Box Score

NORFOLK, Va. – Led by a career-high 21 points by freshman Rae Corbo, the Norfolk State women's basketball team ended a four-game losing streak with a 66-55 win over North Carolina Central Saturday afternoon at Joseph Echols Hall.

The Spartans got solid performances from several key players to improve to 7-8 overall on the season. The Eagles fell to 2-16.

Along with Corbo's highlight performance on 8-of-14 shooting, sophomore Batavia Owens tallied 11 points and seven boards in just 14 minutes of action. Sophomore Marian Brooks and freshman Rachel Gordon each posted six points and eight rebounds on the day.

NSU shot 50 percent in the second half after owning a five point lead at the half, as the Spartans hit 45.8 percent for the game on 23-of-53 shooting. Central had a respectable 43.4 percent shooting clip for the game (27-of-59). NSU held a 36-32 edge in rebounding and also had 13 assists and 13 steals.

Jori Nwachukwu led the Eagles with 20 points, 12 rebounds, three steals and two blocks. Chasidy Williams added 15 points, as only five players for NC Central got in the scoring column. The Eagles scored 46 of their 55 points in the paint.

Junior Whitney Long posted nine points, four steals and three assists for the Spartans. NSU was also 9-of-13 from the free throw line and held the Eagles to an 0-of-3 effort from beyond the arc.

Tied 4-4 early in the game, Central expanded the lead to 8-4 before Long connected on a 3-pointer with 14:12 on the clock. After a 14-8 Eagle lead, freshman Carlon Chambers got one to fall down low, but the Eagles quickly took advantage of the Spartans not having anyone back on defense while playing pressure ball off the inbounds.

Junior Tyisha Bridges converted on a 3-point play, and Long stole an inbounds pass at mid-court and went in for the fastbreak layup to cut the deficit to one, 16-15, before Central called time with 10:28 left. NSU turned 20 Eagle turnovers into 25 points.

Junior Sarah Daily got NSU to within one as her foot was just on the 3-point line when she knocked down a jumper to make it 20-19 Eagles.

Corbo faked around a defender and hit a short baseline jumper to finally give the Spartans the lead back, 21-20. The Spartans got the lead up to five, 25-20, when Bridges nailed a shot a few feet farther back from where Corbo hit her jumper along the right-side baseline.

A pair of free throws by Brooks extended the lead to seven, 29-22, with 3:37 to go. After Corbo drove the lane for a 33-26 lead with just 13 ticks on the scoreboard, Houston hit a last-second layup as the teams went into halftime with NSU holding a 33-28 lead.

Corbo led all players with nine points at the half, while Gordon had six points and six boards at the break.

Corbo got things started in the second half with a trey for a 36-28 lead, and a short time later NSU got the lead to double digits, 41-30, when an errant inbounds pass by the Eagles was snatched up by Long at midcourt, who drove in for the easy deuce and a 41-30 lead.

A basket by Owens made it 43-30 with 14:42 left, but the Eagles were able to cut the lead to four, 45-41, on the heels of an 11-2 run. Corbo banked a shot from about 10 feet out for a 51-45 lead as time ticked down below the 8-minute mark.

Corbo hit a pair of layups on back-to-back possessions to extend the lead to eight, 55-47. Daily then drove into the lane and made a good pass around her defender to Brooks for the easy layin and a 10-point lead, 57-47, with 5:04 left on the clock.

Owens connected on a pair of shots on two straight possessions, the latter putting NSU up, 61-50 with 3:27 to go. The Eagles got to within eight, but a 3-pointer by Corbo with a defender right in front of her made it 66-55 and essentially ended any hope of a NC Central comeback.

NSU will welcome South Carolina State to Echols Hall Monday at 6 p.m.