WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
PREVIEW
The Game: No. 5 North Carolina
A&T (14-15, 9-7 MEAC) vs. Morgan State (6-23, 3-13 MEAC)
When: Monday, March 5 at 1:30
p.m.
Where: Lawrence Joel
Coliseum, Winston-Salem, N.C.
Must See: The Aggies will
begin competition in the 2012 MEAC Tournament as the fifth seed against No. 12
Morgan State Bears on Monday. The Aggies
are looking to capture their third MEAC Tournament Championship title in
program history and their second under coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs. The Aggies last won the Tournament in 2009
with a team that was more experienced than this season's team. The Aggies are
the sixth youngest team in Division I, which would make a tournament title all
the more impressive. Despite losing two
starters halfway through the season-sophomores Mikala Scott and Tracy King-the
Aggies finished the season with a 9-7 record in the conference. The Aggies are led by second-team All-MEAC
wing player JaQuayla Berry. Her 14.2 points and 7.3 rebounds per game leads the
team. Berry's offensive output turned a huge profit this season. On Feb. 27, she became the 12th
person in program history and the seventh under Bibbs to record 1,000 career
points. The Aggies have also come to
rely heavily on redshirt sophomore guard Amber Calvin and All-MEAC rookie team
member Tiffanie Adair this season.
Calvin, who missed all of last season with an ACL injury that required
her third surgery in four years, has been stellar for the Aggies in
2011-12. She is the team's
second-leading scorer (13.4) and first in assists (4.0). Tiffanie Adair came on
strong in conference play. She won the
MEAC Rookie of the Week award five times in the last seven weeks, and leads the
MEAC in field goal percentage at .564. Adair
is shooting 63 percent from the floor in conference play, while averaging 12.9
points and 8.3 rebounds.
Last Meeting: The Bears defeated
the Aggies by an 85-83 overtime final in their last
meeting on Jan. 21 in Baltimore, Md. It was Morgan State's first conference win
of the season. In that game, Amber Calvin and Tiffanie Adair tied for the
team-lead with 20 points and five assists each.
JaQuayla Berry had a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, while
Nikia Gorham posted 15 points and 12 rebounds.
The Bears had four players-Amarah Williams, Dekeisha Mathis, Tracey
Carrington and Omara Parker-score double figures. Williams had a double-double with 12 points
and 10 rebounds.
Morgan State Notes: The Aggies are 6-5
against Morgan State under Bibbs, having lost their last four meetings. The
Bears were selected to finish fifth in the in the MEAC. They are 3-13 after losing their last nine
games. Leading the team in scoring are
senior guards Dekeisha Mathis Omara Parker, who both average 12.2 points per
game. Freshman forward Amarah Williams,
who was the MEAC Rookie of the Week on Jan. 9, leads the team with 6.0 rebounds
per game. She also has a team-best .529
field goal percentage. The Bears are
sixth in the MEAC in scoring offense, and last in scoring defense.
Aggies in the MEAC
Tournament: North Carolina
A&T joined the MEAC in 1970. North Carolina A&T has won two MEAC Tournament
titles (1994 & 2009). Two players have won the tournament's Outstanding
Player Award in Nisha Watson (1994) and Amber Bland (2009). Seven Aggies have
earned all-tournament honors in Sheila Rivers (1988), Deidra Cheeks (1988 &
1991), Helena Creamer (1991), Angela Hill (1993 & 1994), Nisha Watson (1994
& 1996), Lamona Smalley (2008 &
2009) and Amber Bland (2009).
