Norfolk State overcomes 21 turnovers with solid shooting, defense in winning MEAC opener
It was hardly a win befitting a two-time defending league champion that’s expected to repeat again.
But it was a win, and that was enough to get Norfolk State off on the right foot.
Joe Bryant scored 15 points and the Spartans weathered a sloppy offensive afternoon Saturday in a 57-46 victory over Maryland Eastern Shore in the MEAC opener for both teams at Echols Hall.
NSU (11-5, 1-0 MEAC) won despite committing 21 turnovers while shooting 48.9% from the field. The Spartans held UMES (7-8, 0-1) to 29.4% shooting.
NSU coach Robert Jones trained his eyes on the turnover total in the box score.
“That’s disgusting,” Jones said. “The turnovers kind of negated some of our great defensive effort.”
Kris Bankston added nine points and 12 rebounds for the Spartans, who led by as many as 14 in the final seven minutes.
NSU outscored the Hawks 33-23 in the second half to seize control.
Troy Hupstead scored 10 points for UMES. Leading scorer Kevon Voyles, who entered averaging 12.1 points per game, was held to nine.
The Spartans won the rebounding battle 37-27. But Jones couldn’t get past his team’s carelessness once it had the ball.
Still, there was a lesson to glean.
“This was an ugly game,” Jones said. “But it shows that we can win an ugly game.”
NSU, which has won back-to-back MEAC Tournament titles and was picked to finish first again in a preseason poll, looked the part of league bully early on.
But after taking an 18-5 lead midway through the first half, the Spartans went on a 6 1/2-minute scoring drought that resulted in an 18-18 tie with 4 1/2 minutes left. NSU took a 24-23 lead into halftime after being held to six points in the final 10 minutes.
The Spartans were hot out of the gate, scoring the game’s first 11 points to make things appear comfortable early. UMES didn’t score until the 14:53 mark in the first half. Its first field goal came 2 1/2 minutes later, the first of 13 unanswered points.
NSU guard Christian Ings exited the game with 12:21 left in the first half. He was helped to the locker room with an apparent right knee injury.
Ings entered the game fourth on the team in scoring, with 10.9 points per game. Jones did not have a postgame update on his condition.
The Spartans, who will visit Delaware State on Monday, shot 63.2% in the decisive second half.
“That’s basically getting anything you want,” Jones said. “But when you turn it over 21 times, that’s 21 times you didn’t get a shot up. That’s why it could’ve easily been a 20-, 25-point game without the turnovers.”
David Hall, david.hall@pilotonline.com
