangs Assessing Strengths, Weaknesses

Since achieving its number eight ranking in the first USCAA Division 1 men’s basketball poll earlier this month, the Mid-Atlantic Christian University Mustangs have cooled off from their early season start, dropping three of four contests to fall to 4-4 overall. The latest of those was a 76-71 loss at Carolina University on Saturday. First-year head coach Charles Sims is taking this as an opportunity for evaluation.

“We have to continue to improve in our weak areas of the game to achieve victories in games like these, said Sims. “This was yet another learning experience that we will build upon to get better and get us to that next level where the outcome of the game will be different.”

MACU led by 11 at halftime, but the Bruins took control going into the break.

“Saturday’s game was a contest that really pushed us to our limits,” Sims appraised. “The first half and the second half were two different games for us. The players played hard and met the challenges and our first half goals, and our defense allowed us to capitalize off of the Bruins turnovers in the first half, and as a team we only committed 3 turnovers in the first half.”

But then…

“Carolina University was able to hit a 3-pointer before halftime which gave them momentum into the half. At times in the second half we did not execute well. The Bruins had a plan, and they executed it to perfection in the second half: Get the ball in (Bruins senior guard) Micah Cooper’s hands and let him drive to the basket. He had too many free throw attempts for this game, which made the difference.”

Cooper finished with 28 points, including 14 of 17 from the charity stripe, and 10 rebounds. By contrast, the Mustangs had a total of 14 trips to the free throw line for the game, making nine of them.

MACU Senior Talik Totten matched Cooper’s 28 points to lead Mustang scoring. Noah Richardson-Keys added 13.

The Mustangs will next be in action on Saturday hosting Pitt Community College.

Image courtesy stretchinternet.com