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Nov. 23, 2007
SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas - The University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) could not find an answer for the big men of Valparaiso University in a 66-55 loss in the third round of the South Padre Island Invitational on Friday afternoon. "We just had no post presence today," said Interim Head Coach Meredith Smith. "We have got to figure out a way to get our big men in the game and they need to start showing some intensity." Once again it was junior Ed Tyson (Baltimore, Md./Walbrook H.S.) leading the Hawk scoring attack with 22 points on 10-of-12 free throw shooting. Smith made good on his word to find Tyson some help as Marc Davis (Baltimore, Md./Walbrook H.S.) and Denzel Jackson (Philadelphia, Pa./Lincoln H.S.) added 10 and eight points respectively for the Hawks. "You can count on Tyson every time he steps onto the floor," said Smith. "I am pleased with the way Davis and Jackson performed today and I believe the team is learning and improving with each game." In a first half that featured three ties and four lead changes, UMES (1-4) went into the break down only one, 27-26. The Hawks seemed to do everything right during the first twenty minutes but contain Urule Igbavboa and Bryan Bouchie who combined for 22 points and six rebounds, including five offensive rebounds, for the Crusaders. Valparaiso (3-1) managed to extend their lead to 48-38 on a Shawn Huff dunk plus a free throw with 9:47 remaining in the second half. However, a Tyson three-pointer would spark a ten to two run that would cut the lead to 50-48 with 5:22 left. The Crusaders responded with a pair of free throws but a Tyson jumper with 4:06 left would cut the lead back to two. A lay-in by Igbavboa and two free throws by Bouchie extended the Valparaiso lead back to six with 3:23 left in the game.
UMES would cut the lead to four on a Josh Bright (Salisbury, Md./Morgan State University) jumper, however; the Crusaders would answer with back-to-back baskets to take a 60-52 lead with just over two minutes left. The Hawks made one last push on an Ishmawiyl McFadden (Philadelphia, Pa./Simon Gratz H.S.) three-pointer that trimmed the lead to 60-55 with 1:44 remaining. That was the closest UMES would come as Bouchie made yet another jumper with just over a minute left to clinch the win for the Crusaders. He led all scorers with 23 points and finished tied for a game-high nine rebounds with teammate Igbavboa who added 15 points. Jarryd Loyd also chipped in with eight points. After shooting 36.4 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range in the first half, the Crusaders defense held the Hawks to19.4 percent field-goal shooting and 18.2 percent three-point shooting in the second half. Valparaiso also out rebounded (50 to 35) and blocked more shots (seven to two) than the Hawks. The shooting woes of the Hawks proved costly as Valparaiso dominated inside on the offensive end, outscoring the Hawks 38 to 14 in the paint. They also held the advantage on the offensive boards (19 to 10). For the second consecutive game the Hawks limited their mistakes by committing only 11 turnovers, while forcing 16 miscues by their opponent. UMES took advantage by scoring eight more points off turnovers (19 to 11) than Valparaiso. They also out shot the Crusaders from the free-throw line 82.1 percent to 60.6 percent, including a perfect eight-for-eight in the first half. "It is another tough loss for the team," said Smith. "I felt we were in a good position to win this game but the bottom line is we just got outworked in the post." UMES concludes the South Padre Island Invitational in the consolation game of the "B" bracket against Florida Gulf Coast University on Saturday, November 24. The game starts at 1:00 E.T. and can be heard on WTGM-AM 960 The Team or live on the internet at www.umeshawks.com. |
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