Jan. 5, 2008

Final Stats

The Golden Bulls of Johnson C. Smith University fell in defeat to the host Panthers of Virginia Union University, Saturday night in Barco-Stevens Hall by a score of 77-61. The Panthers connected on 31 of their 59 shot attempts en route to their first victory over JCSU since a 71-64 victory in the CIAA title game in 2006.

JCSU shot a season low 35% from the field, but JCSU shot a dismal 26% from beyond the arc. Free-throws were also a low point for the gold and blue as they only hit 14-of-23 shots from the charity stripe. The first half was a tightly contested one until late the first stanza. Despite the close score, the Panthers were red hot from beyond the arc in the first 20 minutes of play hitting 5-of-7 long ball attempts. VUU went into the locker room with a mere eight point lead (41-33).

The second half was a different story as the Panthers settled down and opened up a double-digit lead early in the half. The double-digit deficit coupled with the VUU rebounding efforts were too much for JCSU to handle. Junior guard Ryan Scott (Reston, Va.) continued his double-digit scoring ways (seven consecutive games) with 15 points and three rebounds. Maurice Hooper (Reidsville, N.C.) fell just one point shy of double-digits with nine points. He also had three rebounds, three assists, and three steals in the loss.

Virginia Union was paced by the Byerson brothers who played pitch and catch all evening long. Brad Byerson's 25 points and 16 rebounds led all players in the contest while his younger brother Brandon had 11 points. Brandon also dished out eight assists. Lemoyne Williams had nine points and nine rebounds but had a game high four blocks.

The win improves Virginia Union's record to 6-2, 3-1 in the conference and a perfect 2-0 in the division. The loss drops the Bulls to 7-4 overall and 2-2 in league play.

Next up will be the Big Blues of Bluefield State College on Tuesday, January 8, 2008. Game time is scheduled for 7:30 pm in Institute, W.Va.