Baltimore, MD – The Broncos are set to play Bowie State today, Feb 28, at the CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore, MD, in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Basketball Tournament. Game time begins at 6:40 pm.
Watch the matchup with an ESPN+ subscription. Visit www.ciaatournament.org to access all tournament information.
About the Broncos
Fayetteville State knows what it takes to make it to the final days of the CIAA tournament, reaching the semi-finals or beyond in each of the last four years of the tournament. They won it all during the 2021-22 year, topping Virginia Union 65-62 to secure the first school title in 50 years and second in program history (1973, 2021).
The Broncos meet with the Bowie State Bulldogs in Wednesday's quarterfinal matchup, a program they defeated 67-59 at home in the last meeting on January 4th of this year. FSU has won four straight games against Bowie State dating back to January 13th, 2020. This is the first tournament meeting between the two schools since February 27th, 2019 in Charlotte, when the Bulldogs took down the Broncos 77-55 in the opening round.
No team shot more efficiently this season than Fayetteville State at the free-throw strip, knocking down 72.6% of their free shots on the year. It is a dramatic improvement from a season ago when FSU finished 10th in the league in free-throw percentage at 65.4. The team's most impressive day from the charity strip was on January 17th, 2024 when the Broncos went a perfect 19-for-19.
Over the last two seasons under head coach
Luke D'Alessio, the Broncos have been a defensive-minded group. They once again led the CIAA in scoring defense, allowing just 62.6 points per game, slightly above their 2022-23 mark of 61.0 per game. Winning a low-point battle will be key for FSU during the tournament as the team scores just 65.3 points per game, the lowest average in the CIAA.
In their most recent game vs St. Augustine's, the Broncos shot 50 percent from deep on the way to a 72-65 win against the Saint Augustine's Falcons on the road Saturday.
The Broncos (16-12, 11-7) had three players score in double figures, led by
Kaleb Coleman, who had 25 points and six rebounds.
Caleb Simmons tacked on 18 points and six rebounds and
Tairell Fletcher helped out with 13 points and four assists.
The Fayetteville State defense held Saint Augustine's shooters to only 39.3 percent from the field, including 30 percent from three-point range.
About the Bulldogs
Bowie State played their opening round of the CIAA Tournament on Tuesday, Feb. 27, vs. Livingstone College. The Bulldogs came out with a 69-66 win over the Blue Bears and had three players score in double figures.
Led by CIAA Food Lion MVP of the game Warren Mouganda, who had 17 points. Kevon Corley added 15 points and Joel Webb reached a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
For more info about FSU Broncos Men's Basketball, visit fsubroncos.com.
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