NORFOLK, Va. – The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference will have a new outright leader this weekend. Norfolk State and South Carolina State, the only two MEAC teams without a loss in conference play, square off at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center. The game will be broadcast on 91.1 FM.

The two teams did not meet last year during the shortened COVID-19 season. The Spartans have dominated the series recently, however, winning the last six matchups.

Queens of the conference
The Spartans and Lady Bulldogs come into Saturday's duel during the hottest stretch of their respective campaigns. SCSU dropped its first 14 games of the season but have turned things around with three straight wins to start the New Year. NSU has opened MEAC play 3-0 for the fifth time in the past six seasons.

Getting back on track
Three straight NSU games were postponed due to COVID-19 protocols, making the Spartans' Jan. 10 MEAC opener against North Carolina Central their first action in over two weeks. They shook the rust off quickly, though, beating the Eagles 80-70 behind Camille Downs' career-high 28 points.

NSU returned home for two games in three days, taking down Coppin State 71-60 and Morgan State 64-52 on Jan. 22 and 24, respectively. Deja Francis led the Spartans with two explosive offensive performances, scoring a career-high 32 points against the Eagles and 24 against the Bears.
 
NSU-SCSU Tip-Ins

• NSU leads the all-time series 24-18, with SCSU's most recent triumph coming on Jan 23, 2016. The Spartans won the schools' last meeting on Jan. 25, 2020, by a score of 76-42.
• Francis and Camille Downs have proved a fierce duo on both ends of the floor. The two are combining for 43.7 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game in conference play.
• Downs swiped a career-high 10 steals against Morgan State on Monday. Only three other Spartans have ever recorded 10+ steals in a game: Lisa Rice, Chanette Hicks (twice), and DeKisha Thompson. Downs' 2.7 steals per game rank first in the MEAC.
• Niya Fields has facilitated the Spartans offense with 3.0 assists per game.  She ranks third in the conference in that category, and first in assist/turnover ratio (1.4).
• Mahoganie Williams, standing at 6-1, has thwarted opponents at the rim all season. Her 2.6 blocks per game is the most in the MEAC. Williams set a new career-high on Dec. 6, rejecting six shots at George Mason.
• NSU has buried opponents from deep, shooting a MEAC-best 28.3 percent from deep, with the Lady Bulldogs close behind at 26.1. The Spartans have also converted from the stripe, leading the MEAC in free throw percentage (70.3%).
• NSU was picked to finish third in the MEAC preseason poll. South Carolina State was projected eighth.
• SCSU is led by Nicole Gwynn and Trinity Klock, averaging 12.4 and 9.8 points per game, respectively.
• Klock shoulders the primary rebounding load with 7.2 per game, coming off a career-high 13 rebound performance on Monday at Delaware State.
• Klock and teammate Briauna Thompson have invited opponents to many block parties this season. The two each average 1.4 blocks per game, behind only NSU's Williams among MEAC players.
• During the Lady Bulldogs' three-game win streak, they've held opponents to 49.7 points per game.
• Three-point shooting has played a large role in SCSU's win streak, recording two of its best performances of the season from behind the arc in the last two weeks. The Lady Bulldogs hit a season-high 11 threes on Jan. 15, against N.C. Central, and 10 on Monday at Delaware State.