By David Shaw
dshaw@salisbrypost.com
At stake Saturday night was simply a late-January CIAA victory and a push-from-behind heading toward the regular-season’s home stretch.
But the way Livingstone and Johnson C. Smith slugged it out at Trent Gym, it felt like the heavyweight title was up for grabs.
“That’s just the rivalry part of it,” coach James Stinson said after the Blue Bears absorbed an 84-74 loss before a standing-room-only crowd. “But it’s only a rivalry when you win. A lot of people say this goes back to Livingstone and Johnson C. Smith playing the first (conference) football game. We have to hold up on our end of the bargain and make this a little tougher.”
Livingstone (8-10, 3-9 CIAA) made things extremely interesting during an action-packed second half. Though the Blue Bears never led, they found themselves 15 points down with 18 minutes to play.
“I think turnovers and rebounding hurt us,” swingman Santonio Springs said after contributing 19 points and nine rebounds. “We should have gotten on the boards. They just attacked more and went to the line more.”
A 10-0 run that included consecutive 3-pointers by Sean Booker and Calvin Gunning helped LC draw within 40-35. Then after the Golden Bulls (14-4, 7-5) jacked their margin to 11, Livingstone senior Donte Durant drained a couple of 3-balls and the deficit was trimmed to 54-47 with 9:20 to play.
“My coach believes in me,” said Durant, a Washington, D.C. native who went 5-for-6 from beyond the arc and finished with 19 points. “He finds spots and calls plays where I can make those shots.”
Stinson called Durant’s effort “a surprise,” and added: “He came off the bench and really played hard. This kid is a walk-on. He paid his way in and has really shown the spirit of CIAA basketball and Livingstone basketball.”
The best was yet to come. When Springs nailed a 3-pointer from the left corner ó LC was 10-for-22 on long balls ó and sank the first of two free throws, Smith’s lead was down to 62-60 with 5:49 remaining. The swollen stands, which were full a good hour before tipoff, suddenly resembled a human trampoline.
“We knew it would get loud,” said Springs, who shot 6-for-11 from the field and blocked three shots. “These teams have been around for a while. It was gonna be tough either way.”
It got even louder when Booker knocked down a 30-foot shot from the right side that brought the Blue Bears within 71-68 with less than three minutes to go. But they never drew closer ó and even had a questionable holding call go against them in the final minute.
Smith’s top weapon was junior forward James Dillard. A 6-foot-5 transfer from East Carolina, he shot 9-for-13 from the floor and paced all scorers with 25 points. Most of them came off second-chance opportunities from close range.
“I try to stay active and keep the ball alive,” said Dillard, who also had seven rebounds, four blocked shots and three steals. “A lot of times something good happens. More possessions means more shots.”
And more misery for the Blue Bears, who had 22 turnovers. They’ve lost three of their last four games and remain winless against Western Division foes.
“We still expect to win,” said Stinson. “We expect to play well and we expect to win.”
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NOTES: Both teams shot 46.6 percent from the field, but five J.C. Smith scorers cracked double figures. … Livingstone visits Elizabeth City State on Tuesday. … The CIAA tournament is scheduled Feb. 23-28 in Charlotte.
J.C. smith (84) ó Dillard 25, Hollis 14, Scott 13, Thornhill 11, Little 10, Jackson 5, Drummer 4, Carter 2livingstone (74) ó Durant 19, Springs 19, Gunning 11, Darden 8, Booker 8, Page 5, Taylor 2, Bryant 2, Toney, Davis, Henry, Williams, Crawford.
J.C. Smith 35 49 ó 84
Livingstone 24 50 ó 74