NORFOLK, Va.--The Norfolk State women's basketball team awaits the no. 7 seed Howard Bison in the quarterfinal round of the MEAC tournament. The Spartans received a first-round bye by virtue of being the conference's no. 2 seed, while the Bison defeated no. 10 seed South Carolina State in the first round today, setting up the 2 p.m. contest against the Spartans tomorrow at the Norfolk Scope Arena.

NSU in the MEAC Tournament
Norfolk State (18-11, 12-4 MEAC) is making its 22nd appearance in the MEAC Tournament. Last season the Spartans defeated Howard (16-14, 7-9 MEAC) 72-51 in the quarterfinal round, making their way to the Championship game.

The Spartans will receive a first round by for the second year in a row. Last season, NSU received a bye into the quarterfinals for the first time since the 2002 championship season. Since their first MEAC Tournament in 1999, the Spartans have received a first-round bye only one other time, doing so in 2000. When Norfolk State has received a first-round bye, it has made the championship game all three times.

Head coach Larry Vickers owns a 3-4 record in MEAC Tournament play and made his first-ever appearance in the finals last season.

The Spartans topped Hampton, 61-52, in 2002 for their only MEAC Tournament championship. In total, NSU is 19-19 all-time in the MEAC Tournament and is 1-3 in the final round.
 
Series History vs. Howard
This will be the 52nd meeting between the two teams, and the ninth meeting during Coach Vickers' tenure.
 
Howard holds a 33-18 series advantage over the Spartans, with majority of the damage coming from 11 straight wins from the 2008-09 season to the 2013-14 season. The Spartans have shifted the power of the rivalry as of late, winning nine of the last 12 games against Howard.
 
The Spartans completed the regular season season sweep of the Bison with a 69-60 overtime victory on NSU's senior night in Norfolk. The Spartans won an 83-80 thriller up in Washington D.C. earlier this season. Chanette Hicks dropped 30 points in that matchup.
 
A Win over the Bison Would...
Be the second year in a row the Spartans knocked the Bison out of the MEAC Tournament.
 
Be the second year in a row that NSU advances to the semifinal round.
 
Scouting the Bison
Offensively, the Bison are as talented as any team in the MEAC. They had four players that were named to the MEAC preseason teams, and three of them are averaging at least 13 points per game.
 
Jayla Thornton is the Bison's leading scoring, averaging 13.8 points per game. Thornton was voted to the All-MEAC Preseason Second team prior to the start of the season. Thornton finished this regular season as an All-MEAC third team selection.
 
Sarah Edmond was selected to the All-MEAC Preseason First Team after leading the Bison with 15.5 points and a MEAC Second Team selection last season. She is currently second on the team with 13.7 points per game, and leads the Bison with 3.8 assists per game.
 
Ayonna Williams rounds out the leading scorers for the Bison, with 13.3 points per game. Williams was also a MEAC Preseason Second Team selection, and just finished this regular season as a All-MEAC second team selection.

The Fab Five
Chanette Hicks leads the Spartans with 20.1 points per game, 4.9 assists per game and 4.7 steals per game. She leads the MEAC in all three of those categories, and is 13th in the country in scoring, and second in steals per game.
 
La'Deja James completes the Spartans 1-2 punch, averaging 14.1 points per game along with 4.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game. James went off for a career-high 36 points against N.C. Central, which now sits second in NSU's DI record-book for the most points in a single game.
 
Blaire Thomas is the third leading scorer for the Spartans, averaging 9.3 points per game. Thomas is heating up as of late. She also leads the team in rebounding, with 6.1 per game.
 
Mikaela Jones leads the Spartans in blocks, totaling 30 on the season for 1.3 blocks per game. Jones is averaging 7.7 points per game and six rebounds per game. She had her first double-double of the season against S.C. State, finishing with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
 
Dana Echols returned to the starting lineup for the Spartans against Coppin State, scoring a season-high eight points to go along with another season-high eight rebounds. Echols is third on the team in assists, averaging 1.7 per game.

Record Watching
The 2018-19 edition of the Spartans left their marks on the record books. As a team, NSU set single-season Division I marks in scoring defense (55.2), field goal percentage (40.1), 3-point field goals (149), defensive 3-point field goal percentage (25.8), assists (439) and assists per game (14.2).
 
This 2019-20 team has a chance to break a few more records this year, especially because of the play of Chanette Hicks.
 
Hicks 20.1 points per game is just shy of breaking NSU's DI single season scoring record set by Rae Corbo's 20.8 points per game in 2014-15. As a team, The Spartans are averaging 66.2 points per game so far this season, just under three points off the 69.1 points per game record set by the 1999-2000 squad. Hicks also leads the MEAC, with 4.9 assists per game, just shy of NSU's DI record set by Recca Trice's 6.0 assists per game in 2012-13.
 
Not only has Hicks jump started the Spartans' offense the year, the defense has been on a roll as well. Hicks is second in the country with 4.7 steals per game, and is on pace to break NSU's all-time record of 4.5 steals per game done by Tracy Saunders in 1990-91.

MEAC All-Conference Honors
Hicks became the first women's player in MEAC history to win both Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. NSU's Kyle O'Quinn won both awards on the men's side during the 2011-12 season.

James was also recognized by the conference, earning an All-MEAC Second Team selection. 
 
NSU By the Numbers
1004- The number of points in the paint the Spartans have scored this season.
 
12.1 - Average number of steals the Spartans have per game.
 
2  - NSU has two of the top five scorers in the conference, with Hicks' 20.1 ppg and La'Deja James' 14.1 ppg.
 
417 - The amount of career steals for Hicks.
 
+4.93 - The Spartans turnover margin, which ranks 23rd in the country.
 
2 - The number of steals Armani Franklin averages per game, which ranks fifth in the MEAC.
 

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