Christopher Newport Cruises Past Morrisville State in NCAA Men's Basketball First Round; Salisbury Eliminated by Endicott
Second-ranked Christopher Newport cruised past Morrisville State while Salisbury fell to Endicott in the first round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament on Friday night.
In Swarthmore, Pa., Christopher Newport surged past Morrisville State thanks to a 20-0 run in the first half, cruising to an 81-45 victory. The Captains, now 26-2, advance to play Swarthmore (23-5) Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. at Tarble Pavilion on the Swarthmore campus outside of Philadelphia. Swarthmore advanced by beating Staten Island, 86-61.
Morrisville State led 15-10 with 12:21 remaining in the opening half when the Captains took over. Krikorian's squad grabbed a 30-15 lead thanks to the run, led by a 45-23 margin at halftime, and then went ahead by as many as 36 in the second stanza.
CNU's defense, number one in the country in opponent field goal percentage, held the Mustangs to just 29 percent (14 of 48) for the night. The Captains also lead the nation in points allowed, and Friday's effort marked the 20th time this season the squad has held an opponent to 60 points or less, and the sixth time under the 50-point mark.
CNU has now won 20 straight games, and was led by junior Marcus Carter's 15 points, followed by junior Aaron McFarland and senior Tim Daly with 13 each.
In Aston, Pa., No. 16 Salisbury saw its season come to a close, falling to Endicott, 71-68. Endicott will face Nichols, a 96-93 winner of host Neumann, in the Saturday's second round.
Senior Wyatt Smith led the Sea Gulls (20-8), in his final game in maroon and gold, scoring 15 points as one of three Sea Gulls in double figures. Gordon Jeter scored 13, while Justin Witmer added 11.