Game Notes | Live Stats | Live Video
NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State women's basketball team is looking for its first win against Hampton in over seven years when it hosts the Lady Pirates in the Battle of the Bay on Saturday. Tip-off is at 4 p.m. at Joseph Echols Hall.
Media Coverage: The game will be broadcast live on WNSB Hot 91.1 with Ross Gordon on the call. Live stats will be available here. Live video and audio will also be available here.
All-Time Series: Hampton leads the series with NSU, 50-35. The Spartans have not won against Hampton since defeating them 70-66 on December 2, 2006.
Moving Up the Charts: Rachel Gordon is in second place all-time in career rebounding at NSU with 980 rebounds. She needs 21 more boards to pass Sharon Wallace for first place. Gordon could potentially break the record at Coppin State on Feb. 22.
Last Time Out: The Howard Lady Bison downed Norfolk State, 77-63, on Monday night at Joseph Echols Hall.
NSU (10-11, 6-4) was paced by junior Rae Corbo, who finished the game with 17 points. Freshman Logan Powell scored 14 to tie her season high, while senior Rachel Gordon chipped in 10. Gordon also tallied 13 rebounds to claim her 12th double-double of the season.
For the game, Howard (10-13, 6-4) shot 41.8 percent (28-of-67) from the field, while limiting the Spartans to 34.9 percent (22-of-63) shooting. The Lady Bison also controlled the boards with a 47-39 advantage.
Howard started the first half on a 20-7 run as Shavonne Duckett knocked down a jumper with 11:14 left before halftime. NSU answered on the other end with seven unanswered points that included layups from Powell and freshman Dominique Harper, as well as free throws from Corbo and Amber Brown. The Spartans trailed Howard 20-14 with 8:33 to play in the half.
Cheyenne Brown drained a 3-pointer at the 2:31 mark to cap an 11-6 run for Howard. Both teams struggled from behind the arc as the Lady Bison finished shooting just 7.7 percent (1-of-13) and NSU only 11.1 percent (1-of-9) on the night.
Amber Brown scored the last points of the half on a pair of free throws with 17 seconds left to send NSU into the break down six, 33-27. The Spartans are 1-9 when trailing at the half.
The Lady Bison started the second half on a 5-0 run as Brown knocked down a jumper with 17:54 left to make the score 38-27. The Spartans answered as Powell made a pair of free throws to spark a 14-7 run. Corbo closed out the run, nailing a jumper with 13:18 remaining to bring NSU within four, 45-41.
Howard used the next 10 minutes to outscore the Spartans, 16-9, to build its lead to nine as Victoria Gonzalez knocked down a pair of free throws to move the score to 61-52 with 3:50 left to play. NSU never led in the game.
Corbo scored the last points of the game for the Spartans at the 1:09 mark to make the score 69-61. The Lady Bison scored their last 10 points at the free throw line and finished the game shooting 69.0 percent (20-of-29) from the line. For the game, NSU shot only 62.1 percent (18-of-29) from the free throw line.
The Lady Bison had four players score in double figures, including Brown, who led all scorers with 21 points. Duckett contributed 16, Te'Shya Heslip tallied 12 and Gonzalez added 10.
NSU on the Rise: For just the third time in 12 seasons, NSU has reached double-digit wins this year. Since the 2002-03 season, NSU has only had 10 or more wins in 2004-05 and 2011-12 (12 wins both years).
The Spartans have also posted six MEAC wins this year. It's tied for the most conference wins the program has had since 2005-06. NSU also had six MEAC wins in 2011-12.
About Hampton: The Lady Pirates (20-4, 11-0) are coming off of a 54-35 win against UMES on Monday at the Convocation Center in Hampton, Va. For the game, Hampton shot only 25 percent (18-of-72) from the field and was 4-of-31 from 3-point range. The Lady Pirates also shot 68.2 percent (15-of-22) from the free throw line. Nicole Hamilton was the only Hampton player to score in double figures as she finished the night with 25 points.
On the season, Hampton is averaging 71.2 points and 47.4 rebounds per game. Malia Tate-DeFreitas leads the team in scoring, averaging 18.6 points per game. Alyssa Bennett is second in scoring, averaging 16.9 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. Hamilton rounds out the top three scorers for the Lady Pirates, averaging 13.9 points per game.
Last Time Against Hampton: In the first meeting, Aivah Parham led NSU with 12 points and five rebounds, but it was not enough as the Spartans suffered a 76-41 loss to Hampton on Jan. 26, 2013 at Joseph Echols Hall. Hampton outrebounded NSU 43-32.
The Lady Pirates shot 42.4 percent (25-of-59) from the field. Four Hampton players reached double-figures including Olivia Allen, who led all scorers with 22 points. Keiara Avant posted a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Alyssa Bennett also had 15 points while Nicole Hamilton was just shy of a double-double as she finished the game with 11 points and eight rebounds.
Hampton held the Spartans to just 28.6 percent (16-of-56) shooting on the afternoon. Aside from Parham, Rachel Gordon was the only other NSU player in double figures as she finished the game with 10 points and four rebounds.
In the second meeting, NSU fell to the Lady Pirates, 83-42, on Feb. 18, 2013 at the HU Convocation Center. Hampton shot 50.0 percent (32-of-64) on the night. Aside from Allen, the Lady Pirates had four other players reach double figures including Avant, who finished the night with 23 points, 12 rebounds and four steals. Hamilton had 13 points, five rebounds, seven assists and four steals. Bennett also contributed 12 points and four assists on the night.
The Spartans finished the game shooting 30.2 percent (16-of-53) from the field. Parham led NSU with nine points and three rebounds. Gordon tallied seven points and six rebounds while Ebony Brown added six points, respectively.
The Lady Pirates outscored the Spartans in the paint, 38-16, and outscored them 37-9 on points off turnovers. Both NSU and Hampton finished the game with 37 rebounds.
Scoring Leaders: Rae Corbo leads NSU in scoring, averaging 13.7 points per game followed by Rachel Gordon, who is averaging 11.9 points per game. Ebony Brown rounds out the top-three scoring leaders for NSU, averaging 9.2 points per game.
Double-Doubling: Rachel Gordon posted her 12th double-double of the season on Monday against Howard. She finished the game with 10 points and 13 rebounds.
Breaking 1,000 Points: Rae Corbo has 935 career points at NSU. She needs only 65 more to become a member of the "1,000 Point Club" at NSU..
Career Records Watch: Rae Corbo ranks eighth all-time in career free throws made at NSU with 267. She needs to make 28 more to break into the top five.
Corbo is also in 10th place all-time in 3-point field goals made at NSU with 58. Teammate Ebony Brown is in 12th place in 3-point field goals made with 55. She needs three more to move into the top 10.
NCAA, MEAC Leaderboard: Rachel Gordon currently ranks No. 7 in the nation in rebounds per game and Rae Corbo is No. 64 in free throw percentage.
Gordon ranked 16th in career rebounding among active players through Feb. 8. She also ranks 11th in career rebounding average at 9.6.
As a team, NSU currently ranks in the top 5 in nine different categories in the MEAC, while NSU players rank in the top 5 in five different categories, including Rachel Gordon, who leads the league in rebounds, averaging 12.5 rebounds per game.
