Big South Basketball

Longwood secured the first men's NCAA tournament appearance in program history Sunday with a 79-58 win over Winthrop in the 2022 Big South tournament championship game.

Isaiah Wilkins led the Lancers' offensive charge with a game-high 19 points. Justin Hill added nine points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals, while Leslie Nkereuwem chipped in 11 points off the bench.

It was a dominant performance from start to finish for Longwood, the tournament's top seed. It shot 52.8 percent from the field, held Winthrop to 41.2 percent shooting and forced the Eagles into 19 turnovers.

D.J. Burns Jr. led all scorers for Winthrop with 14 points.

Longwood isn't likely to generate a ton of attention leading up to Selection Sunday. The Bracket Matrix currently projects the Big Dance newbies as a No. 16 seed.

The Lancers are far from a pushover, though. They posted a 26-6 record, including a 15-1 mark in conference play, and they've only lost once since Dec. 22. They're 138th in the KenPom rankings.

Add in the fact that three of the team's top five scorers are battle-tested seniors, and that's a tough potential matchup for any No. 1 or No. 2 seed to open with.

Longwood basketball was elevated to Division I in 2004, compiled a 1-30 record in its first season and posted just one winning record over its first 17 seasons at college basketball's top level.

Those struggles make Sunday's triumph that much sweeter for the Lancers faithful.

Liberty has automatically qualified for the 2021 NCAA tournament before taking the floor in Sunday's Atlantic Sun Conference championship game because its opponent, North Alabama, is not yet eligible to take part in the Big Dance.

ESPN's Myron Medcalf noted the NCAA's four-year rule, which prohibits teams transitioning to Division I from taking part in the tournament for that time period, prevents the Lions from being part of the field, even if they upset the Flames to win the conference title.

North Alabama is a surprise finalist in the A-Sun. It entered the tourney as the No. 5 seed after a seven-game losing streak, which ended with a win over Lipscomb in its regular-season finale, dropped the squad down the conference standings.

The Lions knocked off North Florida and Florida Gulf Coast to reach the final, showcasing the form they'd displayed earlier in the season when they raced out to a 10-3 record before the losing skid.

FGCU coach Michael Fly was impressed with UNA in the semifinals.

"They were unbelievable," Fly told reporters. "We played, man, zone, some junk ... threw everything at them ... they keep making shots. When you score 81 points and shoot 48 percent, you're supposed to win that game. We couldn't get stops. I don't think we played poorly. They were just better than us."

Meanwhile, Liberty has cruised to the final as the top seed with double-digit victories over Kennesaw State and Stetson. It won both regular-season meetings with North Alabama by the same score, 74-54.

The Flames are currently projected as a No. 14 seed for the NCAA tournament, per Bracket Matrix. A win in the conference final could potentially move them to the 13 line.

Liberty was down 54-50 with 7:36 left in its semifinal against Stetson before exploding for 27 points down the stretch to pull away for a 77-64 win. Head coach Ritchie McKay was happy with how his team responded to the challenge from the Hatters.

"When you are the No. 1 seed, I think there is an added pressure to you getting the desired outcome, and it just doesn't happen like that in college basketball, especially when you are on a neutral floor," McKay said. "The way we played from that point on I thought is a reflection of the kind of young men that are in our program."

Tip off in the Atlantic Sun championship game is set for Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Gregg Marshall has been accused of making racist remarks and using verbally-abusive language toward his players during his time as head coach at Winthrop. 

Per The Athletic's CJ Moore and Dana O'Neil, multiple players made allegations against Marshall. 

"He taunted one player who took prescription medication for his mental health," Moore and O'Neil wrote. "'Did you take your medication today? Are you stupid or just retarded?' he allegedly screamed at the player after he failed to grasp a drill."

One player alleged Marshall said he would "send him back to Africa" for underperforming: "You’re a white guy, in South Carolina where the Confederate flag is still flying on the statehouse, and you’re telling a proud African man you’re going to send him back to Africa?”

Eric Fisher, who played two seasons at Winthrop from 1998-2000, recalled an alleged incident when Marshall ran over to Derrick Knox after Knox yelled at his head coach before being tossed from a practice. 

“Coach sprints from one bench to the other, where (Knox) was and jumps over the exercise bike that’s sitting there for players on the sidelines,’’ Fisher said. “Basically shoves (Knox) and turns him around and is cussing at him. ‘What’d you say, motherf--ker?’ They pulled (them) apart.’’

Marshall issued a statement to Moore and O'Neil in response to the allegations:

"As I have stated previously, I am deeply committed to my players and the teams we have built together. I believe unequivocally in their value as athletes, as students, and as people. Any portrayal of me to the contrary is wrong.

"Throughout my career as a coach, I have devoted myself to empowering my players to achieve their greatest potential. That’s the legacy I have built throughout my career – both at Wichita State and at Winthrop University.

"My nine years at Winthrop (1998-2007) saw the Eagles achieve greater success than ever before. Not only did our players win on the court, but our team graduated all but one senior student-athlete during my tenure. I am extremely proud of what we built together at Winthrop and will always reflect fondly on my years there.

"I acknowledge that my coaching style isn’t for everyone. I am passionate and energetic, and countless players have thrived on my programs and excelled in our team culture. 

"I am not demeaning or abusive. I have always pledged my full-hearted commitment to my team. I hope that no player or coach in my program ever doubts my respect for them or my investment in their success."

These allegations come in the wake of Moore and O'Neil reporting last week that Wichita State has opened an internal investigation into Marshall amid accusations of misconduct from current and former Shockers players. 

A former Wichita State player told Moore and O'Neil that Marshall "wasn't just" combative with student-athletes: “I lost respect for him because I saw the way he treated my teammates and other people.”

Marshall has been head basketball coach at Wichita State since 2007. He spent the previous nine years in the same role at Winthrop. 

Liberty women's basketball player Asia Todd announced she is entering the transfer portal after school president Jerry Falwell Jr. sent a racist tweet that included an image of a facemask with a photo of a person in blackface and a person wearing Ku Klux Klan attire.

"Due to the racial insensitivity shown within the leadership and culture, it simply does not align with my moral compass or personal convictions," Todd said. "Therefore, I had to do what I felt was best within my heart and stand up for what is right."

Todd, a freshman, averaged 8.6 points and 1.3 assists in 31 games for Liberty this past season (25 starts), shooting 41.6 percent from the field and 41.3 percent from three. 

The message in Falwell's since-deleted tweet read, "I was adamantly opposed to the mandate from Governor Ralph Northam requiring citizens to wear face masks until I decided to design my own. If I am ordered to wear a mask, I will reluctantly comply, but only if this picture of Governor Blackface himself is on it!"

Falwell claimed in a follow-up tweet that he had been trying to make a political point about Virginia's blackface scandal in 2019 after images surfaced of Gov. Northam in blackface from his 1984 medical school yearbook:

Alumni of the school have called for Falwell to resign, while three Liberty staff members have resigned, including LeeQuan McLaurin, the school's director of diversity. 

"Some draw a direct line between the start of President Falwell's divisive, insensitive, and unapologetic approach to politics and that drop," McLaurin wrote about the school's declining population of black students, from 10 percent in 2007 to just 4 percent in 2018, according to Mike DeCourcy of Sporting News. 

In a letter written by 35 faith leaders and former Liberty athletes to Falwell urging him to step down, per Elana Schor and Sarah Rankin of the Associated Press, they said he has "belittled staff, students and parents, you have defended inappropriate behaviors of politicians, encouraged violence, and disrespected people of other faiths," adding that his "heart is in politics more than Christian academia or ministry."

They also wrote he has "repeatedly violated and misrepresented" Christian values. 

BR Video

Take a bow, No. 12 seeds.

The Liberty Flames defeated the No. 5 Mississippi State Bulldogs 80-76 in Friday's first-round game in the 2019 NCAA men's basketball tournament. The victory means the No. 12 seeds went 3-1 in the first round, with the Flames, Oregon Ducks (over Wisconsin Badgers) and Murray State Racers (over Marquette Golden Eagles) all advancing.         

The only loss for a No. 12 seed came in heartbreaking fashion, when the New Mexico State Aggies lost to the Auburn Tigers by a single point in the Midwest Region.

Liberty's Caleb Homesley was dominant with 30 points behind five made three-pointers, while Lovell Cabbil Jr. added 18 points, five assists and two steals.

Cabbil also drilled the biggest shot of the game with a go-ahead three-pointer in the final two minutes to put his team ahead for good.

The Flames will play the winner of the clash between the No. 4 Virginia Tech Hokies and No. 13 Saint Louis Billikens in the East Region's round of 32 on Sunday.        

Tubby Smith, who was fired as the Memphis men's basketball coach this offseason after two years with the team, is reportedly on the verge of becoming the new head coach at High Point, according to Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.

High Point, Smith's alma mater, would represent his seventh college coaching job, following stints at Tulsa, Georgia, Kentucky, Minnesota, Texas Tech and Memphis.

Smith, 66, has a career record of 597-302, leading his teams to 18 NCAA tournament appearances in 27 seasons. He won a national championship with the Kentucky Wildcats in the 1997-98 season.

His last two stops have not gone well, however. He lasted at Texas Tech for three seasons, leading the team to just one tournament trip. Memphis didn't qualify for the tournament in either of his two seasons at the helm, which cost the university a significant amount of money, according to Gary Parrish of CBS Sports:

In Smith's last 11 seasons, his teams have only reached the tournament four times. Memphis hired former NBA star Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway as his replacement this past week.

High Point will be hoping Smith's pedigree can translate to dominance in the Big South, however. The Panthers have never reached the NCAA tournament since joining the conference in 1999 and have had just seven winning seasons in that time.

High Point has made two NIT appearances in the past five years, however, a step in the right direction for a program that was an NAIA school for most of its history and a Division II school from 1995-99.

The Radford Highlanders punched their ticket to the NCAA tournament via the team's biggest shot of the season to date. 

With the score of Sunday's Big South Championship Game between Radford and the Liberty Flames tied at 52, Highlanders guard Carlik Jones dribbled the clock down to under two seconds before hoisting a three-pointer. 

The freshman drained it as time expired, giving the Highlanders a 55-52 victory and a spot in the NCAA tournament as the home fans at Dedmon Center erupted. 

Jones' collegiate career is still young, but he may never hit a more important shot. 

[Twitter]

John Caleb Sanders is a junior guard for Liberty. The Flames (15-21), Big South Conference tournament champs, narrowly missed securing the first NCAA tournament victory in program history on Tuesday. Liberty lost 73-72 to North Carolina A&T in a first-round game in Dayton, falling short of a Round of 64 matchup with No. 1 seed Louisville. Sanders missed a potential game-winning layup just before the final buzzer sounded.

Going into the North Carolina A&T game, that whole day I probably didn’t sleep an hour and a half the night before just because I was so amped up. I wasn’t tired during the game either. I remember walking out there and seeing the fans. It wasn’t real full, but then you look midway through the second half and that place was packed.

It was the opportunity of a lifetime. I’ve never had that feeling for a basketball game ever. It almost didn’t feel real.  

With seven seconds left when I got the ball down one point, I zoned out. It was the weirdest thing. I went right back to a little kid playing in the backyard like I used to do all the time. You imagine being in the NCAA tournament down one with six seconds left, dribble down and get the layup for the win. I zoned out for a little bit, and then I came back to reality and I had the ball in my hands and just tried to do the play I made up in my head.

I was either going to the rim or my only two other options that I thought about were finding Tavares Speaks or Davon Marshall. Tavares is clutch and had really been knocking them down. I figured they’d be face-guarding Davon because he’d already hit six threes. Whenever I got it, Coach has always said go right to the rim, so that’s what I did.

I was going right and Austin Witter took off that right block. I switched left and he got there quick enough and once I got to that left block, I’m only 6-foot so I tried to create as much contact as I could because if I would have faded he would have blocked it. I thought maybe I could get this thing up or get a foul.

When it didn’t go in, honestly, my first thought was Tavares. He’s the only senior we have, and he knows I did everything I could, but I just feel really sorry for him. I’m going to have another shot at this thing. I was upset that I didn’t finish for him.

I was sad for about a minute, but then I started thinking about the whole year and everything that we have done. All the emotions kind of hit you like a wave and you really don’t know what to do. I looked at my phone after we had a meeting, and someone texted me that as consolation prize you got a conference tournament championship and you got a ring.

Yeah, we wanted to win that NCAA tournament game and we wanted to succeed, but once you look back at the season, we did way more than anyone thought we ever would.

I thought the Charleston Southern game in the Big South championship was the biggest game of my life and the most important one that I played. But honestly that was nothing compared to the feelings and emotions of the NCAA game after you lost—even just the game itself.

At the end of the game, if I knew we were going to lose by one, I’d still play it a hundred times. I enjoyed that basketball game more than I’ve enjoyed any game in my life even though we lost.

The entire trip was great. When we arrived on the plane, we didn’t even get our own bags. We just walked 10 feet to get on the bus. We got a police escort to the gym and the same thing coming back. They treat you well.

We had fans at our practice. The hotel was nice and when we walked in, they had Liberty shirts and were cheering for us. It was the exact opposite of what was going on for us in February. It was definitely different.

One of the first people I noticed during our practice was Craig Sager. All I could think of was Kevin Garnett making fun of his suits during all his interviews. I had a 10-minute interview in a room with him and that was kind of weird talking to him.

Then after that I walked out and looked over and saw our media guy talking to a guy and thinking he looked really familiar. Then I realized it was Steve Kerr and went over there and said, “Hey, my name is...” and he stopped me and said “I know who you are, John Caleb, you had a great game against Charleston Southern.”

Steve Kerr knows who I am; that’s kind of weird. I know he’s just been doing his research about the game, but it was still cool.

Steve then called Davon over by name and talked to him, and that was pretty cool. I was never really into professional sports. We didn’t have a lot of money growing up, so I never went to any NBA games and I had never met an NBA player.

When we got home from Dayton after our loss, the cheerleaders were out there and probably 100 or so people. Our vice president was there. I walked into class on Thursday and had several people start clapping and my teacher was talking to me about the game.

You walk around campus and you can’t get anywhere. People are coming up and talking to us, telling us, 'Good game!' It’s been great.

I didn’t want to watch the Louisville vs. North Carolina A&T game. I’m happy for those guys, but I didn’t want to watch. All the other games I’ve enjoyed it and this is my favorite time of the year.

I am realistic when you see these teams. I would have gone in optimistic if we had played Louisville but chances are we weren’t going to win that game. You’re going to lose at some point. So we get to come back and enjoy it.

This is one of my favorite times of the year. I’ve had three TVs set up and switching back and forth between all the games.

It is different this year to think that could have been us playing, because we haven’t really been close the other two years I’ve been here. In a couple weeks, we’ll get to work and try to get back.