Apprentice Pulls Away Late for 82-63 Win Over Methodist

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – The Apprentice School men’s basketball team kept things rolling Wednesday night with an 82-63 win over Methodist in its home opener.

After a slow start saw both teams combine for just three made baskets in the first three minutes of the game, the Builder offense started to wake up, going on a 14-4 run to take a 16-8 lead with 11 minutes to go in the first half. The Monarchs were able to hang around at that deficit for most of the remainder of the first half until Apprentice stretched the lead to 37-21 at halftime.

The Builders (3-0) came out of halftime hot, stretching the lead to as many as 19 before Methodist began to claw back into the game. Trailing 52-37, the Monarchs (1-1) went on a 10-2 run to cut the lead to seven before trimming it down to seven again with 7:01 to play in a 58-51 contest. Apprentice reeled off five straight points in a matter of seconds to extend the lead back to double figures and never looked back.

Karree Smith had a game high 17 points to go with six assists, four rebounds, three steals and two blocks. Adrion Wall added 14 points, including two three pointers, while Chris Hinmon had 10 points in just 12 minutes of action.

As a team, Apprentice ended the night with 15 steals and 40 points in the paint.

The Builders will now have nearly two weeks without a game before they travel to North Carolina Wesleyan on November 26.

Story and image courtesy gobuilders.com

JMCC’s Cotton Earns POTW Honors

John Melvin Christian College (FL) forward Eddie Cotton has been named the New South Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Week.

The 6’7″ junior poured in 20 points, hauled in 18 rebounds, and handed out five assists on the Mohawks’ 103-86 win over Louisiana Community Christian.

Congrats, Big Ed!

Builders Win Opener 77-62

MONACA, P.A. – Karree Smith scored 19 points to lead Apprentice to a season-opening win 77-62 over Penn State-Greater Allegheny in the Penn State Beaver Tip-Off Classic.

The Nittany Lions (0-1) led most of the first half and held 28-20 advantage with 4:23 to play before intermission, but the Builders chipped away to close the gap to two, 31-29, at halftime. Apprentice (1-0) took the lead for good on a Donovan Means layup less than two minutes into the second stanza to make it 34-33. From there, the defending USCAA Division 1 national champions began to pull away and led by as many as 17 late in the game.

Adrion Wall added 17 for the Builders while Means scored 10. Biagio Crossley led PSGA with 12.

The Builders will face host Penn State Beaver on Sunday.

Mustangs Shock WAU 63-61

ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. – Mid-Atlantic Christian used a balanced scoring attack to down Washington Adventist 63-61 Wednesday night in Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

The Mustangs (2-1) put eight players in the scoring column including four with double digits in claiming their first back-to-back wins over NAIA opponents. MACU defeated St. Andrews 78-75 on Saturday.

Transfer Janus Shepherd led all scorers with 14 while Stewart Clough and Keigh Shakes, Jr. each added 13, and senior point guard Carlos Raven chalked a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Jalen Anderson and Chase Cook each scored 12 points for the Shock.

The Herd travels to Rock Hill, South Carolina this Saturday to face NCCAA foe Clinton College. The Golden Bears have claimed consecutive NSAC victims in Atlantis and SC Central.

S4C Falls at Clinton 93-80

ROCK HILL, S.C. – South Carolina Central Christian College (S4C) used a quick start to jump out to an early lead but couldn’t keep the momentum as the Gladiators fell on the road to Clinton College 93-80 Tuesday night.

Central (0-2) made its first three shots from the field, including the first two by Lyric Evans, and converted a blocked shot by Kevin Butler into a bucket to take a 7-0 lead in the opening 1:13 before the Golden Bears began to chip away. Clinton (2-1) scored the next nine points to take its first lead and eventually claim a 51-34 advantage at halftime.

S4C was not done, however, and fought back to cut the margin to three on a Butler layup, 81-78, with 5:11 to play. But that was as close as the Glads would get, with Clinton separating itself from the visitors for the final 13-point difference.

Tavion McPherson came off the bench to lead the Gladiators with 19 points and 10 rebounds while DaQuan Ramsey added 17 points, Butler 13 and 10 boards, and Evans 11. Clinton’s Isaiah Borders led all scorers with 29.

The win was the Golden Bears’ second in a row over an NSAC opponent, having downed Atlantis 102-94 on Friday.

SC Central’s next contest is this Friday at Voorhees.

JMU’s Colomb Named POTW

John Melvin (LA) local Tashaun Colomb has started off the season hot for the Millers and has been named the first NSAC Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for the 2024-25 season.

The 5’6″ freshman guard is tops in USCAA in PPG (19.8) among players with at least three games and number one for steals per game (4.5). He posted a career-high 34 points against NCAA D2 Southern University at New Orleans all while maintaining a 4.0 GPA.

Tyler Camplin of John Melvin (FL) receives Honorable Mention.

Congratulations!

Millers Pull Away to Take Tipoff Classic Crown

LEESBURG, FL – John Melvin (LA) led from start to finish in putting away Southeast Christian 99-49 and winning the NSAC Tipoff Classic Wednesday night.

The Millers (2-1 overall, 1-0 NSAC) led 40-20 at the half and continued to gain momentum throughout the game.

“It’s an honor to be a part of the first conference win in school history,” JMU coach Romel Bryant said after the game. “Seeing these players win the Tipoff Classic and develop as players is very humbling.”

Kaimauri Hodges led the Millers with 21 points. Tayshaun Colomb added 15 points and Kyle Roach contributed 12.

It was the first NSAC game for both teams who joined the league this year.

“We had a rough time tonight,” said Eagles coach Dwayne Walker. “We were missing a big, and we also had a lack of aggressive play on both sides of the ball. Way too many turnovers. I know our men will turn this around this upcoming week in Miami.”

Southeast (0-2, 0-1) travels back to South Florida for a rematch against UIC on November 8 and a conference matchup with Atlantis the following day. John Melvin continues its road trip with a game at Florida College on Thursday.

Eagles, Millers to Open NSAC Play Wednesday Night

LEESBURG, FL – New South Athletic Conference men’s basketball sees its first conference game of the year Wednesday night, October 30, as new members Southeast Christian and John Melvin (LA) meet in the 2024 NSAC Tipoff Classic.

The SECC Eagles, in their first year of action, open home play after falling to UIC 82-48 on the road last Friday.

The JMU Millers picked up their first win of the season against Louisiana Community Christian 83-79 last Thursday before falling at Southern University of New Orleans 98-90 on Saturday.

The game will be livestreamed on Baller TV.

Graphic courtesy Southeast Christian College

Builders Picked to Three-Peat

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

In spite of the addition of five new teams to the men’s basketball race, two-time defending NSAC champion Apprentice was picked by the league coaches to take home the crown in 2024-25. The Builders claimed first-place votes from all participating coaches in the NSAC Preseason Poll.

The Builders will have a new head coach as former assistant Michael Gainey, Jr. takes the reins from the departed Evan Kee. But the 2024 USCAA champs return all five starters, including All-American Karree Smith and All-NSAC teammate Adrion Wall.

Mid-Atlantic Christian propelled to second place in the voting behind the strength of its incoming transfers. One coach commented, “On paper, they have one heck of a recruiting class.”

Lighthouse Christian, the 2024 regular season winner, was picked third. The Makos lost the Culpepper brothers to transfer but picked up three impact players in the portal from former NSAC power Blue Lights. Defending conference MVP Eddie Brown also returns to the LCC backcourt.

Newcomer John Melvin Christian (Florida) was a surprising fourth under first-time head coach Colin Doss. “Looks like JMCC has a lot of talent from some upper-level basketball (NAIA, NCAA D2, etc.) coming in,” opined one of the voters.

Atlantis rounds out the top five behind the strength of incoming transfers. “They look like they will be ready to compete every night,” wrote one league coach.

Beacon College, another NSAC newbie, checks in at sixth. The Blazers, led by former NBA great Sam Vincent, return an experienced squad.

John Melvin (Louisiana), Southeast Christian, Central International, and South Carolina Central Christian complete the lineup.

The season opens on October 24 when Southeast travels to Miami to take on the Atlantis JV squad and JMU (LA) hosts Louisiana Community Christian. The Eagles will return home to host the conference-opening NSAC Tipoff Class against the Millers on October 30.

  1. Apprentice – 54 votes (6 first place)
  2. MACU – 38
  3. Lighthouse Christian – 32
  4. John Melvin Christian (Florida) – 30
  5. Atlantis – 27
  6. Beacon – 26
  7. John Melvin (Louisiana) – 18
  8. Southeast Christian – 16
  9. CIC – 12
  10. SC Central – 10