BALTIMORE, Md. (Jan. 7, 2025)--Playing in her second game in a Morgan State uniform, Naya Ojukwu scored a game-high 24 points and pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds to lead the Lady Bears to an 84-78 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) victory over North Carolina Central on Tuesday afternoon at Hill Field House.
 
Ojukwu, who shot 9-of-16 from the field, scored 10 of the Lady Bears' first 14 points to start the game and scored 19 of her 24 points in the first half, as four Lady Bears reached double figures in scoring.
 
Michaela Bogans came off the bench to score 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting, had a team-high four steals and a team-high five assists. Gabrielle Johnson also came off the bench and finished with 17 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including 2-for-3 from beyond the arc. Johnson knocked down 7-of-8 from the free throw line and recorded two assists, three rebounds and two steals.
 
Laila Fair nearly recorded her fourth career double-double, totaling 15 points and pulling down nine rebounds. Fair also tallied three steals and had tied a career high with five blocks
 
Morgan State (9-8, 2-0 MEAC) built a 10-point cushion when Ojukwu hit a jumper with 6:57 remaining in the second period to take a 34-24 lead.
 
The Eagles (2-14, 0-2 MEAC) responded with a 13-2 spurt over the next four minutes, capped off by back-to-back three-pointers from Aysia Hinton and Kyla Bryant to put the guests ahead 37-36 with 2:58 left in the half. Morgan State regained the lead for good at 41-40 on a layup by Fair at the 1:27 mark. The Lady Bears took a 44-42 lead at the intermission, which it would not relinquish.
 
As a team Morgan State forced 20 North Carolina Central turnovers, which it turned into 22 points. The Lady Bears got 32 points from their bench and scored 50 points inside the paint.
 
North Carolina Central (2-14, 0-2 MEAC) was paced by Kyla Bryant, who finished with a game-high 22 points and dished out a game-high 12 assists to record a double-double. Shakiria Foster totaled 17 points and had a game-high five steals, while Morgan Callahan and Aysia Hinton added 16 and 12 points, respectively.
 
Morgan State will bring its season-long three-game winning streak into the Nation's Capital on Saturday, Jan. 11 when it travels to Washington, D.C. to battle the Bison of Howard University. Tip-off is at 2 p.m. at Burr Gymnasium.
 

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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.