Captains Sports Live Audio Webcast
Live Video & Live Stats
LANCASTER, Pa. -- March Madness is here! The No. 25 Christopher Newport University men's basketball team (23-4) will hit the hardwood tonight at 5:30 pm on the campus of Franklin & Marshall College in Pennsylvania, as they take on Western Connecticut State (20-6) in the NCAA Tournament First Round. The Captains, coming off a USA South Tournament Championship and the subsequent automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament, are looking for their first tournament win since the 2000-01 season.
CNU is making its 18th NCAA Tournament appearance after capturing its 14th Conference Title last weekend. The game will tip at 5:30pm, with live stats and a live video webcast linked at CNUsports.com. The game can also be heard live in the Hampton Roads area on Xtra 99.1 FM, the CNU/Pepsi Radio Network.
USA South Tournament MVP and Conference Player of the Year
Conley Taylor leads the way for the Captains this year, averaging 21 points a game. He has surged up the all-time scoring list this season and currently ranks fourth all-time with over 1800 points. He is 41 points shy of tying for third in program history. CNU also had the Conference Rookie of the Year,
Mike Cherry, and Coach of the Year,
John Krikorian in his second season. Cherry averaged 12.9 points per game and over 2 three-pointers made, while Krikorian guided the Captains to its best season since a 24-5 mark in 2002-03.
The Captains, featuring the nation's 16th best scoring offense (84.2 ppg), will face one of the most potent three-point shooting teams in the nation in WestConn. The Colonials have four shooters with 40 or more three-pointers made, including three hitting at better than a 40% clip from beyond the arc. The team ranks seventh in 3-pointers made per game with 9.8 and is also 32nd in percentage, at 38%. Leading the charge is senior and three-time Conference Player of the Year DaQuan Brooks. Brooks ranks third in the nation in scoring at 28.5 ppg, seventh in three-pointers made per game with 3.5 and 10th in the nation in assists per game, with 6.2.
The winner will advance to play on Saturday at 7:00 pm against the winner of the Franklin & Marshall/York (Pa.) game played tonight, immediately following CNU's First Round matchup.
