Brittany Dodson (12) and Erin Hawkins (3) help Morgan State defeat N.C. A&T in ESPNU game, 74-69.
Morgan State 74, N.C. A&T 69
GREENSBORO, N.C. (Feb. 28, 2011)-Heading into Monday's Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) game at North Carolina A&T, lately the month of February had not been too kind to Morgan State. The Lady Bears had lost four of their last five contests with three of them coming against the last three teams in the MEAC standings, including a one-point loss at Norfolk State on Saturday.
Playing in front of a nationally televised audience for the third consecutive season as part of the MEAC's ESPNU television package and with sole possession of second-place in the league standings on the line, the Lady Bears picked the perfect time to play one of their better games of the season.
Morgan State senior Erin Hawkins scored a team-high 17 points, including five three-pointers and fellow senior Brittany Dodson came off the bench to add 15 points on 9-of-10 from the free throw line and tied a game-high eight rebounds to lead the Lady Bears to a 74-69 MEAC victory over N.C. A&T at the Corbett Sports Center.
Brittany Noel came off the bench to score 13 points and Jamesia (Jamie) Smith added 11 for the Lady Bears, who matched their season high for points and scored 70 points for the first time since a 70-66 overtime win against George Washington (12/29).
With the win Morgan State (16-12, 10-5 MEAC) has won three straight against the Lady Aggies and swept the season series for the first time since the 2000 season and with one game remaining, should have wrapped up the No. 2 seed in the upcoming MEAC Tournament. Morgan's win, which was just third time in four years (33-3) that N.C. A&T lost a home contest against a conference opponent.
N.C. A&T (14-13, 9-6 MEAC) was led by Jaleesa Sams, who finished with a game-high 23 points on 8-for-11 shooting and 3-for-5 from three-point range. Tracy King came off the bench and added 14 points and tied a game-high with eight rebounds, while Jaquayla Berry chipped in with 11 points and had a game-high five steals.
Morgan State came out aggressive on offense for a change, building a quick 9-0 lead less than three minutes into the contest. MyQueisha Bratton got Morgan State on the board with a three-pointer and Hawkins added back-to-back treys for the 9-0 lead.
A&T's Sams scored the next seven points in part of a 10-1 run by the Lady Aggies, pulling the hosts within 11-10. Morgan State responded with another 9-0 run, capped off by Hawkins' third trey of the game, giving the Lady Bears a 20-10 advantage with 6:19 to play in the first half.
Hawkins would later knock down her fourth three-pointer of the half and Smith followed with a trey, rounding out Morgan State's scoring and give the visitors a 33-21 halftime lead.
The Lady Aggies, who never led in the game, used a 10-0 run, triggered by seven points from King, before Sams knocked down a trey to even the game at 56 all with 4:20 to play. Morgan State, which shot 92 percent (23-for-25) from the free throw line, closed out the game with an 18-13 run, going 13-of-14 from the charity stripe during that stretch.
Morgan State will now prepare for its regular season finale with crosstown rival Coppin State in the annual Battle of Baltimore “East vs. West” game on Thursday, March 3. Coppin State was a 64-50 winner at Norfolk State on Monday. Tip-off for Thursday's game will be 5:30 at the Physical Education Complex.
