MACON, Ga. (AP) — Isiah Brown scored 22 points as East Tennessee State defeated North Florida 68-66 Thursday in the Atlantic Sun Conference tournament quarterfinals.
The fourth-seeded Buccaneers (17-13) will face top seed Belmont in the semifinals Friday night. ETSU and Belmont have won the past six tournaments, with ETSU winning in 2009 and 2010.
Brown blocked a 3-point try by Parker Smith of the fifth-seeded Ospreys (16-16) with ETSU ahead 66-64. The block — which gave Brown a school career record of 182 — led to a Marcus Dubose layup and a 68-64 lead with 48 seconds left.
A jumper by Smith, whose 17 points led the Ospreys, made it a two-point game with 25 seconds left. North Florida got the ball back after Dubose missed a free throw, but Smith’s 3-point try was off the mark with 2 seconds remaining.
North Florida defeated ETSU 59-55 in the semifinals of last year’s tournament.
