Game Notes: North Carolina Central at North Carolina A&T State
DURHAM, N.C. – The Lady Eagles of North Carolina Central University (2-16) end their four-game road stint with Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference mega rival North Carolina A&T State on Monday, Jan. 24 in Greensboro, N.C., in the Corbett Sports Center at 5:30 p.m.
Among MEAC competition, the meeting between the Lady Eagles and the Aggies is the longest series at NCCU at 27 meetings. Monday’s 28th series meeting is the first matchup since the 2009-10 campaign, when the maroon and grey hosted the Greensboro foes on Jan. 2, 2010. The Aggies defeated the Lady Eagles 78-74 in McDougald-McLendon Gym.
Three NCCU student-athletes scored in double-figures in the loss, including a 15-point outing from junior Blaire Houston. Sophomore J’Mia Pollock pulled down a season-high 14 rebounds for the Lady Eagles.
Ta’Wuanna Cook led the blue and gold offense in last season’s win with 23 points. Following Cook in double-figure scoring was Amber Calvin (14), Jaleesa Sams (12) and Jaquayla Berry (11). Lamona Smalley led in rebounding with 8 boards.
The Lady Eagles hit interstate 85 after a 66-55 loss to Norfolk State on Saturday, Jan. 22 in Norfolk, Va. Senior scoring leader Jori Nwachukwu earned her eighth double-double scoring 20 points and grabbing 12, advancing her to sixth place on the NCCU women’s basketball career scoring list. The Upper Marlboro, Md., native has amassed 1,215 points in her career.
NCCU’s Chasidy Williams and Houston contributed to the offense with double-figure scoring. Williams netted 15 points, while Houston scored 10 points. Pollock scored eight points and grabbed eight rebounds.
North Carolina A&T State hosts NCCU following a 94-72 victory over South Carolina State on Saturday, Jan. 22 in Greensboro, N.C. Four Aggies scored in double-figures, Berry lead the offense with 31 points. Jaleesa followed with 13 points, while Mikala Scott netted 12 points and Reisha Bullock rounded out the leading scorers with 10 points. Sams commanded the rebounding, grabbing nine boards.
This season, the Lady Eagles offense is paced by Nwachukwu, Williams, Shanise Blanks and Houston. Nwachukwu leads with 13.6 points per game, while Williams follows with 12.5 points per contest. Blanks, who is 78 percent from the charity stripe, nets 7.0 points per game. Houston rounds out the leading scorers with 6.4 points per contest.
As a unit, the maroon and grey average 49 points per contest, and score 32 percent from the field, 20 percent from the long range and 63 percent from the free-throw line.
Sams, Berry and Scott lead the N.C. A&T State offense. Sams paces the offensive campaign with 14.3 points per game, Berry is the second-leading scorer with 11.8 points per contest and Scott is the third-leading scorer with 8.9 points per game. Berry commands the offense this season with 54 assists, while stealing 50 opponent’s possessions.
Collectively, the Aggies average 65.5 points per contest, and hit 40 percent from the field, 24 percent from the behind the three-point arc and 6 percent from the charity stripe.
NCCU fans can catch all of the action live online at
www.NCCUEaglePride.com, where Chris Hooks will bring live play-by-play action from North Carolina A&T State University. Eagle Gameday, the pregame show, will air 15 minutes prior to tip-off.
For more information on Lady Eagles basketball, visit the official website of NCCU Athletics at
www.NCCUEaglePride.com.
