ODU Men's Basketball Holds Off Norfolk State, 60-57

By Harry Minium

NORFOLK, Va. – In a game that lived up to all the hype and pre-game chatter, the Old Dominion men’s basketball team survived a furious Norfolk State rally and held on to defeat the Spartans, 60-57, before a frenetic Chartway Arena crowd of 7,951.

The series between Norfolk’s two Division I universities seems to always deliver a close, hard-fought game with fans from both schools well represented, and that was the case once again.

Mike Jones, the second-year Monarch head coach who also played for ODU, reached out to Norfolk State Coach Robert Jones months ago seeking to renew the series after a three-year hiatus. The teams meet again next season at Norfolk State's Joe Echols Hall. 

Mike Jones said the game was all he had hoped for.

“What a great atmosphere we had here tonight,” he said. “Tonight was like a lot of dreams I’ve had since coming back. This is what it’s supposed to look like here at Chartway Arena.”

Point guard LJ Thomas, who led ODU with 20 points, and guard KC Shaw, the transfer from Maryland-Eastern Shore who had 16, are both transfers who said they didn’t quite understand the fierceness of the rivalry.

“The way they were hyping this game up, I was expecting a big crowd,” Shaw said. “But I wasn’t expecting this. Nothing like this.

“There was definitely extra juice to this game. You could feel it around town, even in the barber shop, they were talking about the game.”

“It was such an electric crowd,” Thomas added. “I’m so glad everyone came out. It was such a great environment.”

The environment was particularly electric in the final minutes.

With the score tied at 57-57, and 1:26 remaining, Caelum Swanton-Rodger was an unlikely hero for the Monarchs (2-1). ODU’s Jordan Battle was cut off as he attempted to drive the lane and awkwardly passed to Swanton-Rodger.

The 7-foot center from Calgary, Alberta in Canda, then calmly dunked ODU to a 59-57 lead. It was Swanton-Rodger’s first and only points of the game.

Fouled with 40.8 seconds left, Thomas made one of two free throws to build the lead to 60-57. Then, with the crowd on their feet and cheering, the Monarchs held on as the Spartans (2-2) furiously tried to score.

Elijah Jamison missed a driving layup, and then a tip-in, with 19 seconds left, and then Anthony McComb III missed a three-pointer with five seconds left.

Thomas chased down the ball, which was batted in his direction by Swanton-Rodger, and passed to Scottie Hubbard, who tossed the ball into the air as the Monarchs ran on the court to celebrate.

It was ODU's sixth victory in a row and 10th in the last 11 games against the Spartans. 

It was a gritty game, as it often is when these two teams play, in which neither team shot well but both played physical defense. ODU’s shooting woes from three-point range continued, as the Monarchs made just four of 24.

“I don’t think any of us played beautiful basketball,” Jones said. “But just the fight in both teams, it was at the level it will be needed in postseason for both teams.

“A huge shout out to Norfolk State. We’re very thankful to have gotten out of here with a win."

Early on, the Spartans were dominant. Norfolk State went on a 10-0 run early in the first half, and led 17-8, in what proved to be its high-water mark.

Norfolk State’s Melo Baines, a sophomore from Norfolk’s Lake Taylor High School, made a hook shot to push the lead to 28-21 with 3:26 left.

But ODU then took control, going on a 17-0 run over the final minutes of the first half and early minutes of the second to take a 38-28 lead with 18:15 left in the game.

The Spartans broke their scoring drought with a driving layup from Devon Ellis. Two minutes later, Battle picked off a pass and, as he was falling to the floor, tossed the ball toward the Spartan net.

Shaw picked up the pass and dunked to the delight of ODU adherents to make it 40-32.

The Spartans slowly picked away at the lead and with 2:54 left, McComb made a fallaway three-pointer and the scored was tied at 55-all.  

The difference proved to be an off-balance pass from Battle to Swanton-Rodger.

Jones said the atmosphere “was exactly what I thought it would be.”

“Their fans were here too. You could hear them. And you could tell, these young men, from both teams, both wanted to win in the worst way.

“Tonight, that’s what I wanted it to be like. And you know, if we keep winning games like that, these people keep coming back.”

Minium is ODU's Senior Executive Writer for Athletics. Contact him at hminium@odu.edu or follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram

 

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