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NORFOLK, Va. - The Norfolk State women's basketball team will make the short trip north to take on William & Mary Wednesday evening at Kaplan Arena. First tip is slated for 7 p.m. as William & Mary shoots for its first win of the season against a Spartan team that hasn't played since Dec. 4.
Last Time Out: After being up at the half by two points, NSU fell by a 74-58 score at North Carolina A&T Dec. 4 in the first conference game of the season.
The Aggies hit 50 percent in the second half and pulled away after NSU had a 35-33 lead at the break. A&T connected on 45.8 percent from the floor, while the Spartans hit just 26.7 percent in the second half and 36.2 percent overall.
Freshman Rae Corbo tallied 17 points, while junior Sarah Daily added 13 points and three assists. Junior Whitney Long and sophomore Marian Brooks totaled nine and eight points, respecively, while sophomore Recca Trice posted five assists.
Best Start in D-I: The Spartans began the year 3-0 before falling to Morehead State. It marked the first time NSU began a year 3-0 in the Division I era. The last time the Spartans won their first three games of the season was 1996-97, NSU's last year in Division II.
NSU also secured two wins in a tournament at the Comfort Inn & Suites Classic at Morehead State for the first time since 2005-06, when the Spartans got a pair of victories in the Carolina First Classic to open the season.
Ready to Surpass Last Year: With a 4-2 record, NSU has already equaled the number of wins from the 2009-10 season. A fifth win would mark the number of victories combined between the previous two seasons.
NSU also started the year out with a 4-1 record. The only other time that happened in the D-I era occurred during the 2001-02 season when NSU went on to capture the MEAC tournament title.
Leading the MEAC: NSU entered the week ranked in the top 3 in 11 different categories, and led the conference in scoring margin (+3.2), field goal percentage (43.2), opponent rebounding (36.5 per game), rebounding margin (+4.0), assists (13.5) and assist-to-turnover ratio (0.6).
Nationally Ranked Defense: Heading into the week, NSU ranked 20th in the nation in 3-point field goal defense, holding opponents to a 24.7 percent clip from long range.
Owning the Glass: After getting outrebounded by 7.5 boards a game last year, NSU has outrebounded five of its six opponents this year. Through six games, the Spartans rank first in the MEAC with a +4.0 rebounding margin.
The Spartans also had 40 or more rebounds in the first five games of the year. The last time NSU had at least 40 rebounds in five straight games occurred from Jan. 15, 2007-Feb. 5, 2007 during a span of six games.
Increased Production: After sophomore Batavia Owens averaged 4.9 points and 5.4 rebounds a game last year, the coaches stated they needed her to be a consistent double-double performer this year. Well, so far, so good, for the sophomore. She has scored in double figures in four games and has posted 10.0 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. She ranks fifth in the conference in rebounding and third with 3.5 offensive rebounds a game.
No Sophomore Slump: After finishing first in the conference in assists and sixth in steals, Trice is at it again in her sophomore campaign. She stands second in assists at 4.0 per contest, but more importantly, sits first in assist-turnover ratio at 1.4 (24 assists, 17 turnovers).
Mixing It Up: NSU will use a lot of combinations on the floor throughout the season, and it has shown so far. In all five games on the year, NSU has had at least seven players with 12 or more minutes on the floor.
More Rookie Props: Corbo, another freshman expected to make a big impact right away, had a solid all-around game as well against St. Paul's, handing out six assists to go along with five points, three rebounds and three steals. She committed just two turnovers for a healthy 3:1 turnover ratio.
Corbo currently leads the team with 10.2 points per game, including a team-high 17 against A&T, to go along with 2.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.0 steals.
Charity Stripe Success: The Spartans shot better from the free throw line than their opponent in 19 of 27 games last year and made either as many or more free throws than the opposition in 17 of those 27 games. Through six games this year, NSU has had more free throws in three games and a better shooting percentage in three games.
What Lies Ahead: NSU gets a home date against McNeese State Dec. 18 at Joseph Echols Hall for a 4 p.m. contest before the second 11-day layoff of the month arrives.
