VUU hangs on to reach title game

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Virginia Union barely survived a late flurry by St. Augustine's on Friday night in advancing to last night's CIAA tournament championship game.

The Panthers, getting a game-high 21 points and sterling leadership from Brandon Byerson, escaped with a 57-54 victory in the semifinals. In the championship game, which was played late last night, they faced Johnson C. Smith, a 63-56 winner over Virginia State in the other Friday semifinal.

The Panthers got off to a slow start, partly because their starters were out of sync. In fact, the starting five combined for only five field goals.

But with the help of backup center Kyle Cook, the Panthers led 33-25 at halftime. Cook scored seven points on 3-for-6 shooting and ripped down five rebounds.

The Falcons took control at the outset of the second half, outscoring VUU 15-5 to take a 40-38 lead on a driving layup by Chris Jordan with 13:32 left.

The Falcons pushed away to a 45-41 lead. VUU coach Willard Coker sensed the Panthers needed a spark, so he juggled his lineup in search of the right combination and someone willing to take charge.

Byerson stepped up.

He scored 12 consecutive points to put the Panthers up 53-47 with 4:10 to play.

"I just tried to do my part, and everybody wanted me to get the ball," Byerson said. "They told me to take over and keep going to the basket."

While Byerson supplied the offensive firepower, the Panthers tightened up defensively. They made the Falcons work hard for every shot. St. Augustine's went nearly six minutes without field goal before Steven Brignol powered inside for a layup to make it 53-49 with 3:26 to go.

But the Panthers couldn't polish off the dazed Falcons because of VUU's poor free throw shooting -- something that has plagued the Panthers all season -- and because Byerson had gone to the bench with an injury to his heel.

Gregg Thondique and Branden McDonald both missed the front end of 1-and-1 situations, leaving the Virginia Union clinging to its four-point lead with 1:36 to play.

The Falcons' Will Gill turned up the heat. He buried a 3-pointer at 1:22 to make it 43-42. Then, after a Virginia Union turnover, Gill drew a foul while driving to the basket and made both foul shots to put the St. Augustine's ahead 54-53 with 57 seconds remaining.

The game appeared lost for the Panthers when Thondique was tied up, giving alternate possession to the Falcons. But Thondique stole the inbound pass, then flipped the ball to Lemoyne Williams, who muscled in a dunk to give Union the lead 55-54 with 30 seconds left.

St. Augustine's missed a shot -- VUU's McDonald kept alive the rebound and teammate Branden Smith came up with the loose ball. He called time out with 16 seconds to go.

Coker said Byerson continued to lead, even when he was hurt and out of the game.

"Brandon told the guys during the timeout that we are not going to lose this game," Coker said. "For him to lead by example is the type of thing that needs to be done in games like these."

VUU's Braxton Byerson made 1 of 2 free throws to make it 56-54 with 12 seconds left.

The Falcons had a chance to knock off the tournament's top seed as Chris Jordan squared up a step beyond the 3-point arc with nary a VUU defender in sight. But he missed, and VUU's Jason Wansley gathered in the rebound with 4 seconds left, then hit 1 of 2 free throws to ice the victory -- well, almost.

The Falcons had one last shot. But Hayward Fain's half-court heave missed wide left, giving the Panthers a berth in the final and a chance to earn their 21st CIAA title.

Afterward, Brandon Byerson was walking around and said his heel felt better and there was no doubt that he would play in the final. He said that when he was out of the game at the end, the Panthers showed their character under fire.

"We calmed down, got our heads straight and pulled this one out," he said.

Contact Ralph N. Paulk at .

VIRGINIA UNION (21-5)

Bran. Byerson 21, Dupuy 2, Brax. Byerson 5, Williams 6, Thondique 10, Wansley 3, McDonald 3, Smith 0, Cook 7. Totals: 17 18-31 57.
ST. AUGUSTINE'S (19-10)

Jordan 9, Hickson 1, Gill 14, Fain 11, McNary 4, Bucknor 3, Washum 3, Brignol 3, Patterson 10. Totals: 21 8-15 54.

Halftime: VUU 33-25; 3-point goals: VUU -- Bran. Byerson (2), Brax. Byerson, McDonald, Cook. SA -- Gill (2), Jordan, Bucknor.