Niagara 73, Morgan St. 53

12/29/2007 12:40 AM

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) -Charron Fisher helped put a damper on Todd Bozeman's coaching return to the Bay area.

Fisher, the nation's leading scorer with a 27.3 average, had 25 in Niagara's 73-53 victory over Morgan State on Friday night in the first round of the Cable Car Classic.

Niagara (7-3) plays Santa Clara in Saturday's championship game. The Broncos beat Denver 74-65 in overtime on Friday.

Bozeman, who resigned as California's coach in 1996 under the weight of an NCAA investigation, appeared relaxed on the Bears (6-5) bench, a contrast to his more volatile days in Berkeley, which began the day he was hired to replace Lou Campanelli in February of 1993. His tenure ended, also in controversy, when officials pushed Bozeman, who recruited the likes of future NBA stars Jason Kidd and Shareef Abdur-Rahim to Cal, out the door in August of 1996.

After serving an eight-year ``show cause'' probation period for NCAA violations, Bozeman finally landed the job at Morgan State 10 years after leaving Cal. Bozeman even brought a reminder of his former Bears to his new Bears, landing Cal transfer Marquise Kately, who sat out last season.

The Purple Eagles took the lead early and never looked back. Fisher also had 10 rebounds and has recorded a double-double in his last four games. Tyrone Lewis added 24 points, two off his career-high, and Stan Hodge added 17.

Niagara made its first trip to California since a 1989 tournament in San Diego, and visited Northern California for the first time since a 1949 game at San Francisco.

Boubacar Coly led Morgan State with 13 points and 10 rebounds, his second double-double. Kately added 11.

The Purple Eagles led at halftime, 45-22.