Central Connecticut State, Weber State earn NCAA berths

Mar 8, 2007 - 7:57 AM By PA SportsTicker

Javier Mojica made sure Central Connecticut completed a three-peat and secured a berth in the NCAA Tournament.

The Most Valuable Player in the Northeast Conference, Mojica scored 25 points, including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:36 to play, to help the Blue Devils rally past Sacred Heart, 74-70, in the conference championship game.

Central Connecticut (22-11), the league's regular-season champion, advanced to the NCAAs for the third time in school history and first since 2002.

"We played with as much heart, as much toughness - mentally, physically, emotionally - as any team that I've been around," Blue Devils coach Howie Dickenman said. "I doubt I'll ever have a team that plays this tough and plays with this attitude. We played with a chip on our shoulder, played hard and never stopped playing. They're winners. These guys are winners."

Winners of 15 of their past 16 games, the top-seeded Blue Devils beat the Pioneers for the third time this season and avoided a trend that had plagued a number of regular-season champions in their conference tournaments.

Four schools - Creighton, Niagara, Eastern Kentucky and North Texas - have avenged a pair of regular-season losses with wins in the league title game.

Sacred Heart (18-14) was looking to become the fifth team to do so against Central, which had posted a pair of double-digit victories in the two regular-season meetings between the schools.

The Pioneers had the unenvious task of trying to reverse the trend on the Blue Devils' home floor but appeared on the threshold of the upset by taking a 56-46 lead midway through the second half.

Central countered with a 10-0 run but still trailed by a point before Mojica, who was named the tournament MVP, stepped up.

A senior guard, Mojica drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the key to put Central ahead for good, 70-68, and Jemino Sobers buried a baseline jumper for a four-point advantage with 60 seconds left.

After Joey Henley hit a layup to cut the lead to 72-70, Tristan Blackwood converted two free throws with 18 ticks remaining, spoiling the Pioneers' bid for their first NCAA appearance since moving to Division I eight years ago.

A similar scenario played out in the Big Sky Conference on Wednesday, where top-seeded Weber State (20-11) won the league championship by beating Northern Arizona for the third time, 88-80, in Ogden, Utah to earn an automatic bid to the "Big Dance."

Juan Pablo Silveira scored 21 points, including five free throws in the final 38 seconds, as the Wildcats almost blew a 21-point lead before pulling away to sink Northern Arizona (18-12), which lost to Montana in last year's conference title game.

Silveira, David Patten and Dezmon Harris combined for 63 points to help Weber State earn its first NCAA appearance since 2003.

Like Central Connecticut State, the Wildcats completed a trifecta against Northern Arizona. They posted an 81-73 road win in December and an 86-79 home triumph February 3.

Weber State, which failed to qualify for the conference tournament last season, will be making its 14th appearance in the NCAAs.

Trailing, 73-61, with 9 1/2 minutes left, Northern Arizona closed to 75-73 with 5:07 to play as Stephen Sir hit a pair of 3-pointers and Ruben Boykin added one. But Arturas Valeika and Patten sandwiched two free throws each around a layup by Harris to build the lead back to six before Silveira sealed it.

So far, 14 automatic bids have been awarded. There are no conference championships Thursday, and the Patriot League will be decided Friday when Holy Cross faces Bucknell.

The entire 65-team field will be announced by the NCAA Selection Committee on Sunday.