Anthony Collins, who led Virginia State to the CIAA tournament semifinals last month, was reassigned today after four seasons as the Trojans men’s head basketball coach. Collins had been on the hot seat since midseason, partly because the Trojans didn’t resemble a team that was expected to challenge for the conference title. Then, booster and alumni members turned up the heat while VSU was losing nine of 11 games.

Virginia State’s improbable run through the CIAA tournament stalled last night as Johnson C. Smith ousted the Trojans 63-56 at Time Warner Cable Arena. The Trojans, with forward J.C. Chaney scoring only four points, fizzled in their first semifinal appearance since 2004. They led 32-30 at halftime, but surrendered the lead for good when Ronald Thornhill hit a 3-pointer with 11:31 to play to give the Golden Bulls a 44-42 lead.

Virginia State center Brandon Macklin shrugged off talk about Virginia Union’s dominance of the Trojans, who have lost 13 in a row to their CIAA rivals. Macklin only wants to look forward. Besides, the past looks far too bleak for a Virginia State program that continues to improve under third-year coach Anthony Collins—save the hurdle that is Virginia Union.