Upper Marlboro Gains National Attention Through Hoops

Upper Marlboro gained attention in newspapers across the country this past weekend, but you had to look closely to find it. Most sports sections ran lists and scores of Division I conference basketball tournaments for men and women at the college level.

And since The Show Place Arena was host to the Colonial Athletic Association women's event from Thursday through Sunday, Upper Marlboro got some shine in the national spotlight.

It was the second straight year The Show Place Arena held a Division I tourney. Last year, the Atlantic 10 Conference women's event was held here. This year, the CAA held its annual tourney off campus for the first time since 1998, and James Madison of Harrisonburg, Va., came away with the title and an automatic bid to the NCAA event with a 67-61 victory against Delaware before 2,173 fans on Sunday.

Prior to the tournament, Show Place and Prince George's County promoted the event by placing fliers and brochures around the county at libraries and other locations. The players featured in those materials, Dawn Evans of JMU and Elena Delle Donne, fittingly met in the title game and each led their respective teams in scoring. Evans had 24 points and Delle Donne had 23.

Evans is among the leading scorers in the nation, while Delle Donne entered the tourney averaging 25.0 points per contest. She missed too many games due to illness to qualify among the national leaders.

"I am extremely disappointed. I could have done more offensively," Delle Donne told reporters after the game. "It was definitely a great defense" by JMU that limited the Delaware star to just six-of-20 shooting from the field.

Evans, who had eight assists but also made eight turnovers, hit several big shots down the stretch, including one over the arms of Delle Donne. JMU had five players with at least four fouls, and all-tournament guard Courtney Hamner fouled out.

"We can push through anything. My team has heart," said Evans, who was named outstanding player of the tourney.

The CAA tourney was held the previous two years at JMU, which beat ODU for the title in 2010. Before that it was held at Delaware, George Mason and ODU. The JMU campus is about three hours from Upper Marlboro while fans from Delaware made the drive in less than two hours.

"The arena was very adequate," said Kenny Brooks, the JMU head coach. "It was very cozy. If it can't be at the Convocation Center (at JMU), this is very adequate for us."

Said Hamner, who is from Northern Virginia: "I liked it. It helps it is close to JMU. Our band came. I thought it was good."

The boyfriend of JMU's Evans is Josh Parker, who plays for the men's team at the University of Dayton. While JMU was beating Delaware, Dayton was losing to Richmond in the Atlantic 10 Conference title game in Atlantic City.

Parker and the Flyers had to settle for a spot in the NIT. Evans, speaking nearly 45 minutes after the JMU game Sunday, said she was not aware of the final score of the Dayton game.

Local products are ready to dance

Around the same time JMU was beating Delaware, Upper Marlboro resident Nolan Smith was playing for Duke against North Carolina in the ACC title game in North Carolina. Smith had 10 assists as Duke won.

Smith, the ACC player of the year, injured his toe in Friday's win but came back to play on Saturday against Virginia Tech. He is averaging 21.6 points per game.

Duke will open play in the NCAA tourney Friday against Hampton, which beat Morgan State on Saturday for the MEAC title and an automatic bid to the NCAA field. One of the top players for Hampton is Kwame Morgan, a former standout at Largo High. The Pirates have a strong Prince George's County flavor, as Laurel High grads Chris Tolson and Milade Lola-Charles are also on the team.

Other local players with teams in the NCAA field include Upper Marlboro resident Bryon Allen and Isaiah Tate, who grew up in the Largo High district, of George Mason. Allen played at St. Thomas More in Delaware while Tate was a standout at DeMatha Catholic in Hyattsville.

Maurice Sutton of Largo High has played in 26 games out of 32 off the bench for Villanova. He is averaging 10.5 minutes and 2.4 points per contest. Mason and Villanova will meet on Friday.

Bowie State makes national tourney

The Bowie State men's basketball team lost to Indiana (PA), 94-81, on Sunday in the Division II basketball tourney. Junior guard Darren Clark (Largo High) led the Bulldogs with 20 points while sophomore guard Bryan Wilson (Riverdale Baptist) had 12.

Local connections at Virginia

The women's basketball team at the University of Virginia this season included Upper Marlboro's Paulisha Kellum (Bishop McNamara), a redshirt senior, and freshman guard Ataira Franklin, who is from Bowie and played at Riverdale Baptist.

Kellum was one of just two players to start all 31 games and she averaged 6.6 points per contest. Franklin was second on the team with an average of 9.2 points per contest. Debbie Ryan, the long-time head coach at Virginia, stepped down on Saturday after more than three decades at the helm.

Wise falls in state title game

The Wise High School girls basketball team lost, 58-38, to Gaithersburg on Saturday in the Maryland Class 4A state title game at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Wise ended the year with a record of 21-6.