THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, March 6, 1995 TAG: 9503060123
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ED MILLER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 49 lines
As expected, both the Norfolk State men's and women's basketball teams were awarded first-round byes in their respective NCAA regional tournaments Sunday afternoon.
The Spartans (24-5) received the No. 2 seed in the South Atlantic Region and will face the winner of a Tuesday night play-in game between No. 3 Johnson C. Smith (20-7) and No. 6 Lenoir-Rhyne (18-12). Norfolk State will play the semifinal game Friday night at 7 at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Fayetteville, N.C.
Norfolk State beat J.C. Smith, 84-79, on Jan. 7. The Spartans have never played Lenoir-Rhyne.
The other men's semi will match No. 1 Virginia Union (25-4) against the winner of a play-in game Tuesday between No.4 Shaw (19-8) and No. 5 Longwood (19-8). That semifinal will be held Friday at 9 at the Cumberland County Civic Center.
The Spartanettes (25-4) captured the South Atlantic's No. 1 seed and could also get their wish of hosting the regional semifinals. Norfolk State will face the winner of a play-in game Tuesday between No. 4 Wingate (22-5) and No. 5 Carson-Newman (21-8) in a semifinal Friday.
If Wingate wins the play-in game, Norfolk State will host the regional semifinals and final. If Carson-Newman wins, No. 2 seed South Carolina-Spartanburg will host.
``It has to do with geographics and the mileage between the schools,'' said Jan Kiger of Indiana University of Pennsylvania, who announced the women's pairings and sites at a teleconference Sunday. ``We're limited in the number of teams that can fly.''
The Division II selection committee tries to ensure that each regional site is within 400 miles of the four teams participating. Carson-Newman, located in Jefferson City, Tenn., is more than 400 miles from Norfolk and is closer to Spartanburg.
The other women's semifinal will pit South Carolina-Spartanburg against the winner of a play-in game between No. 3 Presbyterian (20-7) and No. 6 Longwood (20-7).
The winner of the regional tournaments will advance to the Division II Elite Eight. The men's Elite Eight will be held March 22-25 in Louisville, Ky. The women's Elite Eight will be March 22-25 and will be hosted by one of the teams in the tournament. by CNB