THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, February 4, 1997 TAG: 9702040433
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JAMES C. BLACK, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 65 lines
Norfolk State had momentum coming in from two directions Monday evening.
Fueled by Senior Night and Saturday's 23-point loss to Virginia Union, the Spartans charged to a 21-point haltime lead en route to a 79-65 victory over Bowie State in the team's final game of the season at Echols Arena before a crowd of 1,873.
``It was a little bit of both,'' senior Rodney Carmichael said. ``I got a little bit emotional.''
Carmichael and fellow seniors Maurice Whitfield, Darius Blount and Robert Robinson played their final home game in what could be the Spartans' last CIAA contest at Echols Arena. NSU (14-6, 9-3 CIAA), which ends the regular season with five road games, is in the process of applying for Division I status that would be effective in the fall.
But focused more on the immediate future, NSU lit up the scoreboard before the Bulldogs (4-17, 3-11) could get their offense clicking.
The Spartans hit their first five shots in jumping out to a 10-1 lead. For the half, NSU held Bowie State to just 4 for 19 (21 percent) from the field and took a 39-18 lead into the locker room. Half of Bowie State's points came from the free-throw line.
``I thought we played real good in the first half,'' Norfolk State coach Mike Bernard said. ``We played great defense.''
Norfolk State's defense contributed to the team's taking a 10-point lead with 10:38 left in the first half and leading by double digits until 34 seconds remained in the game. The Spartans led by as many as 23.
Perhaps the most pivotal part of NSU's success was keeping Damian Keyes in check. Keyes, who scored a game-high 25 points in the Spartans' 64-58 win over Bowie State last Thursday, finished with a team-high 15 on Monday. He was only 2 for 11 from the field, though.
``We were concerned about Keyes,'' Bernard said of the conference's fourth-leading scorer. ``We wanted to keep two people around him at all times.''
Every time Keyes touched the ball, two Spartans were in his face. He managed to get the ball in the low blocks in the second half and get to the line, where he shot 9 of 16 for the game.
Carmichael also had a long night from the field. The Spartans' leading scorer and rebounder finished with 18 points and 15 rebounds. However, he was only 4 of 12 from the field. He did make 10 of 12 from the line, however.
``Just one of those nights where they did not fall,'' said Carmichael, who finished with his seventh double-double of the season.
As for the other seniors, Robinson finished with 13 points and Whitfield had 15 points and 11 assists. Blount had an assist.
Freshman Greg Jones finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Spartans.
NSU will look for a carryover of that momentum when it starts its road trip Saturday at Virginia State with a 7:30 p.m. contest. ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]
HUY NGUYEN
THE VIRGINIAN PILOT
Norfolk State's Maurice Whitfield gives it his all but Bowie State's
Damian Keyes ends up with the ball during a first-half scramble.
HUY NGUYEN
The Virginian-Pilot
Darius Blount drives on a Bowie State defender during Monday's home
finale at Echols Arena.