THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 19, 1996 TAG: 9601190745
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY RICH RADFORD, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines
Too many weapons. One big break.
Virginia Union used a balanced attack and timely good fortune to down the Norfolk State Spartans 76-60 Thursday night at Arthur Ashe Center.
Sparked by eight points from reserve forward Marquise Newbie in the game's last seven minutes, the Panthers, the top-ranked team in Division II, broke open a 45-45 deadlock to improve to 13-0 overall, 6-0 in the CIAA.
None of Newbie's points were bigger than a desperation rainbow hook with 5:40 remaining.
The Spartans, trailing 54-51 after two free throws by Blitz Wooten, put up a defensive stand that ran off all but three seconds of the shot clock when a deflected pass went out of bounds. Norfolk State's Maurice Whitfield intercepted the ensuing inbounds pass, but stepped on the sideline before fully gaining possession.
With two ticks left on the shot clock, Newbie broke free on the left baseline for the inbounds pass and sank the shot over a forest of Norfolk State arms.
``That's just the way it happened,'' Panthers coach Dave Robbins said. ``With two seconds we went to our break set where everybody freelances. And a quick shot opened up.''
Newbie's bucket began a 6-0 run that gave Virginia Union a 60-51 lead. After another free throw by Wooten, Newbie scored on a finger roll for a 62-52 lead with 3:35 remaining.
Rodney Carmichael's 3-pointer cut the margin to 62-55 with 3:07 remaining, but Newbie drew Carmichael's fifth foul at the other end, then sank two foul shots to start an 11-0 run that sent many fans home early.
``He's a slasher and we played him too close,'' Norfolk State's Derrick Bryant said. ``He was able to get into the lane and make things happen.''
Ironically, Newbie came in to replace Ben Wallace, the Panthers' All-CIAA center. Wallace was slightly bothered by a recent leg injury and had clanked three of the four free throws he attempted before Newbie replaced him.
The Spartans had done a decent job on Wallace, limiting the CIAA's leading rebounder to four boards. Still, Union held a 40-35 rebounding edge by game's end.
Joining Newbie, who had 14 points, in double-figures scoring for the Panthers were Thomas Meredith with 16 points, Luther Bates and Maurice Greene with 13 each and Wallace with 12.
While Newbie's theatrics spurred the Panthers, Norfolk State coach Mike Bernard pointed to a nearlyfour-minute dry spell as the blow that unsettled the Spartans (9-2, 5-1).
After overcoming an 11-point halftime deficit, Norfolk State knotted matters at 45-45 on a 3-pointer by Maurice Whitfield with 12:41 remaining. That brought the Norfolk State faithful among the 5,855 on hand to their feet.
The Spartans then missed their next seven field-goal attempts on their next four possessions.
``That made all the difference in the ballgame,'' Bernard said. ``We had a chance to take control, then we could have dictated the tempo. But we stopped executing on offense.
With 11 seconds left, the seriousness of this rivalry, which Norfolk State still leads 56-41, came to the surface when Norfolk State's Darius Blount collided with Greene near center court and both fell to the floor.
Greene got up and mock-kicked at Blount, which started a wrestling match between the 10 players on court that brought Robbins, Bernard and Norfolk State athletic director Dick Price onto the court in an effort to make peace.
Greene received a technical foul and the game ended without further incident.
``We're going to stand up for our point guard,'' Bryant said. ``We felt he (Greene) was showing a lot of disrespect.''
The teams will meet again Feb. 5 at Echols Arena in Norfolk. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by DON LONG, RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH
Norfolk State guard Maurice Whitfield escapes a Virginia Union trap
Thursday, but the Panthers, top-ranked in Division II, broke a 45-45
deadlock and went to the victory.
by CNB