Weevils Finish Break with Loss

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SECOND-HALF SURGE LEADS STATESMEN PAST WEEVILS

CLEVELAND, MISS (Jan. 13) --- Delta State (13-2) shot 72.7 percent from the floor in the second half, including an 85.7 percent clip from long range as the Statesmen handed the University of Arkansas - Monticello Boll Weevils (6-9) a 79-69 loss Saturday night at Walter Sillers Coliseum.

   UAM pulled ahead by as many as eight (23-15) with 8:32 remaining in the first half, but the Statesmen edged back, tying the game on a jumper by Turmaine Rice with three seconds remaining in the half.

   DSU scored early and often in the second half, hitting eleven of their first twelve shots from the field to pull ahead by as many as 13 (70-57) with 5:10 remaining. The Weevils twice were able to pull to within six, but the Statesmen held the Weevils at arm’s length and held on for the victory.

   Nate Newell (Sr., Monticello) led UAM with 26 points. MJumbe “J.B.” Williams (Sr., Compton, Calif.) scored 15 points, Torre Doty (Sr., Austin, Texas) scored 12 and Vincent Jackson (Fr., Fordyce) scored 11 in the loss.

WEEVILS HOLD OFF TIGERS, PICK UP FIRST CONFERENCE WIN

MONTICELLO (Jan. 11) --- Newell scored 32 points and Williams added 24 points as the Boll Weevils escaped with a 78-77 win over the Ouachita Baptist University Tigers Thursday night at Steelman Fieldhouse.

   The Tigers controlled the first half, pulling ahead by as many as ten (37-27) with 2:31 remaining in the opening half, but the Weevils narrowed the gap, pulling to within three (37-34) on a Williams three-pointer with 23 seconds left in the half.

   The Weevils took their first lead of the game on a Newell jumper with 16:47 remaining in the second half, and while the two teams traded leads over the next five minutes, UAM pulled ahead for good with 9:51 remaining on a Ryan Nelson (So., Rochester, Mich.) jumper. UAM would extend their lead to as many as six (77-71) with 16 seconds left, and OBU’s Jaranimo Marks pulled the Tigers to within one at the buzzer with a three-pointer.

   Newell’s 32 points led all players. Williams added 24 and Nelson added 14 for the Weevils. Marks led OBU with 27 points, while Memo Rodriguez chipped in 21 in the loss.

   The Weevils shot 50 percent from the floor for the game.

SECOND-HALF SURGE LEADS HARDING PAST WEEVILS

MONTICELLO (Jan. 6)--- After trailing by seven at halftime, Harding (8-6) outscored the Boll Weevils 48-30 in the second half to pick up an 87-76 victory over UAM in both schools’ conference opener.

   UAM opened the game hot, taking an early 19-8 lead after a lay-up by Brett Potter (Fr., Cincinnati, Ohio) with 14:07 remaining. Harding would whittle away at the UAM lead, pulling to within two (34-32) after a three-point play by Brandon Sims, but UAM would push ahead, leading by as many as nine (46-37) before going into the half with a seven-point (46-39) lead.

   Harding pulled ahead with a Matt Hall lay-up just over three minutes into the half, taking as much as a six-point (56-50) lead before UAM fought back, reclaiming the lead on a Newell three-pointer.

   The lead would be short-lived, as Reggie Bibb nailed a jumper to tie the game just one minute later, and after Doty gave UAM a brief two-point lead (60-58) with 10:57 remaining, Harding reclaimed the lead for good with a three-pointer by Patrick Andrepont at the 9:23 mark. The Bisons pushed ahead, finishing the game with their biggest lead of the game.

   Newell led all players with 30 points. Doty, Williams and Nelson all finished in double digits with 14, 14 and 12 points respectively.

   Doty led UAM with ten rebounds, while Williams dished out a game-high six assists.

   Hall scored 23 points, and Andrepont added 20 to lead Harding.

WEEVILS FALL TO SECOND-RANKED CLAYTON STATE

MORROW, Ga. (Dec. 31, 2006) --- The Boll Weevils were unable to slow No. 2 Clayton State’s hot-shooting offense, as the Lakers shot 53.3 percent from the floor, including 53.6 percent from three-point range en route to an 88-54 win over the Weevils on Sunday at the Athletics and Fitness Center.

   Clayton State set a school-record with 15 three-pointers made in the game.

   The Lakers started their barrage of three-pointers less than 30 seconds into the game, as Michael Wright buried the opening shot of the game to put the Lakers up 3-0.  Nelson hit a lay-up the next time down the court to pull the Weevils to within one, but UAM would not get any closer as Clayton State extended their lead to 25 (38-13) just before the half.

   Leading 43-22 at the half, the Lakers continued to push ahead in the second half, and capped their three-point barrage with a Jordan Windisch three-pointer with nine seconds remaining in the game to set the final margin at 88-54.

   Newell scored 30 points for the Weevils to lead all scorers.

WEEVILS FALL TO WEST GEORGIA

CARROLLTON, Ga. (Dec. 30, 2006) --- Not even a 29-point night from Newell was enough for the Boll Weevils, as they dropped a 77-70 decision to the West Georgia Wolves on Saturday in Carrollton.

   The two teams traded leads over the first five minutes, with West Georgia finally pulling ahead at the 14:32 mark after a Sheldon Harris tip-in. UWG would push ahead by as many as seven (26-19) with 5:39 remaining in the half, but UAM fought back, pulling to within two (30-28) with just under three minutes to play.

   West Georgia’s Michael Lytle buried a jumper with just over a minute remaining to give the Wolves a four-point lead going into halftime.

   UAM took the lead two minutes into the second half after a pair of three-pointers by Newell, but UWG quickly reclaimed the lead and held the Weevils down the stretch to seal the victory.

   Newell’s 29 points led all players. Williams added 15 points while Doty added 13.

WEEVILS HOLD OFF LINCOLN UNIVERSITY

MONTICELLO (Dec. 28, 2006)--- Doty scored a game-high 27 points to lead the Boll Weevils to an 89-81 win over Lincoln University on Thursday night at Steelman Fieldhouse.

   The Weevils trailed early, but took the lead (10-8) at the 15:37 mark of the first half on a pair of three-pointers by Newell. UAM would hold the lead down the stretch, pushing ahead by as many as 16 (26-10) with 10 minutes remaining, before Lincoln began chipping back, pulling to within nine (47-38) at the half.

   Lincoln whittled into the Weevils’ lead, pulling to within three several times and even coming within two (61-59) at the 10:15 mark of the second half before the Weevils were able to pull away, claiming the eight-point victory.

   Lincoln’s James Edwards scored a game-high 31 points. Doty’s 27 points led UAM, while Williams added 22 points, Newell added 18 points and Potter added 15 points in the victory.

WEEVILS FALL TO 19th-RANKED BYU-HAWAII

LAIE, HAWAII (Dec. 20, 2006)--- The Boll Weevils were held to 31.6 percent shooting from the floor while the 19th-ranked BYU-Hawaii Seasiders (8-2) shot 57.9 percent from the floor, as the Seasiders topped the Weevils 101-68 on Wednesday.

   The Weevils fell behind early, as the Seasiders raced out to a 24-point (45-21) lead with just over four minutes remaining in the opening half. However, UAM finished the half on a 12-0 run to halve the deficit (45-33) at halftime.

   The comeback would be short-lived for UAM, as the Seasiders opened the second half on an 18-1 run and never looked back, pulling ahead by as many as 40 (97-57) in the closing minutes of the contest.

   Doty led UAM with 26 points on 9-of-17 shooting. Newell added 25 points, shooting just 3-of-18 from the floor but connecting on 16-of-18 free throw attempts.

   UAM was out rebounded 46-to-29 for the contest.

WEEVILS DROP SECOND STRAIGHT OVERTIME GAME

HONOLULU, HAWAII (Dec. 20, 2006) --- The Boll Weevils once again placed four players in double figures but were unable to overcome a hot-shooting Hawaii Pacific team in overtime, as the Weevils fell 84-75, dropping their second straight overtime game.

   The two teams traded leads seven times in the first half, with HPU taking the largest lead at eight points (29-21) with 3:59 remaining in the half. UAM would fight back and take the lead on a last-second three-pointer by Newell, sending the Weevils into the intermission with a 35-34 lead.

   UAM held a small lead over the first five minutes of the second half, but HPU quickly reclaimed the lead and held it down the stretch. Leading by one with six seconds left, HPU’s Kamron Alborz buried a pair of free throws to give the Sea Warriors a three-point (69-66) lead. However, Newell drilled a three-pointer at the buzzer to tie the game and send it to overtime.

   It was all HPU in the overtime period, as the Sea Warriors outscored the Weevils 15-6 in the overtime period to claim the victory.

   Newell’s 26 points led all scorers. Nelson added 16 points and Doty added 15, while Williams added 13 in the loss.

WEEVILS DROP OVERTIME HEARTBREAKER TO VULCANS

HILO, HAWAII (Dec. 19, 2006)--- Despite placing four players in double figures, the Boll Weevils were unable to overcome a 33-point effort by Hawaii-Hilo’s Michael Martin, as the Weevils fell 83-72 to the Vulcans on Monday.

   The Weevils started slowly, as the Vulcans ran out to an 18-5 lead halfway through the first half. UAM clawed back, pulling to within five (26-21) at halftime as Newell buried a pair of free throws with five seconds left in the half.

   UAM took their first lead of the game (31-29) as Doty nailed a jumper with 16:39 remaining, but the Vulcans quickly reclaimed the lead, holding a slight advantage over the Weevils down the stretch.

   The Weevils were able to force overtime as Chris Humes (Sr., Vicksburg, Miss.) drilled a jumper with one second left in regulation to tie the game, but UH-Hilo outscored UAM 15-4 in the overtime period to claim the victory.

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