Old Dominion takes CAA for first time since 2005
RICHMOND, Va. — Darius James scored 12 points and Kent Basemore had 10 as top-seeded Old Dominion beat William & Mary 60-53 in the Colonial Athletic Association tournament championship Monday night to earn the league’s automatic berth in the NCAA tournament.

Old Dominion (26-8) won the league’s guaranteed bid for the first time since 2005, and may have ended William & Mary’s hopes of qualifying for the tournament for the first time.

William & Mary (22-10) is one of five original Division I schools, along with Army, The Citadel, Northwestern and St. Francis, N.Y., never to have been included in an NCAA field.

Danny Sumner led William & Mary with 19 points, but the Monarchs extended their defense to hamper the Tribe’s 3-point shooting. The Tribe, making its second championship appearance — both in the past three years — was just 9 for 31 on 3-pointers.

Wofford into NCAA tourney for first time
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Cameron Rundles scored 20 points and Wofford used stifling defense to overcome a long second-half scoring drought and beat Appalachian State 56-51 on Monday night for the Southern Conference title and its first NCAA tournament berth.

The school perhaps best known in sports circles as being the training camp home of the Carolina Panthers won its 13th straight game despite going nearly 10 minutes without a point.

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The Terriers (26-8), who moved up to Division I in the mid-1990s, also got 13 rebounds from Tim Johnson to overcome 35 percent shooting.

It led to a dancing and singing celebration on the floor as Wofford set a team record for victories in a season, a year after going 16-14.

Appalachian State (22-12) shot just 29 percent as coach Buzz Peterson came up short in his bid to return the Mountaineers to the NCAA tournament in the first year of his second stint at the school.

Andrew Williamson scored 12 points and Ryann Abraham added 11 for Appalachian. But its top two scorers — Donald Sims and Kellen Brand — combined to shoot 2 of 23.

Wofford, which beat Georgia and South Carolina early in the season before winning the league regular-season title, appeared in control when Junior Salters drained a 3 on the first possession of the second half to make it 36-18.