One year after bursting onto the HBCU scene in the CIAA Tournament, Bluefield State University was determined to bring the prestigious league title back home to West Virginia.
Bluefield State, in just its second season in the league, earned the number two slot in the CIAA North with a 17-10 overall record. The program, led by fourth-year head coach Devin Hoehn plays a distinctive brand of hard-driving, fast-paced basketball that averaged more than 90 points during the regular season.
It is a team filled with long, athletic players at all five positions.
It’s an impressive feat given the lack of basketball pedigree, remote location and school demographics. Located just over the West Virginia border, the HBCU’s most recent demographic information shows a school that is 3/4 caucasian and just 15 percent black. So building a basketball team full of players from places like Florida, New York, Detroit and other metro areas.
“You got to be a little different to come to Bluefield State,” Hoehn said on Thursday, after his team’s 84-61 win over Johnson C. Smith. “But I tell these guys all the time — if you’re wanting to lock in with your academics and basketball and not have a whole lot of distractions — it’s a place for you. And a lot of these guys just like when I was a player, everyone’s wanting to go pro that plays basketball. So I tell these guys lock in in the grades and with no distractions because you’re not in a big city, you can be in the gym for a long time and work on your game.”
The cornerstone of the program is Jordan Hines. The 6’5 guard from South Florida has led the league in scoring for both the school’s seasons in the CIAA, including an average of 20.3 on 49.3 percent shooting en route to being named CIAA Player of the Year at the start of the week. Hines remembered getting the call from Hoehn to come to Bluefield State and the transition to the CIAA.
“We really weren’t playing for much. And then one day, we found out my sophomore year that he would be joining the CIAA. Listen, a great opportunity. I feel like it’s great exposure. And last year was our first year. It was a down year. We only had seven wins coming into the tournament that year. We just leveled it up. Seven wins coming in, and we’re here now in the final four. So it’s just blessings.”
Hines scored 24 points in the quarterfinal win over JCSU to help put the school in the semifinals for the first time in history. He followed that up with a 14-point, 10-rebound effort in a grind-it-out 71-64 upset of Fayetteville State on Friday night. It wasn’t the sharpest offensive effort for the squad, but they found a way to get it done.
“It’s a game of runs,” Hoehn said. “When they weren’t hitting shots, we stuck to the game plan, which is just be us. Keep the pressure up. Don’t let the crowd get involved. And just be disciplined.”
Besides being the new kid on the block and its fast-paced style — Bluefield State stands out for another reason in the CIAA. The school doesn’t have a pep band or cheerleaders — almost unthinkable in the HBCU basketball conference where both of those matter most.
It’s a distinction that is obvious to everyone all week long. Hoehn brought it up himself after Friday’s win over Fayetteville State in the semifinals.
“FSU had a big crowd, the band, everyone behind them,” Hoehn said. “But at the end of the day, though, the fans and band can’t go to the court and play basketball, so you just got to be resilient for 40 minutes.”
Roughly 16 hours later, all that stood between Bluefield State University and its first-ever CIAA title was a matchup against Virginia State. VSU and BSU couldn’t be more opposite in terms of CIAA pedigree and titles. Led by a veteran coach in Lonnie Blow who has been one of the best in HBCU basketball over the last two decades, VSU had an even bigger fan base, a stellar pep band and an iconic cheer squad on its side.
Yet, for most of the game, Bluefield State kept them all on the edge of their seats as it battled through halftime and led by five points with just under six minutes left. But a late steal and dunk brought the VSU crowd to life and another couple of buckets ignited them. When the dust settled, VSU held a 71-64 win and took home the CIAA Tournament trophy.
A somber Hoehn and Hines faced the media for the final time and reflected on how much their four years together had meant.
“It’s been a crazy journey, but one that I needed myself,” Hoehn said. “I probably wouldn’t be who I am right now if I didn’t go through some of the rocky roads that we had to go through to get here. And this guy right here to my left, been here with me every step of the way. Through the bads and the goods. And that’s why he’s different. He’s loyal. They they don’t make a whole lot of people like this guy to my left over here that’s been with me from the get-go.”
Hines concurred with his coach as he took in the end of his Bluefield State University career.
“Everybody on our team has a role…the guys that don’t play, to our coaches, everybody has a role,” Hines. “And I feel like this whole season everybody’s done their role extremely well. And this is why we here for the first time. And we made history as a team.”