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Virginia Wesleyan probably was one victory short of qualifying for the 64-team NCAA Division III men’s basketball tournament.
If the Marlins were angry, they channeled their frustrations well. Invited to the Eastern College Athletic Conference Championship tournament for the first time, they zoomed through the eight-team field with a 3-0 record. Top-seeded VWU (22-7) capped its season Saturday night with a 74-50 victory over second-seeded Salisbury (18-11) before 313 at TowneBank Arena.
Tournament MVP Omari DeVeaux had 26 points and four assists, Khai Seargeant had 18 points, Amari Moorer had 12 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, and Paul Anderson had 11 points and four rebounds for coach Dave Macedo’s Marlins.
Seargeant and Moorer joined DeVeaux on the all-tournament team for the Marlins, who were making their first appearance in the event.
Jordan Oates had 17 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks for the Sea Gulls, who were second only to Christopher Newport in the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference regular season but lost at home to eventual NCAA Sweet 16 team Mary Washington in a conference tournament semifinal.
The Marlins played two games in Maryland to reach the final, where they dominated in familiar surroundings. VWU bolted to a 15-4 lead, though Salisbury pulled to as close as five and was within 33-26 at halftime.
In the second half, the Marlins were ahead by double digits for the final 16 1/2 minutes-plus.
