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Season Capsule:

At the annual pre-season basketball press conference, the Elizabeth City State University Vikings were picked to finish the 2006-2007 season in 4th place in the CIAA Eastern Division. That part held true as the Vikings finished behind national powerhouse Virginia Union, the emergence of Virginia State University and divisional foe Bowie State University. During the season the Vikings were swept by both Virginia Union and Virginia State yet they earned a split with the Bowie State Bulldogs. So as predicted the Vikings finished in 4th place. However no one would have fathomed what the final week of February would bring as the Vikings defeated Livingstone College and out-hustled the aforementioned opponents, including three-time defending champion Virginia Union en route to the 2007 CIAA Basketball Championship (their first since 1981).

Not that there should have been doubters or maybe so. The Vikings loss 10 games by 7 points or less and had only one double digit (10 points) loss this year (Saint Augustine’s). In each of their losses they held the lead at one point or another and most of their games came down to a final possession. But instead of letting the heartbreak of last minute disappointments deter them, the Viking stayed the course and became the first team in since the1997 Saint Augustine’s championship team to win four games, minus a bye, to take the conference crown. Additionally since the CIAA went to an all inclusive format for its tournament (all teams invited) ECSU is the lowest seed in tournament history to go the distance.

This season the Vikings were paced by the 1-2 punch of All-CIAA performers C.J. Pigford and Anthony Hilliard. Pigford, a transfer from UNC-Charlotte, was twice named CIAA Player of the Week and averaged second best on his team in scoring and rebounding at 18.2 and 8.4 respectively. Hilliard, also a two-time CIAA Player of the Week, led the CIAA in rebounding and ranked 4th in scoring. He was the only men’s player this season to average a double-double (19.8ppg, 10.7rpg). Also he was the first ECSU sophomore to be named All-CIAA since 1992 (Nate Higgs). Just recently, Hilliard, the 2007 CIAA Tournament MVP, was named to the 2007 Daktronics All-South Region First Team and will go forth for national All-America consideration.

Now in his 5th year as the head coach of his alma mater, Head Coach Shawn Walker, an All-CIAA performer in his days in a Viking uniform, notched his first victory over Virginia Union University as a player or a coach on one of the biggest stages in the nation, the CIAA Tournament. It was even sweeter because exactly one week earlier the Viking dropped a double overtime thriller at home to the Panthers by a point (95-94). Their automatic bid as the conference champs give ECSU their first playoff appearance since 1999.

Men's Basketball Roster: