Game 3 (Non-Conference Contest)
Morgan State (1-1) vs. Notre Dame of Maryland  (1-3)
Date: Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023
Site: Baltimore, Md. (Hill Field House)
Tip-off: 11 a.m.
Series Record: Morgan leads, 6-0
T/V: N/A
Audio: Heritage Sports Radio Network (HSRN.com)
Live Stream: Here
Live Stats: Here
Websites: MorganStateBears.com | notredamegators.com
 
BALTIMORE, Md. (Nov. 15, 2023)-The Morgan State Lady Bears will look to improve on their 1-1 start to the season, when they host local foe Notre Dame of Maryland in a non-conference game at Hill Field House. Tip-off is at 11 a.m. and will be Education Day at Morgan State. The game will be an exhibition for the Gators and will not count towards their record.
 
HOW TO WATCH GAMES: All men's and women's basketball home games will be video streamed for free through the MorganStateBears.com website. The latest broadcast and video stream information will always be listed on men's and women's basketball schedule pages at MorganStateBears.com.
 
MEN'S & WOMEN'S BASKETBALL RADIO: All home games and select away games for MSU men's and women's basketball will once again be available through Heritage Sports Radio Network (HSRN.com). Lamont Germany will handle play-by-play responsibilities and will also host pre-game and post-game shows. Including exclusive interviews with members of the teams and women's coach Ed Davis and men's coach Kevin Broadus. Fans can download the HSRN app for free and listen to the MSU broadcasts from anywhere. Simply search for HSRN when using the iHeartRadio app.

BEAR CLAWS: Morgan State (1-1) enters Thursday's game coming off a 63-55 loss to visiting Sacred Heart on Sunday. It was just the sixth home loss for Morgan State in its last 44 games at Hill Field House. Gabrielle Johnson scored a game-high 19 points, had a game-high six steals and added three rebounds. Joelle Johnson recorded her first double-double as a Lady Bear, finishing with 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Kaia Ponder chipped in with nine points, three rebounds, an assist, a steal and a game-high four blocks.
 
A LOOK AT THE GATORS: Notre Dame of Maryland (1-3) is coming off a 68-62 loss at Stevenson on Tuesday. Chantel Curry came off the bench to score a game-high 16 points for the Gators, while Amani Watts recorded a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds. Hillary Howard added 14 points and six rebounds and along with Watts, finished with a game-high four assists. Notre Dame of Maryland is a Division III program which plays out of the United East Conference. Last season the Gators went 23-4 and reached the first round of the NCAA Tournament, falling to #16 Trinity (CT). It was the second ever NCAA Tournament appearance for the Gators.
 
MSU VS. NOTRE DAME (MD) SERIES NOTES: Morgan State leads the all-time series, 6-0. The Lady Bears won last season's meeting, 90-55 at Hill Field House (11/14/22).

NEXT UP: Morgan State will close out its four-game homestand on Saturday, Nov. 18 at 2 p.m. when it plays host to Davidson.  
 
MORGAN TO HOLD SECOND YOUTH EDUCATION DAY EVENT: Morgan State athletics department will hold its second Morgan State University Youth Education Day "Building Bridges – Pathways to Education" event of the year and first with the women's basketball program, when the Lady Bears welcome Notre Dame of Maryland to Hill Field House on Thursday, Nov. 15 at 11 a.m. 560 local third through sixth graders are expected to be in attendance. The youth will be greeted by Morgan State mascot Benny the Bear and receive a brief history of The National Treasure by student-athletes and Early Education majors, learn the Bear Chant and Bear Dance and watch the game. Snacks will also be provided by the campus food resource center. The inaugural Education Day was held early this year during the volleyball season when Morgan State hosted Bowie State (Sept. 19).
 
DAVIS PICKS UP WIN NO. 100: Morgan State head coach Edward Davis recorded his 100th career coaching victory at Morgan, following the Lady Bears' 59-57 victory over Washington Adventist (11/6) in the season opener. Davis, who took over the helm of the Morgan State women's program for the 2016-17 season, currently ranks third all-time on the career coaching victories chart.
 
WELCOME BACK: Sophomore forward Kaia Ponder, who missed the entire 2022-23 season due to an injury, returned to the lineup in the season opening win over Washington Adventist (11/6) and recorded a double-double with a game-high 18 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. It was her first action since the 2021-22 season. The Tulsa, Okla. native shot 8-of-16 from the floor, was 2-for-3 from the free throw line and had two steals and two assists. Nine of her 10 rebounds came on the offensive end.
 
PROTECTING THE 'HOUSE': Morgan State suffered its first home loss of the season, following its defeat to Sacred Heart (11/12). Morgan State has now won 38 of its last 44 home games dating back to the 2018-19 campaign. Last season Morgan State went 11-2 at Hill Field House to set the school record for most home wins in a season, passing the previous mark of 10 wins set by both the 2017-18 and 2019-20 teams. The Lady Bears went 9-1 at Hill Field House during the 2021-22 season. During an abbreviated 2020-21 season due to the Covid-19 pandemic, MSU went 6-1 at Hill Field House. The season before that the Lady Bears concluded the 2019-20 campaign with a 10-1 home record, which was the program's best home court mark since the 2017-18 team finished 10-3.
 
MORGAN PICKED THIRD IN MEAC: The Morgan State Lady Bears were picked to finish third in the MEAC Preseason poll. The Lady Bears, who finished second a season ago, received one first-place vote and 86 points. Defending MEAC regular season and tournament champion Norfolk State was picked as the preseason favorite. The Spartans earned 12 of 16 first-place votes and 115 points. Howard was second with two first-place votes and 114 points.
 
JOHNSON NAMED TO MEAC PRESEASON 2ND TEAM: Sophomore guard Gabrielle Johnson was named to the Preseason All-MEAC Second Team. A MEAC All-Rookie Team selection last season, Johnson played in all 29 games, making six starts. She averaged 5.4 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 19.6 minutes per game. Johnson reached double figures in scoring six times, including a career-high 21 points twice at North Carolina Central and at Maryland Eastern Shore. The Baltimore native finished third on the team in assists (56) and was fifth in steals (33). Johnson ranked 12^th among MEAC leaders in assists and 20^th in steals.
 
MORGAN IN SEASON OPENERS: The Lady Bears are 14-33 all-time in season openers, openers dating back to 1977, following their 59-57 victory this season over Washington Adventist (11/6). The win was the second straight season-opening win for the Lady Bears. Morgan State at one point had lost 23 straight season openers prior to winning three straight from 2006-08.
 
WELCOME HOME: A familiar face joined the Morgan State sideline this season with the addition of Janelle Silver-Martin as an assistant coach. Silver-Martin, who is no stranger to Morgan State, was a two-year letterwinner for the Lady Bears playing in 41 games from 2014-16. Silver-Martin graduated from Morgan with a degree in public relations in 2016.
 
TOURNAMENT EXPOSURE: Morgan State will face five opponents this season that reached postseason play a year ago. South Carolina, Stanford, Sacred Heart and MEAC foe Norfolk State all reached the Women's NCAA Tournament, while Towson, like Morgan State, played in the Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT).
 
MORGAN IN THE PUERTO RICO CLASICO: Over the Thanksgiving holiday break the Lady Bears will make their sixth appearance in the Puerto Rico Clasico event and fifth trip to Puerto Rico. Morgan State will face Campbell on Thursday, Nov. 23 in San Juan, and will face UNC Asheville on Friday, Nov. 24. Both games tip-off at 5 p.m. The Lady Bears, who are 0-9 all-time in the tournament, first competed in the even during the 2016-17 season and attended four straight years from 2016-20. The 2017 tournament was moved to Fort Lauderdale, Fla. due to the damage of Hurricane Maria.
 
WELCOME TO THE CAVE: Morgan State welcomes the addition of nine newcomers to the 2023-24 program this season. Two graduate transfers in Joelle Johnson and Anyssia Gibbs; two senior transfers, Brooklyn Jones and Anjanae Mueck, two junior transfers in Laila Fair and Nakilah Johnson and three freshmen, Dakota Alston, Tamaria Rumph and Amari Smith.
 
SAYING GOODBYE: The Lady Bears will say goodbye to a total of five players including two graduate players at the conclusion of the home schedule. Graduate players Anyssia Gibbs and Joelle Johnson along with two-year member Sedayjha Payne and senior transfers Brooklyn Jones and Anjanae Mueck will all be honored. Morgan State will honor its seniors on 'Senior Night' when the Lady Bears host rival Coppin State on Thursday, March 7 in the home and season finale at Hill Field House.
   
2024 MEAC TOURNAMENT: The 2024 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) men's and women's basketball tournament is scheduled for March 13-16, 2024 at 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 high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, 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.