RICHMOND, Va.- Eric Maynor had 25 points and eight assists and is heading back to the NCAA tournament after leading Virginia Commonwealth University to a 71-50 victory against George Mason in the Colonial Athletic Association championship game Monday night.

Larry Sanders added 18 points, and set championship game records with 20 rebounds and seven blocks for the Rams (24-9), who stunned Duke in the first round two years ago and look capable of giving another team trouble by letting their senior guard and big forward lead the way.

The defending CAA champion Patriots (22-10) trailed 30-19 at halftime and did little to slow Maynor, the two-time CAA player of the year, or the disruptive Sanders, who had four blocks in the first half and largely shut down George Mason’s inside game.

Chattanooga 80, College of Charleston 69

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Keyron Sheard scored 18 points and Chattanooga beat College of Charleston 80-69 to win the Southern Conference tournament.

The Mocs (18-16) earned their 10th NCAA tournament appearance with the automatic bid. They last appeared in the tournament in 2005, losing in the opening round to Wake Forest.

The teams were tied at 34 at halftime, but Chattanooga, playing on its home court in front of frenzied fans, scored the first 20 points of the second half. College of Charleston (26-8) didn’t score until 13:23 in the second half, when Andrew Goudelock hit a 3-pointer. That opened up a 17-2 scoring run that cut the Mocs’ lead to 56-51 with 8:30 left.

Chattanooga went on another run, scoring 10 of the next 13 points. Tony White Jr. led the Cougars with 31 points.

Gonzaga 83, |Saint Mary’s 58

LAS VEGAS – Josh Heytvelt scored 17 points, Micah Downs added 12 points and 12 rebounds, and No. 12 Gonzaga romped into its 11th consecutive NCAA tournament with an 83-58 victory over Saint Mary’s and struggling star Patty Mills in the West Coast Conference final.

Matt Bouldin scored 14 points for the relentless Zags (26-5), who followed up their perfect regular-season conference slate with two blowout wins in the tournament, giving them 19 victories in their last 20 games.

Siena 77, Niagara 70

ALBANY, N.Y. – Kenny Hasbrouck shook off a nagging calf injury and a terrible first half to score 19 points in leading Siena to defend its Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament title with a 77-70 win over Niagara.

Ryan Rossiter added 16 points and 14 rebounds as the Saints (26-7) clinched their program’s fifth NCAA tournament berth. Siena also completed its season with a 17-0 record on its home court, and extended its win streak to 21.

dating to last season.

Tyrone Lewis scored 22 for the Purple Eagles (26-8), who will be left to settle for an NIT berth. Niagara lost for only the second time in 14 games and squandered an opportunity to match a school single-season record for wins.


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