THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 15, 1995 TAG: 9501150251
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ED MILLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LAWRENCEVILLE, VA. LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines
Down two starters, and playing in one of the CIAA's noisier little gyms, Norfolk State was going to need a total team effort to come away with a victory at St. Paul's Saturday night.
The Spartans got one, toughing out an 84-76 CIAA win, their eighth in a row, in front of 1,589 at Taylor-Whitehead Gym.
Norfolk State (11-2, 6-1 CIAA) was minus forward Corey Williams, who was serving a one-game suspension for fighting, and guard Carnell Penn, who has an injured toe. The pair accounts for about 40 percent of Norfolk State's offense.
To make up the scoring, others were going to have to be more offensive-minded, chief among them forward Derrick Bryant.
Bryant, who normally puts up about 10 shots a night, attempted 15 Saturday, and finished with a game-high 24 points, along with 18 rebounds.
``I was a little more offensive-minded, because we had 35 points out,'' Bryant said. ``I stayed under the basket, and ran the floor, and it opened up some things for me.''
Guard Marvin Stinson, who has not been bashful about putting it up off the bench, started in place of Penn and had a career-high 22 points.
Blitz Wooten added 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Rodney Carmichael, starting in place of Williams, had 10 points, the same as point guard Maurice Whitfield.
``It was a great team effort,'' coach Mike Bernard said. ``It's a test of character for this team to lose what we lost, and come out with a win in a tough place like St. Paul's.''
St. Paul's (5-9, 2-6) trailed by 21 at the half, but made a game of it in the second half, storming back behind its pressure defense.
``We figured with the people they had out, we could pressure them,'' St. Paul's coach Ed Joyner said. ``We just dug a hole too deep in the first half with poor execution and low intensity.''
The Spartans blew the game open with a 24-6 run midway through the first half. The Spartans did most of their damage on the boards, outrebounding St. Paul's, 29-14, in the half.
St. Paul's came back behind its trapping defense, and cut the lead to six, 70-64, with four minutes left.
``We had some turnovers in the second half against the press, but they were probably due more to fatigue than anything else,'' Bernard said. ``We did have some breakdowns but we didn't panic.''
The Spartans hit 8 of 13 free throws down the stretch, not as many as Bernard would have liked, but enough to settle the outcome.
``We did a good job of getting to the line, but not a good job of converting,'' Bernard said.
Fans of free throws would have loved this one. The Spartans shot 45, while St. Paul's shot 27. Bryant went to the line 11 times and Wooten 10.
The Spartans host Virginia Union Thursday night. Williams will be back, while Penn is listed as day to day. by CNB