Hornets Throwing a Lucky 7

After a very long road trip to begin the season, the Delaware State lady hornets softball are very glad to be home and get some wins.

So what did lady hornets do: Keep on hitting and keep on winning. Through March 23rd DSU has won seven in a row and rolling the dice by making every hit, steal every base, and score every run they can to win the game.

During the seven game winning streak DSU  has batted .420, outscoring oppoents 62-8 and throwing a no hitter.

Also six lady hornets are batting .320  and above during the streak. The reason behind those win is that the lady hornets won their own Capital City Classic Tournament last weekend and earning a huge over their in-state rivial University of Delaware back on Tuesday. With their MEAC conference games fast approaching, the lady hornets can not afford to make mental errors and just continue to play more smart in running the bases and leaving runners on base.

Even though their pitching is just under a 4.00 ERA the hornets has found ways to get out of situations and finished strong to get the wins they need. The Lady Hornets long home stead continues with the John Savage Tournament and I'm looking to see how the lady hornets will fare espically with Morgan State coming to town along with three other school participating in the tournament as well.

A Season Full of Growing Pains

Its was very tough season for the Delaware State men's and women's basketball team during the 2010-2011 season as both teams finished 9-21 overall and 5-11 in the conference. For head coaches Ed Davis and Greg Jackson it was a tough season for both of them, coaching a young squad with inexperience and little or no senior leadership.

On the women's side, the lady hornets only had two seniors to try and helped a young DSU squad that are trying to learn the tricks of the trade of winning games. Instead cold shooting and turnovers was the lady hornets Achilles heal all season long as DSU shot only 33% from the field, averaging over 20 turnovers a game, and scoring 53 points a game.

DSU were no match versus West Virginia, Syracuse, Maryland, Seton Hall, Hampton, Bethune-Cookman, Florida A&M and other teams. Something tells me that the lady hornets have a lot of work to do on their shot selection and handling the basketball. Not to mention attitude because their body language were saying we are not ready to battle these tough teams and win games.

As for the Hornet men this was a season where games that would've been won, instead it turnout to be painful loses. DSU would've beat LaSalle, Delaware, Bethune-Cookman (twice), Coppin State (twice), Hampton (twice), Howard, North Carolina A&T (twice), UMES (on the road), Florida A&M (on the road), Tennessee State, and South Carolina State (MEAC Tournament).

With those wins DSU could have at least 14, 15, or 16 wins, instead only nine wins during the regular season and finished the season losing eight in a row and 12 of their last 13.

All season long the Hornet men were undersized having a very small lineup and only one big man. That spells bad news because  getting out rebounded by opponents 35-23 a game and letting teams to shoot almost 50% from the field.

The Hornets will have most of their players back but DSU needs more big men to help these guards so they can rebound and get block shots on defense. Also the Hornets need stop falling behind and tried to rally to get back in the game. Also the Hornets needs to maintain a big lead at all times.

Can both the men and lady hornets get back on track next season and try to compete for the MEAC title? Only time will tell.

Hornets MEAC Tournament Preview

March Madness has started and the 2011 MEAC Tournament will begin tomorrow from The Joel Coliseum, home of Wake Forest University. 11 teams vining for the richest prize in mid-major sports: to become a MEAC Champion and a trip to the Big Dance (NCAA Tournament).

Both the Delaware State Men and Lady hornets basketball team will play 1st round games.

The Lady hornets will play UMES for the 3rd time this season. During the regular season the lady hornets won in overtime at home 73-67, however last Thursday on the road the lady hornet lost 55-49. If the lady hornets is able to beat UMES, they have to have a good half court offense, score points in the paint, and pervent turnovers.

Meanwhile the Hornet men will playing South Carolina State. In their first and only meeting in January, Jay Threatt scored the game winning jumper as time expired as the Hornets beat the Bulldogs 61-60. In order for the Hornets to win the game, they need to rebound better, attack the paint, and stop settling for 3 point shots. Also the defense needs to be crisp and fresh from start to finished.

Even I won't be there at the MEAC Tournament, I will catch all the action online on meacsports.com and 1290theticket.com.

Good luck to the DSU Hornets basketball teams in the MEAC tournament.

The Night was Rough for Hornets Basketball

Last night was the final home game of the year for the Delaware State Hornets men's and women's basketball team. Last night was supposed to be special night for the Hornets, one its was Senior Night, and number two this was chance for the Hornets to show their home fans and  their long time rival Hampton that they can be just as tough as they are. Believe me nobody wants to lose on Senior Night.

During the lady Hornets 77-66 lost to Hampton, the lady hornets fell into a early hole they can't get out of. The lady hornets were trailing the whole game from start to finish. The lady hornets committed 19 turnovers that lead to Hampton scoring 31 points off of turnovers (25 points in the 1st half). There were a lot of fouls being called for both teams Also it was free throw shooting marathon in which both teams combine for 68 free throw attempts (Hampton 38, DSU 28). Even if the lady hornets made a brief rally early in the 2nd half, the lady hornet couldn't cut the lead any further. I wanted to cover my eyes at the game but instead  I was the Public Address announcer for the game I had to witnessed it like everyone else in Memorial Hall.

Then there was the Hornet men's basketball team, a free falling team that can't get wins down when they needed that most all season.  The team that really need this win more than anything. Instead no matter how well they shoot their defense was no match for Hampton's size in a 71-64 defeat. DSU did made 28 points in the paint but the Hornets would've made 40 points in the paint if it weren't for Hampton's defense that the Hornets to missed some close up bunny shots. Once again the Hornets live and die with the long range shots by shooting 14 three pointers making only six.

The scene at Memorial Hall felt emotional inside but hopefully Thursday night at UMES both the men and lady hornets will finished their losing streak and at least gained a little momentum for the 1st round of the MEAC Tournament.

Threatt Breaks Single Season Assists Record

Congratulations to Delaware State Hornet point guard Jay Threatt for breaking the single season record in assists.

On Wednesday February 23, Threatt made history that no other DSU point guard has ever accomplished in a very long time. During the Hornets 42-39 lost to Morgan State, Jay made six assists totaling his assists for the season with 162. He broke the assists record held by Emanual Davis who had 157 assists during the 1996-97 season.

Just last season as a sophomore, Threatt lead the nation in steals, now this year he has broke a Delaware State Hornet record in assists. When I first saw Jay Threatt playing in November 2009, I had a good feeling he can handle the basketball very well and barley get any turnover. Throughout the course of the season last season and this season Threatt is in a second gear.

The best thing about this is that he is only a junior with one more year left. I kept saying to myself that Jay Threatt is the Rajon Rando of the Delaware State Hornets, but I can't call him that anymore. Besides Jay Threatt is on a mission to become a better player, a leader, a educator, and hopefully next season a MEAC Champion.

Despite Cold Shooting, Lady Hornets Finished The Road Trip Even Steven

As we approached the final two games of the regular season and the MEAC Tournament, the Delaware State Lady Hornets basketball team are trying to builder momentum and play spoiler to the MEAC teams that have a record of  .500 and above.

On Valentines Day weekend, the Florida teams, Bethune-Cookman and Florida A&M, gave DSU no heart at all as the Lady Hornets lost to Bethune-Cookman 55-50 thanks to 31% shooting, and 69-46 due to their lack of effort and 27% shooting.

After two very tough defeats, the lady hornets recharge their batteries for February 19th and 21th to play spolier on Morgan State, the number two team in the MEAC, and Coppin State.

During the Morgan State game, the lady hornets shot 33% from the field, but held Morgan State to 34% shooting in a 59-47 upset victory. Then on 21st of February, with time whining down, Kianna Conner hit a game winning three pointer to help DSU beat Coppin State 51-49.

Despite their 2-2 record, the Lady Hornets offense continues to struggle by 33% from the field during their four game road trip. However, their defense improved by holding their opponents to shoot just 39% from the field. DSU had found ways to win with making big shots down stretch, making free throws, and tightening up their defense. Their toughest test is yet to come when the lady hornets play against the number one team in the MEAC Conference, Hampton on Saturday night.

The Free Falling Hornets

Hornets fans lets face it, this is a young Delaware State team that no matter how many big shots they dropped, how many free throws they made, and trying to show coach Greg Jackson Sr. how to play defense, the Hornets just can't seem to final a way to win ball games.

Ever since the Hornets beat Morgan State back on January 22, the DSU has lost six out of their last seven games.

There are four reasons on why the Hornets are free falling and losing games at the most critical times.

Reason #1 Defense: Coach Jackson said it best that in order to win games you have play better defense because DSU has let their opponents score 71 points a game. In other words the Hornets has got to prevent teams from at least 65 points or less. That includes defending the paint and jump shooters.

Reason #2 Offense: The hornets can not live and die by the three point shots every time. When DSU faced North Carolina A&T back on February 5, DSU shot 40 three pointers and made only 17. The result a lost in over time. Also the hornets are lacking points in the the paint. Sure Marcus Oliver can score in the paint on any given night but the rest of his teammates need to step up and score easy twos in the paint for the rest of the season.

Reason #3 Bench Scoring: All season long the Hornets are lacking in bench dept. The Hornets are being out score 15-11 per game. Can Chad Wilson and terron Stowe step up and help their bench. The Hornets can't win game without bench scoring.

Reason #4: Rebound Rebound Rebound: the Hornets were out rebound 41-23 a game and the reason why is because the Hornets don't have any big men (besides Marcus oliver) that can get up and grab rebounds both offensively and defensively. Since DSU's lineup is small they need to jump very high for the rebounds.

We already know the Hornets chances of winning the MEAC Tournament is very slim but if the Hornets can fix these problems and finish the final five games of the season on a positive note, then the Hornets will be the team to beat in the MEAC Conference next year as serious contenders.