The Livingstone men’s basketball team provided 40 minutes of gel Saturday night at Trent Gym.
Its reward was an attidude-adjusting 90-89 CIAA victory over visiting Shaw.
“We finally got it together and ran our system for a whole game,” said forward Rodney “The Factor” Gidney. “Like I’ve said before, when we’re on our game like this we’re one of the best teams in the conference.”
The Blue Bears (3-14, 2-7 CIAA) shot 50 percent from the field and earned their first win in five weeks. Livingstone’s inside-outside attack featured the 6-foot-7 Gidney pounding away for 27 points while teammate Shawn Wiseman converted eight of 13 3-point attempts and scored a career-high 26 points.
“I think we grew up a little bit,” said winning coach Buck Joyner. “We’ve been emphasizing team play and staying focused for 40 minutes. And emphasizing to the bench (players) to come in with a positive attitude. Tonight a lot of that fell into place.”
Livingstone secured the victory when Sheldon Payne hit two free throws with 5.5 seconds remaining, giving the hosts a four-point lead. But the turning point came early in the second half when Gidney’s grand slam sent a we’re-not-fooling-around-here message.
“The most important stretch was the first five minutes of the second half,” he said. “That was crunch time and we played to win instead of not to lose. By us being aggressive, we came out on top.”
It’s also when Wiseman put on an unconscious display of long-distance shooting. He made five straight 3-pointers midway through the second half, lifting the Stone to a 72-65 lead with seven minutes to play.
“That was our system in action,” he said. “It’s designed to send the ball inside to Rodney and Pete (Anders). If the shot’s not there, they kick it out to me.”
Wiseman made a small adjustment after sinking just two of six shots in the first half. “Usually when I miss shots it’s because I don’t extend my arm,” he explained. “At halftime I got my mind set on extending it the way I’m supposed to.”
Once the Blue Bears grabbed the lead, they held it for the last nine minutes of the game.
“That is something different for us,” said Joyner. “In the end, when we usually get lethargic and play not to lose, they wanted it this time. That was the difference.”
Shaw (8-8, 3-6 CIAA) placed four scorers in double figures led by junior forward Ronald Murray, who shot only 2-for-10 from the field but made 14 of 15 free throws.
“They were a good team,” said Wiseman. “That’s why this is such an important win. There’s still eight games left and we’ve been close a lot of times. Maybe we can get on a roll.”
Even if it doesn’t, the energized crowd of 783 saw an exciting game. “We’ve got the school behind us again,” said Gidney. “Once you’ve got the support of the students and administration, you can go all the way to the top.”
SHAW (89)— Murray 19, Williams 17, Bynes 16, Smith 15, Duncan 9, Booker 7, Page 4, Head 2, Donald, Taylor.
LIVINGSTONE (90) — Gidney 27, Wiseman 26, Payne 12, Anders 10, Rouse 7, Henry 6, Baker 2, Nash, Moses, Lynch, Scarborough, Wright.
Shaw 45 44 — 89
Livingstone 42 48 — 90
Today's News