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CIAA Player of the Year Bryanna Brown erupted for 28 points which helped the top-seeded Lincoln (Pa.) wins first-ever CIAA women’s tournament championship
BALTIMORE – CIAA Player of the Year Bryanna Brown erupted for 28 points and Joy Morton sparked a late first-half run to key top seed Lincoln (Pa.) to its first-ever CIAA women’s tournament championship with a 67-52 victory over second seed Elizabeth City State at the Royal Farms Arena on Saturday.
Lincoln (22-7 overall) finished off ECSU with a 20-8 run in the final seven minutes to pull away from a 47-44 lead. Brown, named Tournament MVP, scored eight points during the spurt. The Vikings (21-7 overall) tried to make a dent in their 10-point halftime deficit but got as close as three points before the Lions’ title-clinching run.
Morton added 12 points for the Lions, who earned the CIAA’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament. Jade Young had 11 points, nine rebounds, four assists and two steals and Shantel Cheeks totaled nine points.
Sireann Pitts, the CIAA Defensive Player of the Year, stood out for Elizabeth City State with 15 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks. Felicia Jackson added 10 points, five assists and four rebounds for the Vikings, who led 22-21 with 4:45 in the second period.
It was then that Morton sparked what turned out to be a game-changing run. She drained two three-pointers and scored on a nifty layup during a 13-2 surge that gave the Vikings a 34-24 halftime lead.
The Lions maintained their working margin throughout the second half and closed out strong to gain the title. The Vikings will await the release of the NCAA Division II Tournament brackets to see if they qualified.
Brown, the Tournament MVP, led the CIAA All-Tournament team which included teammate Young, Destiny Coleman of Claflin, Natalia Leaks of Virginia State, Pitts and Naterria Luster of Elizabeth City State, Amaya Tucker and O’Shea Hartley of Winston-Salem State, and Jamiah Lane and Andresia Alexander of Livingstone.
Livingstone captured the Sportsmanship Award. The women’s bracket featured several upsets this week, but the conference’s top two teams avoided the pratfalls to meet in the CIAA Title game.
The contest showcased two teams gunning for their first-ever conference crown and two coaches – Janice Washington of Lincoln and Tynesha Lewis of ECSU – who led their teams to the title game in their first season.
Courtesy: CIAA
Highly acclaimed and much-loved singer, songwriter, rapper, producer and South London native Jessica Wilde kicks of her 2024 by joining forces with the incredible Josh Barry for a soulful Valentine’s Day release ‘Love Like This’, out 14th February.
Packed with soaring emotions and infused with smoky orchestral atmospheres, ‘Love Like This’ is a striking nu-soul gem which will be released on Wilde’s forthcoming album and follows her recent singles ‘Freak Out’ and ‘Feathers’ ft. Zoe Kypri. The two 2023 singles saw her pick up many spins on BBC Radio 1’s Future Artists with Jack Saunders, BBC Radio 1 Introducing with Jess Iszatt, John Kennedy’s X-Posure Daily on Radio X, playlist support across the board from Spotify, Apple, Youtube and Tidal amongst other acclaim. Josh Barry has also been picking up serious heat, recently featuring with Rudimental and Sigma, collaborating with Nile Rogers and opening for Rag ‘N’ Bone Man on tour. Josh Barry brings a dynamic force to the collab as he embodies the spirit of legendary icons like James Brown and Jimi Hendrix.
On ‘Love Like This’, Wilde explains, “When we got in the studio, the song basically wrote itself, we wanted to capture that raw soulful essence in our husky tones, and a nostalgic feeling of those classic Marvin Gaye love songs but with a 2024 flip.”
As the dreamy, smooth track escalates, Wilde and Barry’s yearning vocals entwine with epic effect as the pair find the ‘Love Like This’ that they have been searching and waiting for. The release comes with a Valentine’s launch show at the iconic ‘The Bedford’ and a 6-part Instagram & TikTok reel series, released every other day from 16th February, which everyone should tune into to see Wilde and Barry explore the track’s steamy and romantic themes in more depth through nostalgic aesthetics.
2024 looks set to be an exciting new year for Wilde. With her album on the horizon, she has been gaining growing support from not only BBC Radio 1 but also 6 Music, BBC Radio London, KISS, editorial playlist support across DSPs, as well as features in CLASH, Complex, Wonderland, The Independent and many more.
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