J.C. Smith ousts St. Aug's

CHARLOTTE -- The St. Augustine's Falcons couldn't get in, so now they have to get out.

St. Aug's strong season ended sooner than many expected, in the second round of the CIAA Tournament, with a 72-61 loss to Johnson C. Smith on Thursday night. And in that loss, the Falcons learned an important lesson -- trends matter.

With Johnson C. Smith playing a suffocating version of zone defense and the Falcons unable to get inside, St. Aug's saw its shooting percentage fall precipitously during the second half while the Golden Bulls' shot up: not a good combination for the Falcons.

"It was a game when we had opportunities, but once again, free throws and missed open shots has been something that's hurt us all year, and it sort of caught up to us today," said St. Aug's coach Thomas Hargrove, who added he will not retire as previously expected. "...[T]he name of the game is basketball, and you have to get it in."

The loss ended what many thought was an impressive season by the rebuilt Falcons (16-10) and Hargrove, whose star-laden team lost a emotional thriller in the semifinals of last year's tournament.

This season, the Falcons were led by more workman-type, inside players such as Jeff Sullivan. But they soared through the CIAA regular season by playing sound basketball.

The Falcons swept the Golden Bulls in two close games during the regular season, including a victory last month.

"We tried to take away their familiar offense sets ... [St. Aug's] depends on them getting the ball inside," JCSU coach Steve Joyner said. "We were able to double-team them when they got inside and take away the high-post option, which is very important to what they do."

However, in Thursday's second half, the Falcons had the sound turned off and the inside was out.

The teams were tied at 32 at halftime. But after the break, JCSU's zone became more effective, squeezing the Falcons out of the paint and forcing them to take contested outside shots.

As the Falcons, who had a first-round bye, took bad shots, their shooting percentage tumbled, with the team ending up shooting only 25 percent in the second half. The Golden Bulls (19-9) hit 58.1 percent in the second half and just kept pulling away.

"They were denying me the ball [to] make other people score," said Falcons guard Will Gill, who was 2-for-14 from the floor with three assists.