CIAA Basketball: Fayetteville State 83, Livingstone 80: Blue Bears lose 10th game by 5 points or less

By David Shaw

dshaw@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — Livingstone’s Josh Hodge threw himself into his work Saturday night at Trent Gym — but his work threw him back.

A 6-foot-4 junior, Hodge had an automatic jump shot in the first half when he drained six 3-pointers and scored 22 points. But his accuracy betrayed him in the closing seconds when his 3-ball from the left side misfired, allowing Fayetteville State to escape with an 83-80 win.

“It’s heart-wrenching. It really is,” coach James Stinson said after LC (6-14, 2-10 CIAA) buried itself deeper in the Southern Division basement. “Sooner or later we’re gonna have to get on a roll and really play the way we’re capable of playing.”

The loss completed a 1-3 homestand and prevented the Blue Bears from evacuating last place. They actually played a solid game at both ends — forcing 20 turnovers and blocking eight shots on defense and shooting 51 percent (26-for-51) from the field.

“We played with a lot of energy at the end of the game,” guard Mark Thomas said, “The problem is we need to learn how to finish.”

Livingstone failed that test against FSU (6-14, 4-8). The visiting Broncos shot 52 percent from the floor (29-for-56) and nearly squandered an 8-point lead in the final minute-and-a-half.

“We’ve lost a few games like that,” said Fayetteville State coach Alphonza Kee. “And I think those losses helped us win this one tonight.”

Livingstone suffered its 10th loss by five or fewer points,but not before delighting the crowd with a dizzying first half. Hodge, a Hartford, Conn., native, hit four 3-pointers in the opening six minutes. He finished 6-for-12 from beyond the arc and scored a team-best 25 points.

“The point guards were penetrating and that left me wide open,” he said. “The easy part was knocking them down. The point guards did all the work.”

Only 1:38 remained in the first half when Hodge nailed his sixth long ball to give LC a five-point lead. And when teammate Tyler Johnson converted both ends of a one-and-one with 1:02 on the clock, the Blue Bears sat atop a 45-38 cushion. FSU cut it to four when freshman Anthony Shelton his a 3-pointer with three seconds left in the half.

“That changed the momentum,” Stinson said. “We had the ball right before that, but instead of pulling it out and using the clock, we took a shot we probably shouldn’t have.”

Shelton, who shot 7-for-9 from the field and scored a career-high 22 points, opened the second half with another home run ball. Later his botched jam fell through the hoop with 1:26 remaining, providing a 79-71 Broncos lead.

“We fought through some adversity,” he said. “We finally came out with some fire in the end and it paid off.”

Livingstone used three foul shots and a 3-pointer by Thomas to tie the score 80-80. Shelton won the game with a driving layup and ensuing free throw with 11.3 seconds to go.

“I’ve done that before in high school,” he said. “I like pressure. I did what needed to be done.”

When Hodge’s desperation shot clanked off the iron in the waning seconds, Livingstone was narrowly beaten again.

“Most of them are tough to walk away from,” Thomas said dejectedly. “This one too. We could have won a lot of games that we’ve lost.”

FAYETTEVILLE STATE (83) — Shelton 22, Evans 17, Donnell 11, Plummer 10, Tate 7, Best 7, Baxter 3, Underwood 2, Fields 2, Johnson 2.

LIVINGSTONE (80) — Hodge 25, M.Thomas 14, Austin 10, Henry 6, T.Johnson 6, Jackson 6, Redfern 5, D.Thomas 3, Ford-Bey 3, Anderson 2, Paul, Williams.

Fay. State 41 42 — 83

Livingstone 45 35 — 80