Fairmont State 91, Livingstone (N.C.) 73
No. 4-seeded Fairmont State (23-8) made Livingstone’s first NCAA Tournament game a forgettable experience with a convincing blowout of the Blue Bears (22-7) in the fourth Atlantic Region quarterfinal of the day.
The Falcons opened the game with an 18-3 burst and never trailed in coasting to the easy win. Fairmont State shot 69 percent (20-of-29) from the floor – including a 6-for-6 showing from the 3-point arc – to build a 54-27 halftime lead before coasting through the second half.
Isaiah Hill’s 16 points paced four double-figure scorers for Fairmont State. Tommy Scales and Chase Morgan finished with 14 and 13, respectively, while Isaac Thornton added 10 points.
Livingstone got a game-high 18 points from Jody Hill. Anthony Welch added a dozen with Mark Thomas scoring 11 and Omar Ford-Bey finishing with 10.
Sunday’s Atlantic Region semifinals will be rematches of conference tournament championship games from earlier this month. West Liberty defeated Fairmont State, 92-78, in the WVIAC Tournament final while Indiana (Pa.) outlasted Slippery Rock, 52-46, in the PSAC Tournament title tilt.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Tournament
(at West Liberty, W.Va.)
Saturday, March 16
Regional Quarterfinals
Afternoon Session
Indiana, Pa. 76, East Stroudsburg 68
Slippery Rock 69, Winston-Salem State 67
Evening Session
WEST LIBERTY 114, Bowie State 82
Fairmont State 91, Livingstone 73
Sunday, March 17
Regional Semifinals
No. 3 Indiana, Pa. (25-5) vs. No. 7 Slippery Rock (23-8), 5 p.m.
No. 1 WEST LIBERTY (31-1) vs. Fairmont State (23-8), 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, March 19
Regional Championship
Sunday’s winners, 7 p.m.
