Taylor-James leads the conference in scoring

GREENSBORO, January 12, 2009 – In what might be the biggest indication that the North Carolina A&T women’s basketball program is on solid footing occurred on Monday.

Senior Brittanie Taylor-James earned MEAC Player of the Week honors after a week in which she scored 44 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and was 11-for-12 from the line in helping the Aggies go 2-0 for the week. It is not that she won the honor that shows the program is strong. It is the fact that it was the first time in her career she earned a weekly honor from the conference despite the fact she is closing in on scoring her 1,000^th point as an Aggie.

But when considering the number of times teammates and 1,000-point scorers Amber Bland and Ta’Wuana Cook have won weekly honors, it maybe a little easier to understand.

“I think before the year is out, Brittanie will get her fair share of recognition,’’ said head coach Patricia Cage-Bibbs. “She is player who came back this year improved and determined to take this team to new heights. When you watch Brittanie there is one thing that is for sure. She can put the ball the in the basket as well as anyone in the country.”

Last Monday, Taylor-James scored 19 points to help the Aggies pull off the biggest upset in school history with an 87-80 win over then RPI No. 34 Charlotte. On Saturday, Taylor-James scored 25 points and had eight rebounds on 8-for-14 shooting to lead the Aggies to a conference win over Morgan State.

The senior out of Evanston, Ill., leads the conference in scoring at 18.8 points per game. She has scored 20 or more points six times this season. She needs just 23 points to become the 11^th player in school history to reach 1,000 points for her career.