HATTIESBURG – With the schedule running out of games to be played, and a pack of good teams battling it out in the Southern States Athletic Conference standings, clutch wins are at a premium.
Saturday afternoon at Clinton Gym, William Carey put one of those wins in the bank, outlasting Stillman College 77-74 in a thriller that wasn’t completely decided until the final buzzer.
Junior guard Jonathan Floyd rattled home a 3-point shot with 14.1 seconds to play for the winning points for Carey, and the Crusaders forced an errant shot on the Tigers’ final possession to seal the deal.
With the win, NAIA 25th-ranked WCU vaulted into fourth place in the SSAC standings at 7-5 (17-7 overall), while Stillman (14-8 overall) dropped into a three-way tie for fifth at 7-6 in league play.
“I thought we did a nice job defensively,” said Crusaders coach Steve Knight. “It’s just that the turnovers at the end hurt us. We’ve got to find a way to stay composed, because this game shouldn’t have come down to a last shot.”
Perhaps not, but credit Stillman with tenacious play all afternoon. Carey opened the game with a 7-0 run, but the Tigers used an 11-0 run to build its biggest lead, 20-13, with 10 minutes to play in the first half.
However, senior guard Brandon Cranford keyed a Crusader comeback, and gave Carey the lead, 32-31, with a 3-pointer from the left baseline with 3:25 to play in the half. Cranford finished with 17 points, 15 coming in the first half.
“I was taking some smarter shots this game,” said Cranford. “Sometimes I just throw it up there, but I tried to play smarter this game against a good Stillman team. I usually drive off my outside shot. If they go for the pump fake, I’ll drive straight to the basket.”
Carey never trailed the rest of the way, but the Crusaders could never pull away. Senior Jartavious Dobbs capped a 9-0 Carey run with an authoritative putback slam dunk to put the Crusaders ahead 36-31.
WCU led at halftime 36-35, and the Tigers pulled even at 40-40 when Shemar Johnson scored on a fast-break layup after getting a steal.
That’s when senior forward Cameron Douglas stepped up for Carey. Douglas only scored two points in the first half but finished with a team-high 19 points after coming alive after a halftime lecture from his coach.
”It was all on Coach,” said Douglas. “He likes to get up under my skin and call me soft. He wanted me to prove him wrong, and I did.”
Douglas capped a 10-1 run with a three-point play after swishing a 16-foot jumper, drawing a foul and converting the and-one to give the Crusaders what would prove to be their biggest lead of the game, 50-41, with 13:55 to play.
“Basketball is all about matchups,” said Knight. “The only one of their guys who gave Cam problems defensively was Shemar Johnson, and they played together in high school and at Pearl River (Community College). He’s got so many good moves.”
Stillman was able to reel the Crusaders back in, though, and it stayed nip-and-tuck until Carey used a little 5-0 spurt to forge a 74-67 lead with 2:45 to play.
Junior guard Dalen Dotson converted a 3-point shot right at the end of the shot clock, then senior Rodney Mallett got a steal and a fast-break layup, and it looked like Carey was one the verge of salting it away.
But Tiger senior Prince McDaniel – last season’s conference Player of the Year – nailed a 3-point shot, and senior Roger Davis got a fast-break slam after a steal to tie the game 74-74 with 1:34 to play.
“We’ve got to learn to be more poised,” said Knight. “We tend to get ahead of ourselves, get rushed up and turn the ball over.
“This team does not hold a lead. If we’re playing a good team, and they’ve got the ability to make plays, they’re going to catch up. We’re going to give them a chance.”
But the Crusaders steadied themselves and clamped down on defense, getting two turnovers of their own, the second one setting up Floyd’s game-winner.
“Our last time out, I said it’s either going to be Giovanni Bray or McDaniel, and they’re going to be coming off ball screens,” said Knight. “I wanted us to get in their passing lanes, and I thought we did a good job defensively.”
Floyd, a junior from Gulfport, missed much of the early part of the season dealing with Crohn’s Disease, which he says he has under control.
His role has grown as he’s picked up strength, and he was in the right place at the right time – wide open in the right corner – on Carey’s final sequence.
“We got it out on a fast break, and we had numbers,” said Floyd. “I’ve got to give props to Rodney (Mallett) for seeing me in the corner.
“We work on that shot every day at practice, so while I can’t say it was nature, it was something we practice over and over, so it was like the reps we’ve put in.”
McDaniel led all scorers with 23 points, and Bray added 14 points off the bench for Stillman.
The Crusaders have seven games remaining, starting Tuesday with a make-up game at Florida College, which was postponed from Jan. 30 because of a flu outbreak on the Florida College campus in Tampa.
“We’ve got a nine-hour road trip now,” said Knight. “But it’s going to be a whole lot nicer on that bus than it would have been.”
Carey’s women were also victorious in their game, defeating the Lady Tigers 58-48. The Lady Crusaders took the lead for good in the second quarter, leading at the half 26-22, then took command in the third quarter.
WCU built an 18-point lead late in the third period and were never threatened the rest of the way.
Senior Rachel Thompson tied a Carey single-game record with 23 rebounds, 19 on the defensive end, to go with a game-high 15 points for Carey (10-11, 5-6). The record had previously been set by Fallon Hartfield, who did it twice in 2008.
Senior Danyelle Lewis added 12 points for the Lady Crusaders. Zaria Jenkins had 10 points to lead Stillman (7-13, 5-7).
Carey Basketball Summaries
Saturday at Clinton Gymnasium
WOMEN
William Carey 58, Stillman 48
SC 15 7 12 14 – 48
WCU 16 10 19 13 – 58
STILLMAN (7-13, 5-7 in SSAC):Christin Dickinson 8, Brittany Washington 4, Dastani Davidson 3, Michaia Fluellen 4, Daja Polk 2, Morgan Collins 8, Zaria Jenkins 10, Tabitha Robinson 2, Ashley World 5, Zikira Williams 2. TOTALS– FG 18-60 (3FG 4-16), FT 8-11 (48).
WILLIAM CAREY (10-11, 5-6 in SSAC):Rachel Thompson 15 (23 rebounds), Danyelle Lewis 12, McKinley Seal 1 (7 assists, 7 rebounds), Michaela Terry 3, Lauren Rowley 9, Tamia Stinson 7, Gabrielle Gallup 2, Rebekah Engle 5, Mallory Thompson 4. TOTALS– FG 18-47 (3FG 8-25), FT 14-28 (58).
MEN
William Carey 77, Stillman 74
SC 35 39 – 74
WCU 36 41 – 77
STILLMAN (14-8, 7-6 in SSAC):Roger Davis 7, Chance Fisher 10, Prince McDaniel 23, Devin Merriweather 2, Trey Petty 2, Virgil Fields 4, Shemar Johnson 8, Ladarius Carter 4, Giovanni Bray 14. TOTALS– FG 27-64 (3FG 7-20), FT 13-18 (74).
WILLIAM CAREY (17-7, 7-5 in SSAC):Cameron Douglas 19, Jartavious Dobbs 9, Brandon Cranford 17, Rodney Mallett 6, Javontae McDavis 3, Anthony Jones 3, Dalen Dotson 8, Jonathan Floyd 8, Marques McGee 2, Jvari Thigpen 2. TOTALS– FG 25-52 (3FG 9-22), FT 18-24 (77).
HATTIESBURG – With the schedule running out of games to be played, and a pack of good teams battling it out in the Southern States Athletic Conference standings, clutch wins are at a premium.
Saturday afternoon at Clinton Gym, William Carey put one of those wins in the bank, outlasting Stillman College 77-74 in a thriller that wasn’t completely decided until the final buzzer.
Junior guard Jonathan Floyd rattled home a 3-point shot with 14.1 seconds to play for the winning points for Carey, and the Crusaders forced an errant shot on the Tigers’ final possession to seal the deal.
With the win, NAIA 25th-ranked WCU vaulted into fourth place in the SSAC standings at 7-5 (17-7 overall), while Stillman (14-8 overall) dropped into a three-way tie for fifth at 7-6 in league play.
“I thought we did a nice job defensively,” said Crusaders coach Steve Knight. “It’s just that the turnovers at the end hurt us. We’ve got to find a way to stay composed, because this game shouldn’t have come down to a last shot.”
Perhaps not, but credit Stillman with tenacious play all afternoon. Carey opened the game with a 7-0 run, but the Tigers used an 11-0 run to build its biggest lead, 20-13, with 10 minutes to play in the first half.
However, senior guard Brandon Cranford keyed a Crusader comeback, and gave Carey the lead, 32-31, with a 3-pointer from the left baseline with 3:25 to play in the half. Cranford finished with 17 points, 15 coming in the first half.
“I was taking some smarter shots this game,” said Cranford. “Sometimes I just throw it up there, but I tried to play smarter this game against a good Stillman team. I usually drive off my outside shot. If they go for the pump fake, I’ll drive straight to the basket.”
Carey never trailed the rest of the way, but the Crusaders could never pull away. Senior Jartavious Dobbs capped a 9-0 Carey run with an authoritative putback slam dunk to put the Crusaders ahead 36-31.
WCU led at halftime 36-35, and the Tigers pulled even at 40-40 when Shemar Johnson scored on a fast-break layup after getting a steal.
That’s when senior forward Cameron Douglas stepped up for Carey. Douglas only scored two points in the first half but finished with a team-high 19 points after coming alive after a halftime lecture from his coach.
”It was all on Coach,” said Douglas. “He likes to get up under my skin and call me soft. He wanted me to prove him wrong, and I did.”
Douglas capped a 10-1 run with a three-point play after swishing a 16-foot jumper, drawing a foul and converting the and-one to give the Crusaders what would prove to be their biggest lead of the game, 50-41, with 13:55 to play.
“Basketball is all about matchups,” said Knight. “The only one of their guys who gave Cam problems defensively was Shemar Johnson, and they played together in high school and at Pearl River (Community College). He’s got so many good moves.”
Stillman was able to reel the Crusaders back in, though, and it stayed nip-and-tuck until Carey used a little 5-0 spurt to forge a 74-67 lead with 2:45 to play.
Junior guard Dalen Dotson converted a 3-point shot right at the end of the shot clock, then senior Rodney Mallett got a steal and a fast-break layup, and it looked like Carey was one the verge of salting it away.
But Tiger senior Prince McDaniel – last season’s conference Player of the Year – nailed a 3-point shot, and senior Roger Davis got a fast-break slam after a steal to tie the game 74-74 with 1:34 to play.
“We’ve got to learn to be more poised,” said Knight. “We tend to get ahead of ourselves, get rushed up and turn the ball over.
“This team does not hold a lead. If we’re playing a good team, and they’ve got the ability to make plays, they’re going to catch up. We’re going to give them a chance.”
But the Crusaders steadied themselves and clamped down on defense, getting two turnovers of their own, the second one setting up Floyd’s game-winner.
“Our last time out, I said it’s either going to be Giovanni Bray or McDaniel, and they’re going to be coming off ball screens,” said Knight. “I wanted us to get in their passing lanes, and I thought we did a good job defensively.”
Floyd, a junior from Gulfport, missed much of the early part of the season dealing with Crohn’s Disease, which he says he has under control.
His role has grown as he’s picked up strength, and he was in the right place at the right time – wide open in the right corner – on Carey’s final sequence.
“We got it out on a fast break, and we had numbers,” said Floyd. “I’ve got to give props to Rodney (Mallett) for seeing me in the corner.
“We work on that shot every day at practice, so while I can’t say it was nature, it was something we practice over and over, so it was like the reps we’ve put in.”
McDaniel led all scorers with 23 points, and Bray added 14 points off the bench for Stillman.
The Crusaders have seven games remaining, starting Tuesday with a make-up game at Florida College, which was postponed from Jan. 30 because of a flu outbreak on the Florida College campus in Tampa.
“We’ve got a nine-hour road trip now,” said Knight. “But it’s going to be a whole lot nicer on that bus than it would have been.”
Carey’s women were also victorious in their game, defeating the Lady Tigers 58-48. The Lady Crusaders took the lead for good in the second quarter, leading at the half 26-22, then took command in the third quarter.
WCU built an 18-point lead late in the third period and were never threatened the rest of the way.
Senior Rachel Thompson tied a Carey single-game record with 23 rebounds, 19 on the defensive end, to go with a game-high 15 points for Carey (10-11, 5-6). The record had previously been set by Fallon Hartfield, who did it twice in 2008.
Senior Danyelle Lewis added 12 points for the Lady Crusaders. Zaria Jenkins had 10 points to lead Stillman (7-13, 5-7).
Carey Basketball Summaries
Saturday at Clinton Gymnasium
WOMEN
William Carey 58, Stillman 48
SC 15 7 12 14 – 48
WCU 16 10 19 13 – 58
STILLMAN (7-13, 5-7 in SSAC): Christin Dickinson 8, Brittany Washington 4, Dastani Davidson 3, Michaia Fluellen 4, Daja Polk 2, Morgan Collins 8, Zaria Jenkins 10, Tabitha Robinson 2, Ashley World 5, Zikira Williams 2. TOTALS – FG 18-60 (3FG 4-16), FT 8-11 (48).
WILLIAM CAREY (10-11, 5-6 in SSAC): Rachel Thompson 15 (23 rebounds), Danyelle Lewis 12, McKinley Seal 1 (7 assists, 7 rebounds), Michaela Terry 3, Lauren Rowley 9, Tamia Stinson 7, Gabrielle Gallup 2, Rebekah Engle 5, Mallory Thompson 4. TOTALS – FG 18-47 (3FG 8-25), FT 14-28 (58).
MEN
William Carey 77, Stillman 74
SC 35 39 – 74
WCU 36 41 – 77
STILLMAN (14-8, 7-6 in SSAC): Roger Davis 7, Chance Fisher 10, Prince McDaniel 23, Devin Merriweather 2, Trey Petty 2, Virgil Fields 4, Shemar Johnson 8, Ladarius Carter 4, Giovanni Bray 14. TOTALS – FG 27-64 (3FG 7-20), FT 13-18 (74).
WILLIAM CAREY (17-7, 7-5 in SSAC): Cameron Douglas 19, Jartavious Dobbs 9, Brandon Cranford 17, Rodney Mallett 6, Javontae McDavis 3, Anthony Jones 3, Dalen Dotson 8, Jonathan Floyd 8, Marques McGee 2, Jvari Thigpen 2. TOTALS – FG 25-52 (3FG 9-22), FT 18-24 (77).
For more stories by Stan Caldwell go to stanmansportsfan.com.
