
DATE: Tuesday, March 4, 1997                TAG: 9703040482

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY ED MILLER, STAFF WRITER

DATELINE: RICHMOND                          LENGTH:  110 lines

ODU GOING TO THE DANCE OT WIN EARNS MONARCHS BERTH IN NCAA TOURNAMENT SHEROD LEADS THE WAY IN THE CAA TITLE GAME

With his team trailing James Madison by three points with time running down in regulation in the CAA championship game Monday, Old Dominion coach Jeff Capel gathered his players and offered three simple words:

``Find a way.''

The Monarchs did, pulling off a dramatic 62-58 overtime victory that secured them a berth in the NCAA tournament, their first since 1995.

Chalk this one up to poise. ODU (22-10) displayed more of it during an often-frantic final 10 minutes in front of 6,585 at the Richmond Coliseum.

ODU's coolest customer was senior guard E.J. Sherod. With 35.9 seconds left and ODU trailing 49-46, Sherod hit three free throws to tie the game.

Then, after missing a potential game-winning layup with time running out, Sherod rallied in overtime. With 25 seconds left and time running out on the shot clock, he drove and passed to Odell Hodge, who hit a layup that gave ODU a 59-56 lead.

``After I missed that layup, I was out of it for about 10 seconds,'' Sherod said. ``I started to cry. But every one of my teammates came to me and told us that my free throws were what got us in a position to win.''

Capel said the way his team responded after Sherod's miss told him they had a good chance to win.

``His teammates didn't turn on him,'' Capel said. ``It would have been really easy for them to look at him and say he blew it. I'm proud of the character we showed.

``I'm glad we were able to win so he wouldn't have to live with that missed layup.''

Capel and the Monarchs also said the victory was especially sweet because it is the first CAA championship for senior forward Odell Hodge. Hodge, a two-time CAA PlAyer of the Year, sat out the 1995 season with a knee injury.

``To get it for the big fella, that's what I wanted to do,'' guard Brion Dunlap said.

The big fella was huge Monday, scoring 16 points and grabbing 18 rebounds. He was named tournament MVP.

``It's the crown on his career,'' Capel said.

Hodge almost didn't get the crown. In fact, for a few desperate moments Monday, it seemed the ghost of Kent Culuko had returned to haunt Old Dominion, in the form of a James Madison freshman named Mate Milisa.

The 6-foot-11 Croatian, who had made only one 3-pointer all season, knocked down two in 45 seconds to spark a JMU rally that put ODU on the ropes with under two minutes left.

For ODU fans, it had to be reminiscent of the shot Culuko, a JMU guard, hit to beat the Monarchs at the buzzer in the 1994 CAA title game.

``I couldn't believe he made the first one,'' Capel said. ``When he made the second one, I said, `Don't tell me it's not meant to be.' ''

ODU made sure it was to be by buckling down on defense and coming through at the free-throw line.

After Hodge's layup in overtime made it 59-56, Dunlap stole an inbounds pass and Mike Byers hit two free throws with 11.9 seconds left to put ODU up by five.

JMU's Ryan Culicerto made a layup to cut the lead to three with 8.5 seconds left, but then Sherod hit a free throw with 6.5 seconds remaining to put it out of reach.

ODU hit 16 of 21 free throws on the game, including the final seven of regulation.

JMU was hurt by poor ball-handling down the stretch. The Dukes (16-13) had a chance to win in regulation after Sherod's free throws, but Charles Lott bobbled the ball. Then came Dunlap's steal in overtime. JMU also made just 8 of 18 free throws.

Chatney Howard led the Dukes with 18 points.

``We had every chance to win,'' JMU coach Lefty Driesell said. ``We are just as good of a ball team as they are.''

Not when it counted Monday. ODU has now beaten JMU in three of their four CAA title-game meetings. The Monarchs shot just 36 percent but outrebounded JMU 47-33.

It took a while for both teams to get going. They struggled through a clumsy first half in which they shot a combined 20 for 62.

ODU showed signs of pulling away early in the second half, opening up a 39-27 lead after a Hodge post-up move with 13:56 left.

But then ODU went cold and Milisa warmed up. The treys were his only shots of the game.

``He took them with so much confidence,'' Sherod said. ``It was shocking at first.''

Not as shocking as Sherod's missed layup. He drove to the basket hoping to draw a foul only to find himself wide open - too open, he said. His righthanded layup was too hard.

But Sherod would be redeemed.

With 1:57 left in overtime, JMU's Eugene Atkinson hit a 3-pointer to put the Dukes up 56-55. A tip-in by Reggie Bassette gave ODU the lead, then, after a Howard miss, Sherod drove and found Hodge.

``E.J's done whatever it takes for four years,'' Capel said. ILLUSTRATION: [color photos]

HUY NGUYEN photos/The Virginian-Pilot

After celebrating with fans, Odell Hodge did a face-first dive onto

the floor. ``Just wanted to get by myself for a second,'' said

Hodge. ``Didn't want to hurt anybody, I was so wound up.''

Reggie Bassette, center, sends out an Old Dominion victory yell as

he hugs E.J. Sherod along with the rest of the CAA champion

Monarchs.

[Photo]

HUY NGUYEN/The Virginian-Pilot

Old Dominion's E.J. Sherod, who went from hero to goat to hero, puts

up a shot while slapping away Lamont Boozer of James Madison.