[Elizabeth City, NC] - The Shaw defense held Elizabeth City State to only two points in overtime on their way to their ninth straight win, 83-74. 

After giving up 89 points on Saturday, the Bears found some defense in overtime and shut down the Vikings.  "We finally executed some stuff.  Switching to the one-three-one in overtime seemed to catch them off guard and became big for us," said Shaw head coach Cleo Hill, Jr.  When asked what changed from Saturday evening, Hill responded, "They just listened."

Elizabeth City State turned the ball over only eight times, and kept Shaw from executing the fast break.  "We only got seven points on the fast break.  If you have to play ECSU in the half court, you're lucky to win," said Hill.  "This is one of our best starts ever and people are shooting for us.  It seems like we're everyone's championship game."

CIAA Player of the Week Malik Alvin had 25 points and six assists on the game.  "He's very tough to cover," said Hill.  "He can get to the basket or he can shoot the three."

In the opening minutes of the game, it was all ECSU, as the Vikings built a seven-point lead, 9-2.  Malik Alvin then hit back-to-back threes to cut the lead to  one with 14:34 remaining in the first.

With ECSU ahead 14-10, the Bears went on a 14-2 run, keyed by three pointers from both Alvin and Tony Smith.  With 9:52 left, Mohammed Abdur-Raheem hit a jumper to the left of the lane to give the Bears a 24-16 lead.

With 7:27 remaining, Devon Mclendon hit a three to give the Bears a 31-24 lead, but the Vikings scored five straight to cut the Shaw lead to only two. 

With 2:06 left in the first, Rondy Tucker threw down a dunk for ECSU that tied the score at 38.  The two teams exchanged buckets, then, with 59 seconds left in the half, Smith hit a three to close out the scoring and send Shaw into halftime with a 43-40 lead.

Karron Johnson opened the second with a jumper on an assist from Mclendon to give the Bears a five-point lead - the largest lead they would have until the final minute of the game.

Over the next eight minutes, ECSU went on a 17-7 run, taking a five-point lead on a fastbreak layup from Omar Jones.

The Bears responded by slowly chipping away at the lead and eventually, with 1:03 left, Alvin hit a layup to give Shaw a 72-67 lead.  Jones responded with a three, then after a Shaw turnover, the Vikings tied the game on a Paul Goldsmith jumper with 32 seconds left on the clock.  Neither team would score again in regulation, sending the game into overtime.

Johnson opened the scoring in the extra period, giving the Bears a 74-72 lead with a jumper in the lane.  He boosted the lead to four on a dunk off a feed from Alvin.

The Bears built their lead to seven with 1:07 left in overtime, then gave up the only ECSU bucket of the period when Angelo Sharpless hit a layup.   The Bears scored another four before the clock hit zero to make the final score 83-74.

Seventeen of Alvin's 25 points came in the first half for the Bears, while six of Johnson's 19 came in overtime.  Tony Smith added 13 points and pulled in ten rebounds, as well as dishing out seven assists. 

Sharpless had 20 to lead the Vikings, while Rondy Tucker added 16 and Jones had 11.  Sharpless had eight rebounds to lead ECSU and Blake Price had six assists.

The Bears return home on Thursday, January 19 when they host Lincoln (PA).  Game time Thursday is at 7:30 p.m. at the C. C. Spaulding Gymnasium on the Shaw campus.