Live Audio | Game Notes
NORFOLK, Va. - Fresh off a pair of wins at home, the Norfolk State women's basketball team heads to Baltimore to take on Morgan State Saturday at 3 p.m. followed by a matchup with Coppin State Monday at 5:30 p.m.
NSU leads the all-time series with MSU, 13-9, although the Bears have won the last seven meetings dating back to the 2005-06 season. Coppin State has a 15-6 lead in their series with NSU.
Media Coverage: All of NSU's games from now until the end fo the season can be heard live on WNSB Hot 91.1 FM. Click here for the link to the audio feed.
About Morgan State: The Bears enter the contest with a 10-8 overall mark and 4-2 conference record, dropping their previous game at UMES on Monday, 64-56, to break a three-game win streak.
With 11.8 points per game, Brittany Dodson paces the team's scoring with Theresa Davis and Erin Hawkins second and third with 8.7 and 8.1 points, respectively. Davis is also the team's leading rebounder with 7.0 per game, while Dodson and Hawkins have posted 44 and 42 assists on the year.
Although the Bears lead the conference in free throw shooting, they shoot just 35.3 percent from the floor and average just 54.4 points a game. Opponents have fared a little better, hitting 36.6 percent and averaging 59.6 points. Morgan State has been outrebounded by 8.5 boards a game.
About Coppin State: The Eagles stand 6-11 overall and 3-3 in the conference but have won four of their last five games.
Coppin State boasts a balanced scoring attack, with five players averaging 7.0 or more points per game, led by Jeanine Manley with 11.4. Larisa Carter ranks second with 8.5 points and also has a team-leading 7.4 rebounds.
Despite their record, the Eagles have forced 56 more turnovers than they have had with 70 more steals than their opponents. Coppin State has only been outscored by 0.7 points per game this year and outrebounded by just 0.5 boards, with both the Eagles and their opponents averaging at least 40 rebounds a game. Coppin State also shoots 37.9 percent from the floor but just 24.9 percent from long range.
Last Time Out: NSU snapped a 24-game MEAC losing streak with a 73-65 win over South Carolina State Monday in Echols Hall. Whitney Long had 24 points on 9-of-11 shooting, including 6-of-7 from long range, to lead the Spartans.
Tyisha Bridges and Rae Corbo posted 13 and 12 points, respectively, all in the second half, as NSU overcame an eight-point deficit at the half and outscored the Bulldogs by 16 in the second stanza. S.C. State was led by Whitney Wiley with 17 points.
Losing Streak, Goodbye: The win over S.C. State on Monday snapped a 24-game MEAC losing streak that dated back to the 2008-09 season. NSU's last win against a current member of the conference? That also happened to be S.C. State, back on Feb. 21, 2009 at Echols Hall.
Although North Carolina Central technically joins the league next year, NSU picked up its first MEAC weekend sweep since Jan. 28-30, 2006, at home against N.C. A&T and S.C. State.
Combined with the wins over NC Central and S.C. State by the NSU men's team last weekend, you have to go back to Jan. 2005 to find the last time both teams defeated the same two MEAC opponents in a row, home or away. And for good measure, the last time both NSU squads swept a weekend series at Echols Hall occurred Jan. 11-13, 2003, against Coppin State and Morgan State.
Long Lights Up the Scoreboard: Whitney Long was a key component to the victory over the Bulldogs, hitting 9-of-11 overall from the field and 6-of-7 from long range to fuel the Spartan attack. She fell just short of tying the program record for 3-pointers in a game with seven, accomplished twice in NSU women's basketball history, but did record a career high with her six treys.
Best Season in Six Years: With an 8-8 record, NSU has already surpassed the number of wins from the previous two seasons combined. With one more win, the Spartans will have secured the most victories since the 2004-05 campaign, when NSU had a 12-18 overall record.
Nationally Ranked (Almost): How good has Whitney Long been from long range? Her 48.1 percent clip from beyond the arc for the season would rank tied for third in the nation, but the NCAA requires players to average 2 3-pointers made a game. Long has tallied 26 in 16 games.
Making a Statement: Batavia Owens announced she was back in a big way, earning her third double-double of the season with 15 points and 13 rebounds at Howard on Jan. 17. After hitting double figures in scoring in the first four games of the year, Owens reached the 10-point plateau just once in the next nine contests but has averaged 11.3 points in her last three games.
Outshooting Everyone: Heading into the weekend, NSU was tops in the conference in field goal percentage (41.2) and 3-point field goal percentage (34.1). NSU has hit for 40 percent or better in six of the last nine games and in 10 games this year. The Spartans are the only team in the conference hitting above 40 percent.
Balanced Scoring, Rebounding: NSU is one of three schools in the MEAC along with Hampton and N.C. A&T to have at least three players average 8.5 or more points per game, and the only team with three players averaging 6.0 or more rebounds per game.
Long Providing a Spark: Whitney Long has been a huge sparkplug for the NSU offense, as she tallied 17.7 points per game over a recent six game stretch from Dec. 15-Jan. 10. She had three games of 20+ points and shot just over 50 percent during that time. On the season she ranks seventh in the conference with 12.4 points per game, fifth in field goal percentage (43.8), and first in 3-point field goal percentage (48.1).
Another Big Game: Each game, it seems a different players steps up in carrying the scoring load, and on Jan. 22 it was Rae Corbo, who posted 21 points against NC Central as NSU broke a four-game losing streak. It marked the fourth game this season she has led the team in scoring.
Clutch at the Line: NSU hit all seven of its free throws in overtime against McNeese State on Dec. 18 and the last 10 in the game after going just 6-of-14 before that. In the overtime win against Central Arkansas on Nov. 20, NSU connected on 7-of-8 free throws in the extra session. So far this season, NSU is shooting 60.3 percent from the free throw line, and 64.8 percent (35-of-54) in the last two minutes of the second half and overtime.
Gordon Stepping Up: Freshman Rachel Gordon has stepped up over the last several games and currently ranks seventh in the MEAC in blocked shots (0.9), eighth in offensive rebounds (2.6) and ninth in overall rebounds (6.5).
Mixing It Up: NSU has used a number of different combinations on the floor throughout the season. The Spartans have had nine different starting lineups, and nine players are averaging at least 11 minutes a game.
Telltale Signs: NSU is 7-1 on the season when leading at halftime but 1-7 when trailing. The Spartans are also 7-2 when winning the rebound battle.
Cutting Down the Turnovers: After having 20 or more turnovers in six of the season's first eight games, NSU has reached that number in three of the last eight games.
Owning the Glass: After getting outrebounded by 7.5 boards a game last year, NSU has been steady on the boards this year and owns a +0.8 rebounding margin. The Spartans have had the edge on the boards in nine of the season's 16 games.
What Lies Ahead: NSU will stay in town to get ready for Coppin State Monday at 5:30 p.m.
