CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Shaw University men's basketball team dropped a 72-61 decision to Virginia Union University on Thursday night in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) men's basketball quarterfinal round. The Bears concluded their season with a 12-17 overall record, while the Panthers improve to 16-13 overall and move on to the semifinal round to face Livingstone on Friday at 9 p.m.

Senior Joell Hopkins, Jr. (Raleigh, NC) recorded a double-double, 19 points and 12 rebounds, while junior Quentin Judd (Baltimore, MD) added 11 points and five rebounds in the loss.

VUU had four players score in double figures, including 25 points from Ray Anderson, while Tavon Mealy notched 14 points and 10 rebounds. Kory Cooley and Robert Valentine contributed 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Hopkins, Jr. scored the opening basket for Shaw but the Panthers quickly responded with a 3-pointer from Kory Cooley the next possession down. The Bears would build a four-point lead and maintain the lead for over the course of three minutes until the Panthers slowly cut the deficit.

Valentine hit to back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Panthers their first lead of the contest with 12:57 left in the first half. From there VUU produced an 18-6 run, including a 21-6 advantage in bench points to lead by 12-points with under 5:00 left.

The Bears missed 14 free-throws (9-of-23) and missed all seven 3-pointers (0-of-7), while shooting 23 percent (7-of-30) from the field and as a result Shaw found themselves trailing 34-23 at halftime.

In the second half, Shaw struggled to find rhythm as the Panthers ballooned to a 20-point lead at the 15:52 mark.

It was all VUU until the Bears showed some life down the stretch when senior Jamar Cooper (Petersburg, VA) drained a 3-pointer to cut the Panthers lead 49-32. Shaw would mount a 10-8 run to trail by nine points with 7:21 left but three straight turnovers from the Bears ruined the chances of them getting any closer in the contest.

Anderson made two free-throws, followed by a two layups to put the Panthers back up 15-points as VUU was able to secure the win.

For the most up-to-date information on Shaw basketball and its 11 varsity sport teams, visit shawbears.com.