THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 19, 1995 TAG: 9502190202
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ED MILLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Medium: 62 lines
Elizabeth City State fans haven't had much to cheer about this season, so when they get a chance, they make the most of it.
When Ron Nowlin hit a 3-pointer to pull the Vikings even with Norfolk State, 74-74, with 2:34 left Saturday night, the noise in Vaughan Center was deafening.
Then just as quickly, it was gone.
Calm amidst the chaos of 6,000 screaming fans, Norfolk State's Carnell Penn squared up from the right wing and knocked down a 3-pointer. Then 30 seconds later Penn hit another trey to propel Norfolk State to an 86-74 win and a share of the CIAA's Northern Division championship.
Penn's 3-pointers stopped Elizabeth City cold, after the Vikings had rallied from 11 points down.
``My teammates, my coach, everybody was telling me I had to keep shooting,'' Penn said. ``And when I shoot, to shoot the ball with confidence.
``It felt good as soon as I let it go.''
So did the second one.
``Those threes put it out of reach,'' Norfolk State coach Mike Bernard said. ``They were a couple of clutch shots.''
With the win, Norfolk State (21-4, 9-3 CIAA North), clinched a tie for the CIAA's Northern Division title with Virginia Union, an 86-75 winner over N.C. Central Saturday night. A coin flip will decide which team receives a first-round bye in the conference tournament, which starts Wednesday.
``Our first goal was to win the Northern Division championship,'' Bernard said. ``We never lost sight of that goal, and we're proud to have at least a share of the title.''
The Spartans certainly had to earn their share of the title. Elizabeth City (8-18, 4-8) had several emotional reasons to play hard - chief among them the fact that it was coach Claudie Mackey's final home game. The Vikings built an 11-point lead late in the first half behind strong play from reserves Larry James and Anthony Harris.
Norfolk State cut the lead to two at halftime, then built an 11-point advantage with 9:58 left.
``(Assistant coach) Mel Coleman suggested we switch from a man to man defense to a 2-3 zone, and that made all the difference,'' Bernard said.
Still, the Vikings had one rally left in them. With the score 74-69, Nowlin missed a trey but put in his own rebound to make it 74-71. Then he hit his game-tying trey.
``I guess everybody realized what was going on,'' Norfolk State center Blitz Wooten said. ``And what we had to do to get this win.''
In this case, it was getting the ball to Penn, who finished with a game-high 24 points. Derrick Bryant had 20, while Corey Williams had 17 and nine rebounds.
The game turned into a battle of attrition, and Norfolk State had the deeper team. Elizabeth City was without starting forward Bernard Cooper, and its other big men, James and Jo-ve Ford, spent much of the game in foul trouble.
``It feels good to the champs,'' Penn said. ``We accomplished our first goal, and now we're looking to move on.'' by CNB