Norfolk State tops NC Central in OT, 72-65 in MEAC semifinal

NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — Joe Bryant Jr. scored 23 points, 10 in the overtime, as Norfolk State beat North Carolina Central 72-65 on Friday in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament semifinals.

Norfolk State, the tournament's No. 3 seed, will face top-seeded Howard in Saturday's championship game.

Bryant added 10 rebounds for the Spartans (20-10). Kris Bankston added 20 points while shooting 7 of 9 from the field and 5 for 6 from the line, and he also had eight rebounds. Caheim Brown was 2 of 4 shooting and 8 of 11 from the free throw line to finish with 12 points, while adding seven rebounds.

The Eagles (17-11) were led by Justin Wright, who posted 13 points, seven rebounds and four assists. North Carolina Central also got 13 points from Kris Monroe. Eric Boone also had 11 points, six rebounds and three steals. The Eagles broke a six-game winning streak with the loss.

Dana Tate scored eight points in the first half for Norfolk State, who led 22-20 at halftime. Norfolk State was outscored by two points in the second half and the teams finished regulation tied 58-58. Bryant shot 2 of 2 from the field and 6 for 6 from the line on the way to his 10 points in the overtime.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.