The 2025 CIAA Basketball Tournament semifinal field is officially set.
It features Jordan Hinds, the CIAA Player of the Year, and the Big Blue of Bluefield State, who started their tournament run with a dominant win.
Here is a full recap of day three of the CIAA Basketball Tournament.
Women
Virginia Union 59, Claflin 55
MVP of the Game: Virginia Union F Tatiana Jones
The Virginia Union Panthers got their CIAA tournament run started in dramatic fashion, overcoming a fourth-quarter shooting slump to beat Claflin 59-55.
Tatiana Jones paced Virginia Union with 14 points on 63% shooting from the field, six rebounds, and three steals. Taniyah Greene finished with nine points and 10 rebounds while Brittini Martin snatched four steals.
Claflin was led by conference Player of the Year Nya Morris, knocking in a game-high 19 points, including four three-pointers. She also grabbed five rebounds and three steals.
A 9-2 run to end the third quarter gave Virginia Union a five-point lead entering the final period.
In the fourth quarter, Virginia Union began to struggle. It missed its first 10 shots from the field and took nearly seven minutes to score its first points.
Meanwhile, Claflin took full advantage of VUU’s slump, scoring 10 unanswered points to take a 52-47 lead with 3:56 remaining.
That’s when Jones began to make her presence felt, scoring eight of the team’s last 12 points during a 12-3 run to catapult her team to victory.
Bowie State 68, Livingstone 54
MVP of the Game: Bowie State G Mia Smith
The Bowie State Bulldogs completed the semifinal field in the women’s bracket, cruising to a 68-54 win over Livingstone.
Destiny Ryles logged 21 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and four steals for the Bulldogs, while Mia Smith posted a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Morgan Kelson led the Blue Bears with 11 points and 15 rebounds (15th double-double of the season).
Bowie State’s aggressive offensive play was the story of this game, drawing 32 Livingstone fouls leading to 41 free throw attempts.
The Bulldogs blew the game open between the second and third quarters, outscoring the Blue Bears 38-21, taking a 53-33 lead into the final period.
Men
Bluefield State 84, Johnson C. Smith 69
MVP of the Game: Bluefield State G Jordan Hinds
The Bluefield State Big Blue made their CIAA Tournament arrival, punching their ticket to the semifinal round with an 84-69 win over Johnson C. Smith.
CIAA Player of the Year Jordan Hinds anchored the Big Blue, notching 24 points (17 in the first half), nine rebounds, five assists, and four steals.
Terrell Williams carried his weight with 18 points on 67% shooting, five rebounds, and four assists while Shainen Carter filled the stat sheet with 12 points, eight rebounds, three blocks, and two steals.
Jamauri Bryant was the Golden Bulls’ top performer, tallying 17 points, eight rebounds, and three steals.
Briefly finding themselves trailing 9-6 in the opening minutes of the contest, the Big Blue erupted offensively, outscoring the Golden Bulls 35-15 over the next 12 minutes.
Despite turning things around, trimming their deficit to 10 points, a 9-2 run by Bluefield State put Johnson C. Smith in a hole it could get itself out of.
Lincoln (PA) 56, Claflin 53
A go-ahead bucket with eight seconds remaining lifted the Lincoln (PA) Lions to a 56-53 win over Claflin, keeping their hopes of a championship repeat alive.
Peter Sorber helped power the Lions to victory, posting 15 points and 13 rebounds. Ethan Garita added 14 points and six rebounds while Bakir Cleveland chipped in 13 points.
After missing eight of their first nine three-point attempts, Claflin entered a stretch in which they connected on six of their next nine, including four straight to give them a five-point lead with 5:06 remaining in the first half.
This momentum continued for the Panthers entering the second half. They established their presence in the paint to take their largest lead of nine points with 14 minutes left.
Following a 30-second timeout, Lincoln began battling back, eventually regaining the lead with 7:39 on the clock.
After playing each other for the remainder of the second half, the Lions got the ball back with 30 seconds left with a chance to go ahead.
They did just that, scoring on a layup by Garita with eight seconds to go, then forcing a miss on the ensuing defensive possession to secure the win.
