Hoopville - Northeast Conference

St. Francis, Pa., Coach Resigns: Bobby Jones stepped down as head coach after nine seasons with St. Francis, Pa. Jones has an 85-167 record with the Red Flash. The team was moving backward, however, finishing 6-23, 8-21 and 4-24 in the last three seasons after going to the conference tournament for three straight seasons. Only the top eight regular-season teams earn a spot in the Northeast Conference tournament. [4/24/08]

East Region - First Round: Sophomore point guard Ty Lawson proved he is healthy and ready to lead No. 1 North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament after providing 21 points, four assists and no turnovers in the Tar Heels' 113-74 blowout against No. 16 Mount St. Mary's. The Tar Heels shot better than 60 percent from the field and had five players in double figures as North Carolina's offense was no match for the Mountaineers. Junior forward Tyler Hansbrough also had 21 points for North Carolina, while senior guard Chris Vann led Mount St. Mary's with 16 points.

No. 2 Tennessee had its hands full with No. 15 American for 38 minutes before pulling away at the end to win 72-57. The Eagles hung with the Volunteers by outrebounding them 37-25 and hitting nine three-pointers. The prolific Tennessee shooters hit only six three-pointers, which helped American remain competitive until late in the second half. Senior guard JaJuan Smith led the Volunteers with 19 points, and junior guard Garrison Carr led all scorers by putting up 26 points for the Eagles. Tennessee has Butler up next.

No. 3 Louisville had no troubles getting past No. 14 Boise State 79-61 to move into the second round against Oklahoma. Sophomore swingman Earl Clark led the Cardinals with 15 points and seven rebounds. Louisville shot better than 55.8 percent from the field, including 50 percent from three-point range.

After battling to a tie midway through the first half, No. 6 Oklahoma went on a 25-6 run spanning halftime to pull away from No. 11 Saint Joseph's. The Sooners' senior guard David Godbold scored 25 points to lead Oklahoma. Senior forward Pat Calathes struggled against Oklahoma's defense, shooting 2-of-11 from the field for only six points. The Sooners were hot on offense, shooting 57.1 percent from the field to help survive a late rally by Saint Joseph's.

No. 7 Butler rained three-pointers on No. 10 South Alabama in a crushing 81-61 win. The Bulldogs hit 15 three-pointers, led by senior forward Pete Campbell's eight long shots. Campbell finished with 26 points to lead Butler, which built a double-digit lead midway through the first half after the Jaguars kept it close during the first 10 minutes. Senior guard Daon Merritt led South Alabama with 14 points, but he was the only Jaguar to score in double figures.

No. 9 Arkansas mercifully brought No. 8 Indiana's controversy-laden season to end with an 86-72 win. Senior swingman Sonny Weems was on fire for the Razorbacks, shooting 12-of-14 for 31 points. He also hit three three-pointers and grabbed five rebounds. Indiana's defense was porous as the defensive-minded Razorbacks shot 54.2 percent from the field. The Hoosiers' freshman point guard Eric Gordon struggled, going 3-of-15 for only eight points and one assist to three turnovers. Indiana coach Kelvin Sampson resigned in February amid NCAA violations for improper recruiting practices. [3/21/08]

Northeast Conference Tournament Championship: No. 4 Mount St. Mary's completed its run in the Northeast Conference Tournament with a 68-55 win at No. 3 Sacred Heart for the conference title and automatic NCAA Tournament bid. The Mountaineers reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1999. The Pioneers rallied in the second half to trail 57-55 before Mount St. Mary's ended the game on an 11-0 run. Freshman guard Jean Cajou and sophomore forward Kelly Beidler scored 15 points apiece to lead Mount St. Mary's. [3/12/08]

Northeast Conference Tournament Semifinals: No. 1 Robert Morris became the first top seed to suffer a major upset in conference tournament action -- beating VCU by a few minutes before the Rams lost to William and Mary in the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament. No. 4 Mount St. Mary's hammered the Colonials 83-65 with four players reaching double figures in scoring, led by sophomore guard Jeremy Goode's 23 points. The Mountaineers will play No. 2 Wagner or No. 3 Sacred Heart for the Northeast Conference championship. No. 3 Sacred Heart led No. 2 Wagner from wire to wire for a 55-49 victory. The Pioneers will host Mount St. Mary's Wednesday with an NCAA Tournament bid on the line. Senior guard Drew Shubik had a great game for the Pioneers, scoring 13 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Sacred Heart won 67-59 in the only meeting at Mount St. Mary's. [3/09/08]

Northeast Conference Tournament Quarterfinals: No. 1 Robert Morris stymied No. 8 Monmouth 64-50 to move into the semifinals against No. 4 Mount St. Mary's. The Colonials won their 26th game of the season by going on 20-6 run late in the second half. Mount St. Mary's got 20 points off the bench from freshman guard Jean Cajou to lead the Mountaineers to an 80-70 victory against No. 5 Quinnipiac.

No. 2 Wagner held off No. 7 Long Island 71-62, as senior guard Mark Porter scored 21 points to help the Seahawks avenge a 20-point regular-season loss at Long Island. In the semifinals, the Seahawks will play No. 3 Sacred Heart, which built a 15-point first-half lead and cruised to an 84-71 victory against No. 6 Central Connecticut State. Senior forward Brice Brooks led the Pioneers with 22 points. [3/06/08]

Mike Rice Takes Over Head Job at Robert Morris: Mike Rice, most recently an assistant coach at Pittsburgh, has become the next head coach at Robert Morris. Rice, 38, is the son of former Duquesne head coach Mike Rice, and was previously an assistant at Fordham, Marquette, Niagara, Chicago State and Saint Joseph's. Rice takes over for Mark Schmidt, who recently became head coach at St. Bonaventure's. Schmidt led Robert Morris to a 17-11 record last year and was 82-90 in six season at the school. [4/30/07]

St. Bonaventure to Announce New Coach: St. Bonaventure has announced its new coach, former Robert Morris coach Mark Schmidt. The struggling Bonnies had been led by Anthony Solomon, who was fired last month after going 24-88 at the school. Schmidt coached at Robert Morris for six years and previously worked as an assistant at Xavier, Penn State and Loyola, Md. [4/11/07]

Quinnipiac Gets Experienced Coach from UConn: Connecticut assistant coach Tom Moore has been named Quinnipiac coach. Moore, part of coach Jim Calhoun's staff and Connecticut' s two national title runs, joined the Huskies in 1994 and was promoted to associate coach before the start of last season. Although Connecticut did not make the postseason with a 17-14 record in 2006-07, Bobcats athletic director Jack McDonald was impressed enough with Moore 's experience to give him the job. Moore will replace 11-year coach Joe DeSantis, who had a 118-188 record and finished this season 14-15. [4/01/07]

South Region - First Round: Freshman Greg Oden looked impressive in his first NCAA Tournament game, leading No. 1 Ohio State with 19 points and 10 rebounds in a 78-57 victory against No. 16 Central Connecticut State. Ohio State's superior depth and talent overmatched the Blue Devils, who essentially played only five players. Senior Javier Mojica led Central Connecticut State with 19 points. Junior Jamar Butler torched the Blue Devils by hitting 5-of-6 three-pointers, scoring 17 points for the game.

When No. 9 Xavier needed someone to step up, the Musketeers' shortest player stood tall. At 5-7, junior Drew Lavender scored the final six points in the Musketeers' thrilling 79-77 victory vs. No. 8 BYU. Lavender hit two floating runners in the lane in the final two minutes, then clinched the game with two free throws. He finished with 17 points. Senior Justin Doellman led Xavier with 23 points. The Cougars' senior Keena Young had a game-high 24 points in the loss.

In a game of runs, No. 3 Texas A&M ended with a long one to put away No. 14 Penn 68-52. The Aggies built a 31-18 lead at halftime but watched the Quakers open the second half with a 21-6 run to take a two-point lead. Texas A&M responded by ending the game on a 31-13 outburst. Senior Acie Law delivered down the stretch, finishing with a game-high 20 points. Junior Dominique Kirk had a big game, scoring 16 points and hitting three three-pointers. Texas A&M will play No. 6 Louisville Saturday.

Playing in front of a partisan crowd of 23,000 in Lexington, Ky., the No. 6 Louisville Cardinals smacked around No. 11 Stanford, winning 78-58 to advance to the second round. Louisville led from start to finish, building a 20-point lead midway through the first half. Five players scored in double figures for Louisville, led by junior David Padgett and freshman Edgar Sosa with 16 points apiece. Freshman big man Brook Lopez was one of only two Stanford players to score in double figures, leading all scorers with 18 points. [3/15/07]

Northeast Conference Tournament Championship: No. 1 Central Connecticut State won a thrilling Northeast Conference championship game against No. 2 Sacred Heart 74-70. The Blue Devils used a 10-0 run in the second half to tie the game. The two teams then traded baskets and remained close until the final buzzer. Javier Mojica led Central Connecticut State with 25 points and 10 rebounds. Mojica hit several critical three-pointers in the second half, much to the delight of the home crowd. [3/07/07]

Northeast Conference Tournament Semifinals: It will be an all-Connecticut Northeast Conference final, as No. 2 Sacred Heart and No. 1 Central Connecticut State will face off. Sacred Heart beat No. 3 Quinnipiac 83-69 as Ryan Litke and Drew Shubik each scored 16 points. Obie Nwadike had 20 points and 12 boards to lift the Central Connecticut State Blue Devils over No. 5 Mount St. Mary's. Jemino Sobers added 20 more points. The two teams will meet Wednesday at 7 on ESPN. [3/04/07]

Northeast Conference Tournament Quarterfinals: Obie Nwadike had 23 points and 11 rebounds, and Northeast Conference Player of the Year Javier Mojica had 12 rebounds as No. 1 Central Connecticut State beat St. No. 8 Francis 79-61. The Blue Devils will play No. 5 Mount St. Mary's Sunday. Mount St. Mary's got 19 points and eight rebounds from Mychal Kearse in beating No. 4 Robert Morris 78-61. Robert Morris shot 28 percent from the field and 1-of-15 from three-point range in the second half.

Although Matt Vitale hit 6-of-11 three-point shots and scored 20 points, No. 7 Wagner fell to No. 2 Sacred Heart 100-68. Sacred Heart had a balanced attack, with five players scoring at least 10 points. Joey Henley led the way for Sacred Heart with 20 points. The team moves on to play No. 3 Quinnipiac, which recovered from an eight-point halftime deficit to beat No. 6 Fairleigh Dickinson 78-77. Van Crofton had 23 for the Bobcats, who shot 9-of-19 from three-point range. [3/01/07]

Jones Hospitalized for Stroke-like Symptoms: St. Francis. Pa., coach Bobby Jones was taken to a hospital as a precaution for what was observed as stroke-like symptoms following his team's 73-63 loss to American. Jones, in his eighth season as St. Francis' coach, felt sick in the first half, and doctors determined his blood pressure had elevated. Although he did finish watching the game from the bench, he left the arena on a stretcher as a safety measure. Jones came to St. Francis after being an assistant coach at Minnesota. He played at Western Kentucky from 1980-82. [1/04/07]

NEC Supervisor Has Apparent Heart Attack in Stands: The Northeast Conference’s supervisor of officials had an apparent heart attack in the stands during the final minutes of Wagner's 72-60 victory vs. Robert Morris. Edgar Cartotto was administered CPR by two New York court officers, according to conference officials. The 18-year NEC supervisor was transported to St. Vincent Hospital on Staten Island by ambulance and is listed in stable conditions. [12/10/06]

Stony Brook Rewards Pikiell for Future Success: Following a 4-24 season, few coaches are fortunate enough to keep their jobs, let alone receive a contract extension. But Stony Brook coach Steve Pikiell defies common logic, largely because he managed to recruit one of the top 40 classes for next season, better than many major-conference programs. With the promise of future success, Stony Brook officials rewarded Pikiell with a contract extension through 2011. That essentially gives the coach a chance to lead Stony Brook to uncharted success with his incoming freshman class. [3/27/06]