L15 NTT63

Season 63 National Invitational Tournament

When Casper and Mobile played each other in the tournament final, it was both team's 2nd appearance in the title game. Casper lost to Phoenix in season 57 while Mobile lost in Season 59 to Boston. Casper made the Season 62 NTT, losing in the Sweet 16 while Mobile was upset in the first round of last seasons NTT.

Prior to the tournament, the top ranked team was Fargo followed by Pensacola, Detroit and Bangor.

Brackets

Northwest Region

	First round					Second round					Semifinals					Finals
	1	Fargo	63
	16	Canton	56
						8	Montpelier	74
						1	Fargo	72
	8	Montpelier	81
	9	Laramie	57
											8	Montpelier	96
										5	Nashville	86
	5	Nashville	70
	12	Corpus Christi	65
						5	Nashville	84
						4	Birmingham	83
	4	Birmingham	82
	13	Denver	70
																7	Olympia	72
															8	Montpelier	62
	3	Clemson	67
	14	Utica	66
						6	Reading	59
						3	Clemson	58
	6	Reading	69
	11	Plainview	57
											7	Olympia	70
										6	Reading	55
	7	Olympia	70
	10	Norfolk	67
						7	Olympia	84
						2	Del Mar	67
	2	Del Mar	111
	15	Boca Raton	78

Southwest Region

	First round					Second round					Semifinals					Finals
	1	Pensacola	101
	16	Beaumont	92
						1	Pensacola	82
						9	Syracuse	63
	9	Syracuse	82
	8	St. Paul	78
											1	Pensacola	77
										5	Durham	75
	5	Durham	82
	12	Colorado Springs	81
						5	Durham	79
						13	Cincinnati	67
	13	Cincinnati	63
	4	Lansing	39
																2	Casper	102
															1	Pensacola	89
	3	Jersey City	77
	14	Ann Arbor	69
						11	Columbus	89
						3	Jersey City	82
	11	Columbus	61
	6	Fresno	50
											2	Casper	71
										11	Columbus	47
	7	Salt Lake City	75
	10	Baltimore	70
						2	Casper	90
						7	Salt Lake City	81
	2	Casper	91
	15	Yuma	78

Northeast Region

	First round					Second round					Semifinals					Finals
	1	Detroit	91
	16	Tucsaloosa	66
						1	Detroit	94
						9	Scranton	80
	9	Scranton	86
	8	Cambridge	76
											1	Detroit	100
										12	Bethlehem	61
	12	Bethlehem	89
	5	Huntington Beach	79
						12	Bethlehem	95
						4	Knoxville	94
	4	Knoxville	84
	13	Shreveport	76
																1	Detroit	100
															6	Dayton	80
	14	Peoria	85
	3	Jersey City	76
						6	Dayton	91
						14	Peoria	87
	6	Dayton	75
	11	Orlando	64
											6	Dayton	81
										2	Phoenix	74
	7	Chicago	78
	10	Blacksburg	76
						2	Phoenix	85
						7	Chicago	83
	2	Phoenix	86
	15	Asheville	62

Southeast Region

	First round					Second round					Semifinals					Finals
	1	Bangor	90
	16	Kansas City	45
						9	Sacramento	86
						1	Bangor	73
	9	Sacramento	80
	8	Hot Springs	78
											5	Mobile	81
										9	Sacramento	61
	5	Mobile	97
	12	San Jose	94
						5	Mobile	85
						13	Santa Ana	70
	13	Santa Ana	71
	4	Pierre	61
																5	Mobile	71
															6	Lake Tahoe	66
	3	Naples	81
	4	Little Rock	69
						6	Lake Tahoe	81
						3	Naples	71
	6	Lake Tahoe	75
	11	Tucson	64
											6	Lake Tahoe	77
										7	Aberdeen	58
	7	Aberdeen	99
	10	Alexandria	75
						10	Aberdeen	68
						2	Jacksonville	67
	2	Jacksonville	67
	15	Rochester	57

Final Four

	Semi-finals				Final
	Casper	85
	Olympia	79
					Casper	89
					Mobile	79
	Mobile	87
	Detroit	75

Game Summaries

Northwest Region

First round

(1) Fargo 63 - (16) Canton 56 Down by 9 at the half, the Wood Chippers didn't panic as they knew they still had a good 20 minutes left in them. That they did as they outscored Canton 32-16 in the second half as Fernando Hooper and Vincent Dawson combined for 16 points while Hooper added 15 rebounds. Canton's Jonathon Bradley scored 17 points but only hit 5-14 shots from the field.

(8) Montpelier 81 - (9) Laramie 57 The Cigarettes never was in this game as the Greyhounds struck quick and often. Travis McCormick led Montpelier with a 19 points, 7 rebound performance, despite being in foul trouble, while forward, Scott Depace, added 7 and 11 rebounds. Ronnie Lynch led Laramie in scoring with 12 points while dishing out 4 assists.

(5) Nashville 70 - (12) Corpus Christi 65 The Soup Rocks were in control most of the game until a huge 8 point spurt by Craig Hodges gave Nashville the lead for good late in the second half. Hodges, who recently moved to point guard, ended the night 9-18 for 25 points while Kenneth Vasquez added 15. Ray Tague was held to just 3-13 shooting by Corpus Christi's, Don Qualls who had a big night of 15 points, 9 rebounds in the loss.

(4) Birmingham 82 - (13) Denver 70 Denver kept this game close most of the way, hitting 7-16 three pointers, but in the second half the Jail pulled away for good, keeping close to a 10 point lead most of the way. Birmingham point guard, Brent Ferguson scored 18 points as well as having 4 assists while forward, James Lalonde scored 14 and added 6 boards. Forward Anthony Curley from Denver had a game high 22 points but it wasn't enough in the end.

(3) Clemson 67 - (14) Utica 66 Clemson's Mark Sunderland hit a midrange shot with 6 seconds left to win the game for the Gunners against a gritty Utica squad. It was back and forth all game, with the Clubbers holding the lead most of the time, but in the end it was Clemson who pulled it out. Sunderland ended the game with 20 points on 8-12 shooting while forward, Todd King, added 15 while Utica's sophomore, Wally Richmond led his squad with 20 points.

(6) Reading 69 - (11) Plainview 57 Reading played stifling defense, holding Plainview to just 57 points as they forced the game into a slow grinding matchup which favored the Jammers. Reading forward, Gabriel Gunn shot 7-10 from the field for 16 points and added 6 rebounds and 4 assists while Cole Patino scored 14 on 5-7 shooting. Kenneth Salgado led the Paint Pioneers with 14 points but with only one other player scoring in double figures, it was far from what they needed to pull off the upset.

(7) Olympia 70 - (10) Norfolk 67 Norfolk was down by 3 at the half, took a 9 point early in the second half, but Olympia kept pushing and pushing until they eeked out a 3 point victory in the end. Four players scored in double figures for the Dukakis, led by Alan Lancaster's 13 point, 8 rebound effort while Norfolk got 17 points each out of Justin Crowell and Harold Luu. Turnovers were key in this one as the Nimrods committed 23 to just 11 by Olympia.

(2) Del Mar 111 - (15) Boca Raton 78 The Acey Duecy served notice in their region, putting up 111 points in a total domination of the Wheezing Senior. Tom Cruise was in serious foul trouble from the beginning for Del Mar, but freshmen, Paul Pirtle, came up huge in a big way off the bench, shooting 11-24 from the field, scoring 29 points, grabbing 6 rebounds and dishing out 6 assists, wow! Eric Roe added 26 points and 8 boards. Boca Raton was led by Larry Watson who scored 15 points and dished out 5 assists.

Second Round

(8) Montpelier 74 - (1) Fargo 72

The round of 16 started with a good one as Montpelier, a tough squad from conference 6 battled with the undefeated Fargo Woodchippers. The game was back and forth until the Greyhounds took a solid lead for most of the second half. Fargo made a furious comeback in the last minutes, but Montpelier continued to hit shots when it mattered. Deon Pryor had a shot with 2 seconds left to pull off a win, but it clanged off the rim as Montpelier moves on to the Sweet 16. Four players scored in double digits for Monteplier, led by Douglas Tillman's 17. Pryor and Fernando Hooper, Fargo's bigtime center, both scored 17 in the loss.

(5) Nashville 84 - (4) Birmingham 83

Craig Hodges shot with 19 seconds left put the game into O.T. and then Tash Brice hit his second free throw attempt in the extra period to send Nashville onto the 3rd round. The Birmingham faithful were clearly upset with the foul call on Brice's jumper with a second left, but the Nashville center's second point of the game was the most important. Craig Hodges, the Blue Blazes captain and point guard, led his squad with a 25 point outing while Ray Tague added 14 before fouling out. Birmingham's Stephen Mcquay dominated the inside, ripping down 18 rebounds to go along with his 15 points.

(6) Reading 59 - (3) Clemson 58

Clemson had two good shots for the win and missed both as the Jammers escaped with a win after leading most of the second half. Phillip Pearce missed a short shot for the Gunners with 2 seconds left but couldn't get off another shot after grabbing his own rebound as time expired. Reading forward, Gabriel Gunn, led the Jammers with 20 points and 5 rebounds while Jeffrey Pullen added 18 on 9-16 shooting. Clemson's Mark Sunderland, went 7-10 from the field for 18 points.

(7) Olympia 84 - (2) Del Mar 67

It was 4 for 4 for the underdogs in the Northwest bracket as Olympia continued the upset streak, not only beating the #2 seed, but in convincing fashion. I can't say enough about the job the Dukakis guard, Thaddeus Montague did on guarding Del Mar's star, Raymond Manning. Montague held Manning to just 9 points on 3-9 shooting as the Acey Duecy could not get anything going against the swarming Olympia defense. Alan Lancaster came up huge for the Dukakis, scoring 26 points on 12-16 shooting and grabbing 11 rebounds.

Regional Semifinals (Sweet Sixteen)

(8) Montpelier 96 - (5) Nashville 86

Nashville held a lead for most of the game until a huge spurt with 5 minutes to go left Montpelier in control. K Vasquez hit a big 3 pointer with 2 seconds left in regulation to put the game into overtime where the Greyhounds easily took control and put the Blue Blaze away without star, Craig Hodges who had fouled out before the extra period started. Douglas Tillman was unreal for Montpelier, hitting 14-19 from the field for 30 points while Travis McCormick added 18 and 6 rebounds. Hodges scored 29 for Nashville before fouling out. The Greyhounds dominated the glass, outrebounding Nashville by a count of 44-25.

(7) Olympia 70 - (6) Reading 55

Reading just could not hang with the Dukakis for 40 minutes. They came back from a few big leads but in the second half, Thaddeus Montague and Alan Lancaster took control, scoring a combined 32 points for Olympia. Randall Highfill added 9 points, 5 assists and 12 rebounds, dominating the inside as well. The Dukakis contested nearly every Reading shot throughout the game, causing the Jammers to go 0-8 from the outside and 26-68 from the field.

Regional Final (Elite Eight)

(7) Olympia 72 - (8) Montpelier 62

It was a close game through the first half as both teams went back and forth, but it was all Olympia in the second half as they began to slowly pull away.

6'9 senior, Alan Lancaster, for the Dukakis was simply sensational, shooting 9-13 from the field, scoring 23 points and grabbing 9 rebounds. He went 2-3 from behind the arc and 3-4 from the line. Peter Koenig, Olympia's senior point guard added 12 and 3 assists while senior forward, Gary Fay scored 10, grabbed 4 rebounds and had 3 steals. A big key however, for Olympia was the play of 7'2 Randall Highfill. The sophomore center ripped down 11 rebounds, as the Dukakis dominated inside the paint.

Montpelier, Travis McCormick shot 11-17 from the field for 24 points and grabbed 9 boards himself, but it seemed like he was the only player to show up as the Dukakis clamped down on everyone else. Coach 4dexrun just couldn't get anyone else going, even Douglas Tillman was held to just 9 points as Thaddeus Montague shadowed him throughout the game.

Southwest Region

First Round

(1) Pensacola 101 - Beaumont 92

The Gulf Bandits fought off a furious rally by Beaumont in the second half, needing everything they had to hold them off in the end as the Crocks played a fantastic game in which they were outmanned. Three players scored over 20 points for Pensacola, led by Rod Crick's 29 points. Ray Jacobson and Clifford Heard both added 22 while Long Oneill scored 24 for Beaumont in the loss. There were 51 fouls called in this one as both teams battled hard inside.

(9) Syracuse 82 - (8) St. Paul 78

It was St. Paul's first real test this season, but in the end Syracuse was a bit to much for the Saints, despite being outrebounded 37-27. Syracuse shooting guard, Arturo Hopper hit 10-17 shots for 26 points while Clayton Curry Jr. added 17. The Snipers got great bench play as well, getting 23 points from the reserves while St. Paul was led by Brevin Parker's 26 point, 7 rebound effort.

(5) Durham 82 - (12) Colorado Springs 81

Durham scored just 10 points in the last 9 minutes and barely held off the hard charging Top Guns. Freshmen, Andrew Ludwig led the Devils in scoring with 19 points and added 8 boards while Billy Lee shot 8-11 for 17 points. Jerry Neal led the Top Guns with 29 points but the Top Guns shot just 6-20 from behind the arc.

(13) Cincinnati 63 - (4) Lansing 39

Wow, what a defensive performance put on by the Dreads as they held Lansing to just 14-47 from the field. The Dreads dominated the glass as well, outrebounding the Fever, 32-19. Only 3 players scored in double figures total as Cincinnati was determined to keep the pace slow while playing stifling defense. Israel Bell scored 10 points and grabbed 6 rebounds for the Dreads, leading the team in both.

(3) Jersey City 77 - (14) Ann Arbor 69

Jersey City jumped out early and kept the pressure on all game as they hit 9-17 from downtown in a game that was over late in the second half. Alex Paulley led the Jesters with 20 points while forward Frank Finley crashed the boards for 12 rebounds in the win. Ann Arbor got a solid game out of point guard, Carl Richardson, who dished out 8 assists to go along with his 13 points.

(11) Columbus 61 - (6) Fresno 50

The Funk could never recover from a 20-9 deficit as the Scarlet & Gray pulled off the minor upset. Roberto Forsythe and Monroe Bello each scored 15 points for Columbus while reserve guard, Robbie DeWeerd scored 15 for Fresno in the loss. Columbus is known for it's solid defense and tonight they played one of their better games defensively.

(7) Salt Lake City 75 - (10)Baltimore 70

The defending champions are still alive as they barely escaped a Baltimore comeback. The Couch Bombers, Alfred Barker, led all scorers with 24 points, but the Stormin' Mormon used a team effort to pull this one out and continue their quest for back to back titles. Troy Stivers led Salt Lake City with 16 points and 7 rebounds while Dewey Bowman added 14 and 4 assists.

(2) Casper 91 - (15) Yuma 78

This one was closer than the final score looked as Yuma stuck around all game, even having a slight lead late in the second half before all-world guard, Quincy Day scored 10 in a row for the Hania, putting the game out of reach. Day finished the night with 41 points on 17-29 shooting, hitting 5 three pointers while forward, Christopher Bickford added 16. The Black Knights were led by Jack Pittman's 24 points on 10-16 shooting.

Second Round

(1) Pensacola 82 - (9) Syracuse 63

As the Northwest was watching all upsets, the Gulf Bandits were having no part of it as they jumped up on Syracuse and never looked back. Pensacola dominated the boards and played fantastic defense, not allowing the Snipers any easy shots. Rod Crick was yet again dominating inside, hitting 7-13 shots for 16 points and 9 rebounds while Walter Helton dished out 9 assists to just 1 turnover. The Syracuse guard combo of Clayton Curry Jr. and Arturo Hopper were the only players effective for the Snipers, combining for 47 points on 19-32 shooting.

(5) Durham 79 - (13) Cincinnati 67

The Devils controlled the tempo most of the game, dominating the boards and shooting 33-60 from the field, despite the Dreads pressure defense. Billy Lee led Durham with 25 points while freshmen, Andrew Ludwig grabbed a game high 10 rebounds. Vic Covington scored 19 points for Cincinnati and grabbed 5 rebounds in the loss as Durham advances to the Sweet 16 for the 2nd straight year.

(11) Columbus 89 - (3) Jersey City 82

The second half was all Columbus as the Scarlet & Gray knocks off the 3 seed. Despite winning the rebounding margin, Jersey City simply couldn't keep up with the quicker Columbus scorers as they continued to foul them all game long. The Scarlet & Gray hit 24-33 from the line while the Jesters went to the line just 6 times, hitting all 6. Jersey City also committed 14 turnovers to just 4 for Columbus as well. Robert Forsythe was Columbus leading scorer with 22 but the play of forward Stephen Duncan was big, hitting 6-8 from the field and going 6-7 from the line for 18 points and added 6 rebounds. Chester Sitton scored 16 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in the loss for Jersey City.

(2) Casper 90 - (7) Salt Lake City 81

The game was tied at 81 with 1:45 left, but the Hania took control, hitting their free throws and put the game away in the final minute. Casper hit 17-20 from the line while shooting over 50% from the field as they knocked off the defending champion, Stormin' Mormon. Quincy Day led the Hania with 22 points while Alex Gittens added 17 and 6 assists. Kirk Welch led Salt Lake City with 21 points and 7 assists from the shooting guard spot.

Regional Semifinals (Sweet Sixteen)

(1) Pensacola 77 - (5) Durham 75

Durham blew a 5 point lead with just minutes left as the Gulf Bandits closed the game out with a 7-0 run. While Andrew Ludwig of the Devils played a big game defensively, holding Rod Crick of Pensacola to just 8 points, it was his turnover with 9 seconds left that gave Pensacola the final shot with Jarrod Davis hit, moving the top seed on. Davis ended the night with 29 points while his backup, Ray Jacobson added 13. Billy Lee scored 17 points for Durham before fouling out early in the second half.

(2) Casper 71 - (11) Columbus 47

Casper let Columbus hang around for a bit, then they turned their defense up a notch, and starting crashing the boards while pulling away for good. Superstar, Quincy Day was awesome again, scoring 21 points while Christopher Bickford shot 6-9 for 14 points. Stephen Duncan led Columbus with 13 and 5 rebounds, but the Scarlet & Gray could never get anything going against the much more athletic Hania.

Regional Final (Elite Eight)

(2) Casper 102 - (1) Pensacola 89

Quincy Day folks. Just watching him at work gives me the chills. Casper's 6'5 senior guard has been super, scintillating and sensational all season long and in the round of 8 it wasn't any different as Day scored 37 points on 12-18 shooting, including going 10-13 from the line. The ref's did play a big part in this one, nobody can deny that as the Hania went to the line 42 times, converting 31 while Pensacola went just 10-12.

Both teams shot well overall however, but Casper surprisingly, won the battle of the boards as Sean Connery had a 16 point, 8 rebounding effort, beating up on both Howard Thomas, who fouled out in just 24 minutes of play and Ricky Carter, Pensacola's freshmen backup center. Alex Gittens scored 11 points and dished out 7 assists for the Hania while Christopher Bickford scored 15 on 5-7 shooting.

Jarrod Davis and Rod Crick combined for 45 points for Pensacola in the loss, but losing both Walter Helton and Howard Thomas to foul problems really hurt. Casper already had more overall depth, and the Gulf Bandits just couldn't keep up with fouls being called on nearly every play it seemed. The Hania were definitely the more overall athletic team, so it was tough for Pensacola to keep up.

Northeast Region

First Round

(1) Detroit 91 - (16) Tuscaloosa 66

Detroit continues to just destroy anyone in their path as they knock off a gritty Tuscaloosa squad by nearly 30 points, despite Wilbert Farber having one of his worst games as a collegiate player. It was Bob Kelso who stepped up big, scoring 21 points and grabbing 15 rebounds for the Audacity, while guard, Peter Shanklin, came off the bench, hitting 8-11 shots for 23 points. Vernon Spence hounded Farber all night long, winning the head to head matchup with 19 points while Farber had just 9 on 3-8 shooting.

(9) Scranton 86 - (8) Cambridge 76

The Foo Dogs went into the half with a comfortable 12 points lead, but were outscored 53-31 the rest of the way as Scranton moves on. All five starters scored in double digits for the Scrappers, led by freshmen forward, Bryan Nakamura's 23 points while Robert Toms added 19. Harold Carpenter scored 21 points for Cambridge on 8-11 shooting but fouls were a one sided affair as Scranton went to the line 25 times to just 12 for the Foo Dogs.

(12) Bethlehem 89 - (5) Huntington Beach 79

Bethlehem was not intimidated by Huntington Beach's height as they outrebounded the much bigger Cows, 32-27 on their way to a 10 point victory in which they controlled the game every bit of the way. The Wisemen got a huge performance out of center, Ryan Allen who scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while Ernie Baisley went 4-4 for 9 points in just 14 minutes. Jarrod Breaux led Huntington beach with 23 points in the losing effort.

(4) Knoxville 84 - (13) Shreveport 76

The Skatelites remain undefeated as they shot nearly 60% from the field, knocking off Shreveport by 8. The Skatelites forward, Kendrivk Curtis shot 10-16 from the field, scoring 23 points and grabbing 6 rebounds, while Steven Todd led the team with precision, dishing out 7 assists to just 1 turnover. Eugene Potter scored 19 for the Snagboaters while Mark Kirby added 12 points.

(14) Peoria 85 - (3) Jersey City 76

A huge 3 pointer with 5 seconds left by Panama City's, Jess Bickett, put this one into overtime and the momentum looked to be on their side, but in the extra period the River Bandits were on fire, scoring 20 points in overtime to pull off the night's biggest upset. Mo Cline led the River Bandits with 20 points and 10 rebounds while Oliver Seaberg added 13 points and 11 boards. The Surfin' Siafu, despite the stinging loss got 21 points from Bickett and 19 from forward Brandon Loh.

(6) Dayton 75 - (11) Orlando 64

Dayton used a big run late in the second half to pull away in a dead even game most of the way. Kenny Reed scored 23 for the Kingslayers, shooting 8-13 from the field while Ken George for the Bluefish scored 26. The Kingslayers went 20-23 from the charity stripe, while holding the Bluefish to just 1-11 from behind the arc in what probably proved the difference.

(7) Chicago 78 - (10) Blacksburg 76

Blacksburg, fueled by an 18-2 run to start off the second half, came roaring back and nearly pulled this one out. Chicago's point guard, Andrew Stafford scored 23 points to lead his team, despite shooting just 8-21 from the field while Nathan Browning added 15. Paul Roberts and Quirt Coleman combined for 44 points for the Hokies in the loss. The Art Institute finished the game shooting just 27-70, but hit 11-33 three point attempts.

(2) Phoenix 86 - (15) Asheville 62

Phoenix's Doyle Mcgonagle was nearly perfect from the field, shooting 8-10 for 19 points and 5 rebounds in just 23 minutes while Theodore Henley was big off the bench with 18 points in just 15 minutes. Asheville just could never get anything going against the grinding Eunuch squad, despite Waylong Coughlin's 18 points. Phoenix's bench accounted for 42 points in this one, once again showing how deep coach Kmoney's squad is again this season.

Second Round

Top Seeded Detroit won by double digits again, knocking off #9 Scranton, 94-80. #12 Bethlehem won a tough overtime game against #4 Knoxville, 95-94. #6 Dayton also won in overtime against #14 Peoria, 91-87. #2 Phoenix survived against #7 Chicago, 85-83 as the Art Institue missed two free throws in the final seconds.

Regional Semifinals (Sweet Sixteen)

(1) Detroit 100 - (12) Bethlehem 61

Spotting the Audacity a 18-4 lead is never good and the night didn't get any better for the Wisemen from there as Detroit was relentless once again. Wilbert Farber led Detroit with 23 points and 6 rebounds while Casey Morgan and Cole Alley each added 17. Bob Kelso ripped down 14 rebounds on the inside for the Audacity as well. Only 2 players could score in double figures for Bethlehem as Oscar Ritter and Ryan Allen each scored just 10.

(6) Dayton 81 - (2) Phoenix 74

With nearly a 20 point lead going into the half, Dayton had to be feeling pretty good, holding Phoenix to just 29 points while putting up 48 of their own. However that lead quickly erased in the second half and the Kingslayers found themselves up by just one point with 10:00 left on the clock. Kudos to coach Byron though, as he took a timeout, regrouped his players and they took control once again, knocking off the Eunuchs and advancing to the Elite Eight for the second straight year. Tiger Woods led Dayton with 22 points and 9 rebounds while Lyle Dunn added 18. Phoenix had 5 players score in double figures led by Doyle Mcgonagle's 18 point effort.

Regional Final (Elite Eight)

(1) Detroit 100 - (6) Dayton 80

Dayton gave everything it had, keeping up with the Audacity for most of the game until Detroit finally pulled away late in the second half. They shot 10-21 from downtown, however Detroit hit 9-12 of their own. In the end it was the Audacity's suffocating defense and high powered offense who once again prevailed. Wilbert Farber shot 8-12 from the field, scoring 24 points and grabbing 8 rebounds while Casey Morgan, Cole Alley and backup guard, Peter Shanklin all added 17 each for Detroit. Dayton forced Morgan into 5 turnovers, but with the way the Audacity was shooting, they could afford it as as a team, they went 37-62 from the field and 17-18 from the charity stripe. Dayton got a great game out of Lyle Dunn, who shot 9-14 from the field for 24 points while hitting 4 trifecta's. Kenny Reed chipped in 13 of his own but Tiger Woods was shut down by Detroit's Cole Alley, scoring only 8 points on a 3-13 night. The Kingslayers played a real solid game overall, but Detroit was just to big and physical for them.

Southeast Region

First Round

(1) Bangor 90 - (16) Kansas City 45

Bangor jumped out to a 25-6 lead and never looked back as they easily disposed of the 16th seeded Sasquatch, holding them to just 15-53 shooting from the field. J.J. Carr scored 20 points and dished out 5 assists for the Black Bears while Sanford Wick addd 16 and 7 rebounds.

(9) Sacramento 80 - (8) Hot Springs 78

Kenneth Gallagher missed a deep 2 point attempt with 7 seconds left that could have tied it, ending the Orange KRUSH seniors glorious career in Hot Springs, despite leading all scorers with 28 points. The State Hornets countered with a big game out of Devin Seabolt, who scored 20 and 14 out of Spencer Sanders. Fouls were key as Hot Springs committed 22 to just 13 for Sacramento, as the State Hornets shot 22-27 from the free throw line.

(5) Mobile 97 - (12) San Jose 94

It was a tight game most of the way through in which Mobile led most of the time as they held off the Hammerheads and moved on to the round of 32. Forward, Floyd Rogers led the Control KAOS with 23 points while Gil Ham added 22. Five players scored in double figures for San Jose, but it wasn't enough in the end.

(13) Santa Ana 71 - (4) Pierre 61

The chants of overrated were abundant and loud as Pierre didn't look sharp at all, falling to the Reindeer by 10. Thomas Nally, Randy Jolly and Clayton Brode all scored 17 a piece for Santa Ana in the win while sophomore center, Woody Wells led Pierre with 20 points.

(3) Naples 81 - (14) Little Rock 69

Naples jumped out early and Little Rock simply couldn't mount a comeback as the Peanuts dominated the glass and shot 61% from the field in a well put together game for Naples. Henry Malec led the Peanuts with 24 points on 9-12 shooting while Nicholas Dubse added 8 points and 11 rebounds. The Dirty Bandits, Hubie Black, played his last meaningful game with spirit, scoring 24 points as he ended a fantastic career.

(6) Lake Tahoe 75 - (11) Tucson 64

An 8 point second half lead by Tucson was quickly erased as Lake Tahoe held the Tribe to just 3 points in the final 8 minutes. All five starters scored in double digits for the White Russians, led by point guard, Jean Jackman's 16 point, 5 assist performance. Marc White scored 19 for Tucson in the loss but in the end, Lake Tahoe's outside game, hitting 11 three pointers was to much for the Tribe.

(7) Aberdeen 99 - (10) Alexandria 75

The Redmen looked sharp in every phase of the game as they blew out the 10 seed by 24. Frank Wiles scored 29 points for Aberdeed while Garfield McDowell shot 7-11, scoring 16 points and grabbing 7 rebounds. The Flyers were led by Rick Collinsworth's 16 point, 5 rebound performance. Aberdeen dominated the glass, outrebounding Alexandria 38-24 while also going 9-19 from downtown.

(2) Jacksonville 67 - (15) Rochester 57

Jacksonville shot 22-25 from the free throw line to just 7-11 for the Rhinos as Rochester simply couldn't keep up with the more athletic Drop-Step. Ethan Foran scored 19 for Jacksonville while Woodrow Lenard added 10 points and 9 rebounds. The Rhinos were led by Richard Orr's 12 points while also getting 11 and 7 rebounds from Wiley Groves.

Second Round

The top seed fell in the second round as #9 Sacramento easily got past #1 Bangor, 86-73. #5 Mobile pushed the pedal to the medal, blowing out #13 Santa Ana, 85-70. #6 Lake Tahoe fought off a second half comeback by #3 Naples, holding on with a 81-71 victory and the other top seed fell as #2 Jacksonville missed a shot to win, bowing out to #10 Aberdeen, 68-67.

Regional Semifinals (Sweet Sixteen)

(5) Mobile 81 - (9) Sacramento 61

The game was close for most of the first half until the Control KAOS went on a spurt, which continued into the second half as they put the game out of reach. Four players scored in double figures for Mobile, led by Clyde Fosters 22 points. Floyd Rogers and reserve forward John Franco each had 12 as well. The State Hornets got 26 points out of William Douglas but he didn't get much help as only Devin Seabolt (14 points) scored over 8 points.

(6) Lake Tahoe 77 - (7) Aberdeen 58

The White Russians have been playing fantastic basketball the past few weeks and it continued tonight as they easily got past an always well coached Aberdeen squad. Jean Jackman led Lake Tahoe with 19 points and 5 assists while John Wagner grabbed 12 rebounds to go along with 7 points. The Redmen struggled to get anything going, especially from outside the arc where they went 6-19. Gary Abbas led Aberdeen with 15 points but shot 1-7 from downtown.

Regional Final (Elite Eight)

(5) Mobile 71 - (6) Lake Tahoe 66

Mobile led most of the game, until a big run by the White Russians took a slight lead. Who was the hero in this one? Backup forward, John Franco of the Control KAOS. The 6'7 senior scored all 8 of his points in a row, late in the second half to give Mobile the lead for good. It was an amazing spurt as Franco shot 3-4 and hit both of his free throw attempts in a 4 minute span.

Mobile's leading scorer was Victor Roberts, who scored 16 points while 'Sweet' Floyd Rogers scored 15 points and grabbed 4 rebounds. Edward Jefferson grabbed 9 rebounds for the Control KAOS while backup James Battle added 5. Mobile as a team went 24-29 from the line while Lake Tahoe shot just 9, converting 8 of them.

Lake Tahoe's John Wagner went 7-10 from the field, scoring 19 points, grabbing 8 rebounds and blocking 5 shots before fouling out. Ossian O'Callaghan had a miserable night shooting, going 2-9 from the field but did dish out 6 assists to 0 turnovers. Jean Jackman was also shut down, shooting just 3-10 for 7 points and had 5 steals.

FINAL FOUR

(2) Casper 85 - (7) Olympia 79

Quincy Day had 21 of his 26 points in the first half when Olympia was giving everything it had, then in the second half the rest of the team picked up the slack and carried Casper into the National Title Tournament finals.

Thaddeus Montague was exhausted from sticking with the more athletic Day, but the 6'5 sophomore for the Dukakis held Day below his average, which was the gameplan. What wasn't part of the plan was for Alex Gittens, Christopher Bickford and Jose Bennett to all have solid outings. Bickford scored 14 points, Gittens added 12 and backup forward, Bennett shot 5-7 for 10 points in just 11 minutes. Sean Connery shot just 1-7 from the field, but his 11 rebounds were key for Casper.

Olympia's star, Alan Lancaster was held to just 15 points and 5 rebounds as the Hania's, Steven Mcnamee, did a good job facing him up most of the way. 5 players did score in double digits for the Dukakis, including Gary Fay's 16 point, 8 rebound performance. But in the end, Casper played better defense and had just a bit more offense than Olympia.

(5) Mobile 87 - (1) Detroit 75

Mobile came out on fire, silencing the Detroit fans as they jumped out to a 21-9 lead. Mobile continued to apply pressure, make big shots and went into the half up by 20 as Farber was held to just 6 points in the first half. In the second half, Detroit tried to get back into the game, but any run was thwarted by big baskets from the Control KAOS.

It's impossible to give the credit Clyde Foster is due for his 17 point, 11 rebound performance for Mobile. The 6'8 junior not only was amazing on the offensive end of the floor, he was in Wilbert Farber's face all night, slowing the countries top player down, holding him to just 14 points and 3 rebounds. 'Sweet' Floyd Rogers shot 8-19 from the field, scoring 22 points and ripped down 13 rebounds in another big time performance. Victor Roberts, the Control KAOS's 6'7 sophomore added 16 while Donnell Mullins added 11 and 5 assists.

Cole Alley scored 13 points for the Audacity while Peter Shanklin and Oscar Peterson combined for 23 points off the bench. While Bob Kelso did have 14 rebounds, he shot a dismal 2-7 from the field for just 4 points. It was an amazing defensive clinic by Mobile, and a very well coached team. Mobile had a chip on their shoulder, after hearing so much about Detroit, but in the game tonight, they were the much better team.

NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

(2) Casper 89 - (5) Mobile 79

Quincy Day told his team before the game that he had dreamt he would score 40 points and lead the Casper program to their first NTT title. He was one point off.

"I was feeling it, I wanted to end my senior season with a title," Day said. He did that, all right Day scored 24 of of his 39 points in the second half as the Hania took control and put away the feisty Control KAOS. The 6'5 senior went 17-24 from the field and hit two of his 4 attempts from behind the arc.

Day also became Conference 25's all-time leading scorer, ending an amazing career.

"That was probably the best performance I've seen him have as a Hania," Casper coach Warak said of Day. "He was simply amazing and the entire team was having fun watching him."

Steven Mcnamee added 12 points and 8 rebounds while Alex Gittens struggled going just 2-11 from the field, but added 5 key steals. Casper shot 55% from the field and won the battle of the boards 31-26.

Mobile held a one point lead at the half led by John Franco's 12 points. Franco ended the night with 23 on 10-14 shooting while Floyd Rogers went 7-13 for 15 points and grabbed 6 rebounds.

After the Control KAOS pulled to 61-60 on Victor Roberts free throw with 10:39 left in the second half, Casper responded with a 11-2 burst to build a 72-62 lead. From there it was pretty much over as Mobile just couldn't slow down the athletic Hania.