NSU Women (2-20, 2-10 MEAC) at Delaware State (7-17, 4-7)
Saturday, Feb. 20 * 2 p.m.
Memorial Hall * Dover, Del.
Game Notes  |  Live Stats  |  Live Audio

NORFOLK, Va. - The Spartans play their final road game of the regular season this Saturday as they face Delaware State at Memorial Hall at 2 p.m. in Dover, Del. NSU will be attempting to start a new streak after having its two-game winning streak snapped by Morgan State on Monday, while the Lady Hornets will be seeking to end a four-game losing skid.

Media Coverage: The game will be broadcast live on WNSB 91.1 FM with Ross Gordon on the call. Links to live audio and live stats are at the top of this page.

Scouting NSU:  Lexus Spears had a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds and made the go-ahead layup with 48 seconds left as visiting Morgan State outlasted Norfolk State 59-56 on Saturday afternoon, Feb. 13, at Echols Hall. Koryn Lawrence scored 13 points and Brehanna Daniels 10 to lead NSU.

Trailing by 14 in the fourth quarter, the Spartans mounted a 17-3 run to tie the ballgame with 56 seconds left. Daniels and Lawrence combined to score all but two points in the run. But Morgan State, which had trouble with NSU's full-court defense in the final period, broke the pressure after Daniels tied the game, leading to an uncontested layup by Spears at the other end with 48 seconds remaining. Lawrence missed a jumper at the other end, and MSU widened its lead as Spears hit one free throw and Danielle Robinson two more to make it 59-55 with 12 seconds remaining.

MSU outrebounded the Spartans 46-35, including 21 offensive rebounds that led to 16 second-chance points.

Scouting DSU: Delaware State (7-17, 4-7 MEAC) has lost four games in a row to drop to 4-7 in the MEAC following an 84-79 loss at Coppin State on Monday. NaJai Pollard had 26 points and 12 rebounds and Aaliyah Davis added 20 points for DSU. But the Lady Hornets shot just 34 percent from the floor while CSU shot 41 percent and outrebounded DSU 53-47.

DSU, which finished last (13th) in last season's regular-season MEAC standings, won four of its first seven conference games this year but have struggled as of late. The Lady Hornets are coached by former Hampton and NSU assistant coach Barbara Burgess.

Mikah Aldridge leads DSU with 12.2 points per game, Pollard averages 10.8 points and 7.5 rebounds, and Amber Bogard averages 10.8 points. Pollard, a Richmond, Va. native, has been named MEAC Rookie of the Week seven times
                       
All-Time Series vs. DSU: Delaware State holds a 22-18 all-time series lead over the Spartans, but NSU is currently on a three-game winning streak against the Lady Hornets. NSU won both meetings last season in convincing fashion, tying its largest-ever win over a MEAC team (95-55) on Feb. 23, 2015. The Spartans then topped DSU 70-45 in the first round of the MEAC tournament on March 9 to complete a season sweep.

DSU's last win over NSU was a 58-48 triumph on Feb. 23, 2013 in Dover.

Finding the Range: NSU has struggled with its 3-point shooting this year, ranking 11th out of 13 teams in the MEAC in 3-pointers made. Coming into the Feb. 6game at Howard, the Spartans' season high for 3-pointers made was five, done twice. NSU proceeded to make 12-of-24 from long distance against the Bison, tying for the second-most made treys in a game in school history. Only the 13 made 3-pointers against S.C. State on Jan. 8, 2005, rank higher in program annals. Yazmen Hannah made a career high four treys, Kiara Phillips and Alexys Long made three apiece, and Brehanna Daniels and Koryn Lawrence made one each. NSU then hit six triples the following game at UMES, its second-highest total of the year.

In the last six games, NSU has made 31 3-pointers (5.1/gm.) and is shooting 32 percent from long range, well above its season averages of 3.4 made triples and 26.2 percent shooting.

This and That: Some more recent notes and trends for the Spartans:
• Koryn Lawrence has at least one steal in 10 straight games, a streak that started with NSU's first game of 2016, at Coppin State. She tied her career high with five that night, then did it again against Savannah State. She is fifth in the league in steals (42, 2.0 per game).
• The 110 points NSU scored at Howard are its most ever against a Division I team and second-most vs. any opponent in the Spartans' D-I history. NSU scored 116 in a win over Virginia-Lynchburg on Dec. 20, 2013.
• The 218 total points are the most scored in a MEAC women's game since at least 2002-03.
• Kiara Phillips (21 points), Yazmen Hannah (20 points) and Siobhan Beslow (19 rebounds) all set career highs, while Alexys Long (nine points) tied her career high.
• The Howard marked the first time since Feb. 23, 2015 that NSU had two players score 20 points or more in the same game. Rae Corbo (28) and Kayla Roberts (20) were the last ones to do it, in a win over Delaware State.