NEWPORT NEWS, Va.- Christopher Newport captured the title of the Crowne Plaza Captains Shootout Tuesday night, holding off Hood College in the title game, 75-68. The Captains improved to 7-3 with the triumph at the Freeman Center in their final action of 2014.

Freshman Marcus Carter led the Captains with 16 points, and was named the MVP of the two-day tournament. Carter paced CNU with 27 points in Monday's win over Otterbein and made 13 of 19 shots and registered 15 rebounds in the two victories.

"Marcus really was something special for us," Head Coach John Krikorian said. "We had a balanced attack for the most part, but Marcus really stepped up when we needed him to. He was truly deserving of the MVP honor."

Four Captains finished in double figures, and senior Mike Cherry posted 14 points for the second straight night to join Carter on the All-Tournament squad. Junior Connor Laframboise (12) and freshman Aaron McFarland (10) also finished in double digits.

CNU led by nine at the half, 26-17, following a 10-1 run to end the opening stanza...but could not pull away from the stubborn Blazers. Hood out-scored the Captains, 22-10, in a six-minute span of the second half to grab the lead, 43-39. Christopher Newport was able to bounce back and then went on a 15-0 run to regain the lead for good. 

"I give Hood a whole lot of credit, that's a very good team," Krikorian continued. "They made it tough for us all night and really did some amazing things in the second half...we were fortunate to hit some shots and get our momentum back."

Hood, now 4-6, was led by 23 points from senior Terrell Buyck, who scored all 23 in the second half. The Blazers leading scorer for the season, Chris Cook, was hampered by foul trouble and finished with 13 points. Buyck and Cook were both named to the All-Tournament squad.

CNU out-rebounded Hood, 40-30, and the Captains made 15 of 21 foul shots to help put the game away down the stretch.  

The Captains also relied heavily again on three-point shooting, making 10 of 29 shots from beyond the arc. CNU ended up making 25 of 67 three-point shots in the tournament with Carter and Cherry draining eight each.

Christopher Newport opens the new year on Saturday, returning to league play in the Capital Athletic Conference. The Captains, 7-3 overall and 2-1 in CAC action already, will host York College of Pennsylvania. Game time Saturday at the Freeman Center is set for 4:00 p.m.