APEX, N.C. – Blue Lights College conducted a thunderstorm of offense and put away Shooting IV Greatness Prep 123-82 Tuesday night.
The Thoroughbreds were led by Keyshawn Bryant’s 35 points, Wol Yak added 28. S4G’s Justin Price led all scorers with 38.
It was the fourth straight win for BLC, which improved to 5-3 overall (1-2 NSAC).
Christendom College’s men’s basketball team has made it official, accepting an invitation to join the New South Athletic Conference effective immediately. They join the women’s team which joined on December 24.
“The conference board voted to invite all of Christendom’s teams this past summer, but they were not able to finalize it until this week,” said NSAC commissioner Mike Davis. “We are wanting to grow the conference strategically, and the Crusaders tick all of the boxes for us: a solid academic institution, stable athletics, competitive teams, and within the geographic footprint. We are delighted they are a part of the NSAC family!”
Christendom is also a member of the USCAA, along with Apprentice and MACU.
The Crusaders bring the total number of men’s basketball teams to seven for the 2022-23 season and will be eligible for the conference championship tournament in late February. Their game at MACU on December 3, 2022, a 66-49 Mustang win, will count in the conference standings.
Blue Lights College point guard Sam Benton, Jr. averaged 19 points and had a 5.0 assist-to-turnover ratio last week to lead the Thoroughbreds to two wins. For his efforts, Sam is being recognized as the NSAC Player of the Week.
The floor general scored 23 points and and delivered 8 assists while committing only 1 turnover in a 106-101 win over Virginia-Lynchburg on Tuesday. The following night, Benton scored 15 points, hauled in 3 rebounds, and dished 2 assists to lead BLC to a 55-43 win over the North Carolina JVs in Chapel Hill. The freshman from Rocky Mount, NC led the Herd to 18 fast break points and 50% shooting from the field in the second half as the Thoroughbreds outscored the Tar Heels 30-20.
Congratulations to Sam Benton, Jr., our New South men’s basketball Player of the Week!
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Sam Benton Jr. scored 15 points, hauled in 3 rebounds, and dished 2 assists to lead Blue Lights College to a 55-43 win over the North Carolina JV squad Wednesday night at the Dean Dome.
The freshman from Rocky Mount, NC led the Herd to 18 fast break points and 50% shooting from the field in the second half as the Thoroughbreds outscored the Tar Heels 30-20.
BLC (4-3 overall, 1-2 NSAC) is riding a three-game win streak as it travels to Crown College (TN) this Saturday.
Story and image courtesy Craig Green
ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. – Mid-Atlantic Christian senior Talik Totten decided to give his team a gift on his birthday. The guard from Ahoskie, NC drained a three with 4.2 seconds remaining to lift MACU to a 70-68 win over visiting Virginia Peninsula in the Mustang’s NSAC opener.
The victory, and how they obtained it, was a test for head coach Charles Sims’ team.
“I saw something new emerge from the team tonight that I knew we have had all the time and that was true grit and just the determination to get it done,” said Sims. “This was yet another game that pushed us to another level.”
That level is now a statistical tie with Apprentice atop the NSAC standings. The Herd improved to 6-6 overall with the win. VPCC dropped to 7-4 overall and 1-1 in conference play.
Each team fought hard with nine lead changes and eight ties. Neither team led by more than 8 points.
MACU’s Noah Richardson-Keys led all scorers with 22 points and grabbed 9 rebounds. Totten added 16 points, including the game winner.
“For him to hit that shot at a pivotal moment that secured the lead was awesome,” beamed Sims after the game.
The Gators’ Javion Majette led VPCC with 17 points while Keshaun Johnson marked a double-double, 14 points along with 10 boards.
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.
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
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.
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
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
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
