Games 7-8
Morgan State "Lady Bears" (4-2, 1-1 MEAC) at Delaware State "Hornets" (2-4, 1-1 MEAC)
Date: Saturday-Sunday, January 16-17, 2021
Site: Dover, Del. (Memorial Hall)
Tip-off: 1 p.m.
Series Record: Delaware State leads, 44-37
TV: YouTube (DSU-TV)
Audio: HSRN.com
Live Stream: YouTube (DSU-TV)
Live Stats: N/A
Notes: MSU Notes | Delaware State Notes | MEAC Notes
Websites: www.MorganStateBears.com | www.dsuhornets.com
Gameday: Here
 
BALTIMORE, Md. (Jan. 13, 2021)-Morgan State returns to the court after a 13-day layoff, when it travels to Dover, Del. to take on the Delaware State Hornets on Saturday, Jan. 16 in the opener of a two-game Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) series. The two will wrap up the weekend on Sunday, Jan. 17. Both games tip-off at 1 p.m. and will be played at Memorial Hall. The contests will be carried live on the Heritage Sports Radio Network at HSRN.com and on YouTube (DSU-TV).
 
BEAR CLAWS: Morgan State (4-2, 1-1 MEAC) heads on the road for its first road trip of the season, when it visits Delaware State this weekend. The Lady Bears' lone road game this season was a 12-minute ride to rival Towson (12/20), a 95-59 loss to the Tigers. Morgan enters the weekend coming off a 71-58 victory over Howard (1/3) to earn a series split, after falling the day before by a score of 73-48. Ja'Niah Henson scored a game-high 19 points to lead four Lady Bears in double figures scoring. Dahnye Redd finished with 15 points and a team-high nine boards, Adia Brisker came off the bench to score 12 and Sydney Searcy added 11. Morgan State forced 31 Howard turnovers and turned them into 35 points. The Lady Bears have been paced by the MEAC's leading scorer in Redd, who is averaging 16.0 points per game and a team-leading 7.4 rebounds. Henson is scoring 13.3 points per outing and Ashia McCalla is scoring 10.8 points. Desiree Allen is coming off the bench to contribute 6.0 rebounds and Nina Carpenter leads the team with nine blocks to go with 5.3 rebounds.
 
A LOOK AT DELAWARE STATE: The Hornets (2-4, 1-1 MEAC) enter the series, coming off a 70-47 non-conference loss at La Salle (1/9). Kiana Coomber recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds, both game highs. Sharajah Collins came off the bench to score 10 points in the loss. The Hornets finished the game going 11-of-13 (85 percent) from the free throw line. Delaware State began the conference slate splitting its opening series on the road at Coppin State. The Hornets suffered a 56-54 loss to the Eagles (1/4), before claiming a 60-45 victory the next day in the finale behind a game-high 14 points by Collins off the bench and 11 from Daije Harris. Delaware State has been paced by Collins, who is averaging 10.8 points per game. Zoe Holmes leads the team in rebounding with 6.7 boards per game, while Coomber is grabbing 5.7 rebounds per outing.
 
MSU VS. DELAWARE STATE SERIES NOTES: Delaware State leads the all-time series, 44-37, but Morgan State has won two straight. The two teams split last season's series, each winning on their home floor, before the Lady Bears defeated the Hornets, 64-63 in the MEAC Quarterfinal (3/12/20) in Norfolk, Va.
 
NEXT UP: The Lady Bears will be off next week, before paying a visit to crosstown rival Coppin State for two games on Saturday, Jan. 23-Sunday, Jan. 24 at the Physical Education Complex. Tip-off is at noon.
 
REDD HONORED BY COLLEGE SPORTS MADNESS: Dahnye Redd was named Madness MEAC Player of the Week (1/4) by the staff of College Sports Madness. It was her second honor this season for Redd, who was also named on Nov. 30, 2020. The Darby, Pa., native averaged 15.5 points on a combined 12-of-26 shooting and added 6.5 rebounds and two steals in two games. She nearly recorded a double-double in the win over Howard (1/3), finishing with 15 points, nine rebounds and two steals.
 
HENSON MATCHES CAREER HIGH: Ja'Niah Henson matched her career high of 19 points to lead Morgan to a MEAC win over Howard in Game 2 of their series (1/3). Henson, who shot 6-of-13 for the game and was 6-of-8 from the charity stripe, also added three assists and three steals.
 
TURNING UP THE PRESSURE: Morgan State forced an opponent season-high 31 turnovers out of Howard in its 71-58 victory over the Bison (1/3). The Lady Bears converted those 31 turnovers into a season-best 35 points. The 31 turnovers surpassed the previous opponent high of 26 by Saint Peter's (12/5).
 
ALLEN MAKES MORGAN DEBUT: Graduate student Desiree 'Dez' Allen made her Morgan debut in the MEAC opener against Howard (1/2). A native of Neptune, N.J., Allen, who graduated from New Jersey Institute of Technology in 2020, stepped on the floor with 7:09 remaining in the first quarter. She recorded her first rebound as a Lady Bear at the 3:55 mark of the first period and scored her first points in a Morgan uniform on a layup with 9:13 to play in the second quarter. Allen would finish the day with a team-high eight rebounds, six points and two steals off the bench.
 
OFF TO A GREAT START: Morgan's 3-1 start matched the 2010-11 and 2008-09 teams. Both of those squads finished the season with identical 17-13 records. Like this season, the 2008-09 team started off winning its first three contests, while the 2010-11 edition ended the season advancing to the first round of the Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) where they lost at Virginia 69-56 on March 17, 2011.
 
SIX DIVISION I TRANSFERS ON ROSTER: The 2020-21 Morgan State roster will feature a total of six Division I transfers, including three graduate players. Headlining the list is senior Sydney Searcy (University of Florida), who transferred to Morgan State prior to the 2018-19 season. Senior newcomer Jayla Atmore (University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff) and sophomore newcomer, Adia Brisker (Niagara University) are also joined this season by graduate transfers Nina Carpenter (Cal State Bakersfield), Desiree Allen (New Jersey Institute of Technology) and Takara Wade (Houston Baptist University).
 
PROTECTING THE 'HOUSE': MSU has picked up right where it left off last season, by defending its home floor, winning its first three home games to start this season. After dropping its MEAC opener to Howard (1/2), thus ending a seven-game home winning streak, the Lady Bears bounced back to win Game 2 against Howard (1/3) to improve to 4-1 at home. Morgan State has now won 15 of its last 17 home games dating back to a 70-47 win over rival Coppin State in the season finale during the 2018-19 season. Morgan closed out last season with a 10-1 record at Hill Field House. The Lady Bears' 10-1 record was the program's best home court mark since the 2017-18 team finished 10-3.
 
MSU SECURES NON-CONFERENCE WINNING RECORD: The Morgan State Lady Bears secured their first non-conference winning record since the 2017-18 campaign (7-6), following a 67-63 victory over the Naval Academy (12/18). MSU improved to 3-0 on the season with the win, before dropping its lone non-conference loss at Towson (12/20).
 
CARPENTER RECEIVES MEAC DEFENSIVE HONOR: Graduate center Nina Carpenter was named MEAC Defensive Player of the Week (Dec. 8). Carpenter was a defensive force in her second game as a Lady Bear in the victory over Saint Peter's (12/5). The Las Vegas, Nev. native recorded a game-high five blocked shots, scored eight points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds (seven on the defensive end).  
 
MORGAN PICKED SECOND IN MEAC NORTH: Morgan State was picked to finish second in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Northern Division preseason poll, as voted by the league's head coaches and sports information directors. The MEAC will move to division play for the 2020-21 season. The Lady Bears were picked to finish seventh last season and went 17-13 overall and finished 12-4 in the MEAC to finish the 2019-20 regular season tied for second and earned the No. 3 seed in the league tournament.
 
REDD, MCCALLA EARN PRESEASON ALL-MEAC HONORS: Senior guard Dahnye Redd was selected to the MEAC Preseason All-MEAC first team and junior guard Ashia McCalla was named to the second team. Redd averaged 13.4 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game last season. A third-team All-MEAC selection a year ago, Redd ranked seventh in the MEAC in scoring, fifth in rebounding, fifth in offensive rebounding (3.0), eighth in defensive rebounds (4.5), ninth in field goal percentage (.437), 10th in free throw percentage (.694) and 14th in blocked shots (0.8). A native of Darby, Pa., Redd reached double figures in scoring 21 times and had five double-doubles. She scored 24 points, grabbed seven rebounds and had a steal in the MEAC quarterfinal win over Delaware State (3/12) and added a career-high 26 points, six rebounds, two assists and two blocks at Saint Peter's (11/26). McCalla averaged 11.6 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game last season. She ranked 14th in the MEAC in scoring, fourth in three-point field goal percentage (.343) and fourth in three-point field goals made (58). McCalla reached double figures in scoring 17 times and was also second on the team in free throw shooting at 80% (56-of-70). The Greenbelt native set a career-high 31 points on 5-of-7 shooting from three-point range, hauled in a season-high eight rebounds and had two steals and an assist in the home opener against Notre Dame Maryland (11/8).
  
2021 MEAC TOURNAMENT: The 2021 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) men's and women's basketball tournament is scheduled for March 10-13, 2021. First-round games will take place on campus sites, before moving to the Norfolk Scope Arena in Norfolk, Va. The annual MEAC Basketball Tournament moved to Norfolk in 2013 after spending the previous four years in Winston-Salem, N.C. from 2009 through 2012.
 
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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified doctoral research institution offering more than 126 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.