Faulkner advances in SSAC tourney
March 5, 2008
CLEVELAND, Tenn. - Faulkner scored the game's first seven points and never trailed, holding off Southern Poly 71-62 here Wednesday to advance to the semifinals of the Southern States Athletic Conference men's basketball tournament.
The third-seeded Eagles (17-14) face seventh-seeded Emmanuel, which shocked second seed and No. 14 Auburn Montgomery 81-71 in the first round. The semifinal is set to tip off Friday afternoon at 2:15. To make its eighth trip in 10 seasons to the NAIA national tournament later this month in Kansas City, Faulkner must either win the tournament or make the finals against regular season champion Lee.
"I thought our guys really played hard this afternoon, and it's a great feeling to advance in this tournament,'' said Faulkner head basketball coach Jim Sanderson, whose Eagles were upset by Emmanuel 60-57 last Sunday on Faulkner's Senior Day. "Southern Poly is a tough team to play - they're very athletic. We saw some things today that we certainly need to work on and improve. We have an opportunity to do just that Friday afternoon.''
Faulkner's Jon Uriarte hit a long three to open the game, and Jonathan Walker followed with a pair of baskets as the Eagles raced to a 7-0 advantage. Faulkner's lead was only 26-23 in the final two minutes of the half, but the Eagles' Durell Richardson powered in a putback basket, Aaron Greenwood converted a conventional three-point play and Richardson added a free throw to push the lead to 32-23 at halftime.
The Runnin' Hornets refused to wilt in the second half, cutting what was an 11-point deficit down to only four at 60-56 with 4:53 left. On a key Southern Poly possession, with a chance to cut the lead even further, Faulkner's Jeremy Lunn forced a turnover, giving the Eagles both the ball and the momentum. It led to a 7-2 run the extended the lead to 67-58 at the 2:34 mark.
Faulkner made 11 consecutive free throws down the stretch to keep Southern Poly at bay. Faulkner was 30 of 38 from the free-throw line in the game, while Southern Poly converted only 12 of 18. Neither team shot the ball well from the field - Faulkner making only 32 percent of its shots and Southern Poly only 33. Richardson finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Eagles, who also got 14 points and six rebounds from Uriarte. Travis Smith led the Runnin' Hornets with 19 points, while Ledonshay Johnson added 12.
The Eagles won despite having 15 shots blocked and giving up 20 offensive rebounds, which led to a 48-43 Southern Poly advantage on the glass.
"Coming off the loss on Sunday, I think this victory will help our confidence a bit,'' Sanderson said. "It kinda gets the bad taste out of our mouthes. We have a big challenge ahead of us. It will be interesting to see how our players respond.''