Rams ousted by Dragons in Richmond-hosted CAA tournament semifinal round

Ten teams came to the Richmond Coliseum for the 2003 CAA Men’s Basketball Tournament with a chance to clinch the coveted automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. However, it was UNC-Wilmington for the second straight year and third time in the last four years who took home the trophy.

Opening round action kicked off March 7, with the ninth seeded Pride of Hofstra defeating the eighth seeded William and Mary Tribe, 74-64. The 10th seeded Towson University Tigers also fell victim to the seventh seeded Dukes of James Madison University, 72-61.

In Saturday’s quarterfinal action, Hofstra proved no match for the top-seeded UNC-Wilmington Seahawks, as Brett Blizzard’s 28 points led the Seahawks to a 76-56 victory. The fourth seeded Patriots of George Mason University lost to the fifth seeded Blue Hens of Delaware, 61-49.

The second seeded VCU Rams were able to finally earn a decisive victory over a JMU squad, cruising to a 73-53 win.

Willie Taylor and Michael Doles each had 15 points, with Emanuel Mathis adding 12 points and Domonic Jones adding 11. VCU had a 39-33 rebounding edge for the game. The Rams held a 40-19 advantage at halftime, which proved crucial in the second half, when a determined JMU squad, led by Dwayne Broyles’ 19 points, came to play.

The third seeded Drexel Dragons also earned a decisive 61-52 win over the sixth-seeded Old Dominion University Monarchs.

In Sunday’s semifinal play, top-seeded UNC-Wilmington edged Delaware, 63-50. The Seahawks’ Craig Callahan had 22 points as UNC-Wilmington earned a fourth straight appearance in the CAA Tournament final round.

The second-seeded Rams were defeated by a confident Drexel team, 62-60, after Drexel’s Robert Battle scored a field goal with 4.3 seconds left in regulation. Battle had 15 points for the game and grabbed six rebounds. Willie Taylor led the Rams with 19 points, with Domonic Jones adding 14 and Troy Godwin achieving a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. VCU played tough throughout the game, taking a 31-28 halftime lead, but the Dragons proved too tough.

The loss ended the Rams’ regular season, with an 18-10 record. A NCAA Tournament bid is extremely unlikely, but VCU might have an opportunity for their first post-season appearance in seven years if the National Invitation Tournament invites them to play. The NIT bypassed the Rams last season despite a 21-win season and a trip to the CAA Tournament final round.

The Monday night final round match-up showcased the dominating UNC-Wilmington Seahawks and the upstart Drexel Dragons. Early on, the game seemed destined to be a hard-fought battle, but with the score tied 6-6, UNC-Wilmington scored 22 straight points to take a 28-6 lead. Drexel would battle back, however, to close the Seahawks’ lead to just five points late in the game. UNC-Wilmington prevailed 70-62 to secure the CAA’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

The Seahawks finished the regular season with a 24-6 record. The 24-win mark is a school record.

UNC-Wilmington stunned the Trojans of the University of Southern California in the first round of the NCAA Tournament last season before losing a close game to the eventual NCAA Tournament runner-up, Indiana University. Drexel finishes the season 19-10 and could receive an invitation to play in the NIT.