LamarStatesports Posted March 17, 2011 Report Posted March 17, 2011 Lamar State College-Port Arthur head Coach Matt Cross has been saying all season that his basketball team has a lot of heart and determination.The Seahawks certainly proved it Thursday at the NJCAA Division I Tournament, when they rebounded from their 70-52 first-round loss to No. 19 Monroe College with an impressive 69-62 victory No. 1 Missouri State University-West Plains.MSU-WP was upset by No. 6 Coffeyville (KS) Community College, 77-66, in the first round.Lamar State pulled away early and led by 15 points, 18-3, at the midway point of the first half on 50 percent shooting from the field.A defensive letdown allowed Missouri State to put up a 15-4 run with three-point shots from the corners that tightened the score to 22-18 with five minutes left in the half.The Seahawks finally regained their composure and went on a 12-4 run to lead by 10 at the break, 34-24.Lamar State came out cold in the second half and turned the ball over several times in the first three minutes to allow Missouri State to take the lead, 36-35. The Grizzlies led by eight points, 53-45, with 8:40 left, before the Seahawks started focusing their efforts on both ends of the floor.Reserve forward Darrion Booker got a put-back basket to tie the game 58-58 at the 3:14 mark.The Seahawks took control at that point and pulled away for their 26th win of the season.LSC-PA sophomore guard Vonn Jones, who scored only seven points Tuesday, led all scorers with 19 points. Booker had a big game in the post with nine rebounds and 17 points, including nine free throws. Keenen Coleman hit for 10 points, and Roman Vaughn, who had the flu and was a non-factor Tuesday, added nine for the Seahawks.Twann Oakley led MSU with 17 points, including five treys.The win was the fifth against a nationally-ranked team this year for the Seahawks, who previously defeated No. 4. San Jacinto College, No. 9 Trinity Valley Community College, No. 21 Shelton State Community College and No. 34 Jacksonville College.Lamar State will play at 1 p.m. Friday against Cape Fear (NC) Community College, which came into the tournament unranked with a 24-7 record.The Sea Devils lost to Tallahassee (FL) Community College, 64-61, in the opening round and eliminated Redlands (OK) Community College on Thursday, 93-83.
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