THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, February 21, 1996 TAG: 9602210545
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY RICH RADFORD, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
If the CIAA coaches haven't noticed who the league's hottest freshman is, the NBA has beaten them to the punch.
Antwain Smith, St. Paul's' dazzling forward from Newport News' Ferguson High, is averaging 18 points and 8.6 rebounds for the Tigers, who are experiencing a resurgence of sorts.
Smith was named CIAA rookie of the week and probably deserved to be player of the week after scoring 57 points and grabbing 17 rebounds in two games last week. He netted a season-high 33 points Saturday, although St. Paul's fell to Virginia State 101-95 in overtime.
``This kid could possibly be headed for an early exit,'' St. Paul's coach Ed Joyner said, referring to Smith's possible early entry in the NBA draft pool. ``The Boston Celtics called the other day to ask about him. I've been told that he's already in the NBA's prospects computer.
``I'm not really excited about it and I'm shocked the NBA is tracking him this early. But it's easy to see he has ability.''
Smith quite possibly has become the CIAA's most notorious rim rocker, and Joyner would love to have him around three more years.
``Amtwain's brought us the inside game we've been lacking,'' Joyner said. ``Clearly, the (CIAA's) Northern Division has the more dominant teams, and those teams all have dominant big men. So you need a guy like Antwain to compete.''
With a 93-81 victory over Bowie State on Monday, St. Paul's has won four of its last five to improve to 11-14.
OWENS IS BACK: When Norfolk State visited Shaw near the end of January, the Bears' Billie Owens was suspiciously absent from the lineup as he began what would end up being a five-game suspension.
Shaw coach Keith Walker would not go into the particulars surrounding Owens' suspension, other than to say that Owens needed to ``iron out some personal problems. I felt he needed some time off.''
It's obvious since his return that Owens is all business. The 6-foot senior guard has averaged 21.7 points in seven games since returning to the fold.
``We play well with him,'' Walker said. ``We play well without him. But it's obvious he's a plus.''
Norfolk State could open CIAA tournament play against Shaw next Thursday at 3 p.m. at Winston-Salem's Lawrence Joel Coliseum.
The Spartans will be seeded No. 2 in the Northern Division and will get a first-round bye. They'll meet the winner of a first-round game between the Southern Division's No. 3 seed and the Northern's No. 6 seed. Based on the current standings, that would be Shaw and Virginia State.
COREY UPDATE: Corey Williams, the 1995 CIAA Player of the Year, was back at Norfolk State last week and watched the Spartans defeat Elizabeth City State 88-74 at Echols Arena.
Williams had been playing pro ball in Turkey but left when his club began having financial problems.
``We had a new coach, new management, new everything,'' he said. ``And I wasn't getting paid.''
The 6-foot-8 Williams is hoping to catch on with a team in the Continental Basketball Association. He hasn't ruled out returning to Europe, however.
``Maybe not Turkey,'' he said.
REBOUNDS: The two players getting the most mention from coaches for CIAA Player of the Year? Norfolk State forward Derrick Bryant and North Carolina Central guard Levelle Moton. For anyone whose vote hasn't been decided, Norfolk State hosts N.C. Central in the final game of the regular season Saturday. . . . Former Booker T. Washington player Jabbar Doss has been on a roll. The St. Paul's reserve forward has averaged 12.4 points in the Tigers' last nine games and scored a career-high 26 against Bowie State on Monday. . . Penn surpassed the 1,500-point mark. With 1,513 points he ranks 13th on the Spartans' all-time scoring list. He has made a school-record 197 3-pointers. by CNB