The 2015 College Basketball Invitational tournament wrapped up the first round on Wednesday with seven games taking place all across the country. It's an event still growing in prestige after debuting eight years ago, but some past champions like VCU and Oregon have used this as a stepping stone to bigger things.There's certainly a lot of value in having schools, especially some of the smaller ones, taking part in a postseason tournament. In addition to the natural desire to compete, it gives the coaches and players an opportunity to build their skills in a win-or-go-home environment.Here's a recap of the first-round scores as the games end as well as a look at the bracket and what the quarterfinals will look like.ScoreboardCBI BracketUpdated bracket can be found at GazelleGroup.comQuarterfinal ScheduleRecapMercer 72, Stony Brook 70In a game that went from Dr. Jekyll in the first half to Mr. Hyde in the second half, Mercer held serve on its home court with a 72-70 victory over Stony Brook.This game had all the makings of a defensive battle in the first 20 minutes, as the two teams combined to score 54 points before exploding for 88 points in the second half. The Bears had 45 of those points in the last 20 minutes to keep their CBI hopes alive.Ike Nwamu was the star of the game with 25 points and six assists, including the game-winning jumper with two seconds to play. That was just the tip of the iceberg for the star guard, who had 10 points in the last two minutes, per Mercer Basketball:One thing that's become clear in postseason college basketball is you need a star who can make plays for his team at any given moment. Nwamu is clearly that guy for Mercer, as he displayed in this game.Jestin Lewis and T.J. Hallice were the only other Bears players to hit double-digit figures in points.On the losing side, Carson Puriefoy led Stony Brook with 19 points even though he shot just 6-of-16 from the floor. AEC Player of the Year Jameel Warney had 14 points with 13 rebounds and three blocks in defeat.This was yet another heartbreaking defeat for Stony Brook, who missed out on the NCAA tournament after blowing a lead in the America East title game against Albany. After the game, perThe Statesman, Seawolves head coach Steve Pikiell and Warney offered quotes that are very appropriate for this occasion:It would be hard to have a worse end to the year than Stony Brook did, losing two games by a combined three points. Mercer just had the best player on the floor and took full advantage of it by letting Nwamu do his thing when he needed to step up.Vermont 85, Hofstra 81There was a mild upset in New York with Vermont knocking off Hofstra on the Pride's home court, 85-81. The Catamounts used a balanced scoring attack, with five players reaching at least 10 points and everyone who appeared in the game scoring at least one point.Ethan O'Day had a game-high 17 points and four rebounds, while Dre Willis chipped in with 11 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals in the victory.This is the Catamounts' third time in the CBI, after previously appearing in 2009 and 2013, with just its second victory after knocking off Wisconsin-Green Bay in 2009.Vermont head coach John Becker talked about what being in a postseason tournament means to the program via text message toAlex Abrami of theBurlington Free Press:"We are excited to be playing in the postseason again," Becker said. "It's a credit to our players, coaches and administration."Well, with Vermont getting its first postseason win of any kind since defeating Lamar in a First Four game during the NCAA tournament in 2012, Becker can raise those expectations to being more than excited to play in extra games.Hofstra didn't shoot well as a team, hitting 40.9 percent of its shots, but Dion Nesmith was tremendous with 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting to go along with three steals. Rokas Gustys was also huge off the bench with 13 points on 6-of-6 shooting and five rebounds.Vermont came into the CBI having lost three of its last five games, so a win in this spot should give the team momentum heading into the second round.
Click here to read full news..
