The Game
The Delaware State women's basketball team (6-18, 1-11 MEAC) will tipoff its final three-game homestand of the season Saturday afternoon (2 p.m.) against the UMES Hawks (7-16, 3-8 MEAC), in an effort to snap a five-game losing skid.
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The Opponent
» UMES Hawks (7-16, 3-8 MEAC)
UMES heads into Saturday's contest coming off back-to-back home victories over Howard and Morgan State, which snapped a two-game slide with losses to Coppin State and Hampton. On the offensive end, guard Jessica Long leads the squad in scoring (14.7 ppg) and assists (106), while guard Shawnee Sweeney sits second on the team in scoring (10.7 ppg). Down low, forward/center Alexis Udoji averages a team-high 7.7 per game and leads UMES in blocks (41).
» The Head Coach: In his 10th season at the helm, Fred Batchelor is the most successful coach in UMES women's basketball history with an overall record of 119-169.
» The Series: The Lady Hornets are 48-33 all-time against UMES. In two meetings last season, DSU won both games, 67-52 and 72-63. In 2011-12, the Hawks swept the season series with victories by at least 10 points.
A Win Would Mean…
» The Lady Hornets' would avoid their second six-game losing streak of the season.
» Delaware State's first win since beating Morgan State on Feb. 1.
» DSU's fifth home victory of the season, its second in MEAC play.
Last Time Out…
Delaware State wrapped up its two-game Florida road trip with a 95-79 loss to Florida A&M this past Monday. FAMU shot 44 percent (35-of-80) from the field and 91 percent (19-of-21) from the free throw line with three players scoring in double figures, led by guard Jasmine Grice tallying 26 points (9-of-24) and five steals. Rebounding wise, the Rattlers won the battle boards at 49-34, spearheaded by forward Tierra Prothro and guard/forward Patrice Collie both pulling down 10. Delaware State, on the other hand, was led by guard Raven Bankston totaling a game-high 33 points (13-of-25) and a career-high nine rebounds. Guard/forward Deanna Harmon also finished the game in double figures with 15 points (5-of-9), whereas forward Tylinn Carter scored a career-high 15 points (6-of-8) and recorded seven rebounds. As a unit, the Lady Hornets shot 29-of-60 (.483) from the field, including 53 percent (18-of-34) in the second half.
Bankston Rolling of Late
In her last six games, freshman Raven Bankston is averaging 26 points per game on 47 percent shooting, including four games scoring at least 25 points and two games tallying 30 points or more. Her best game during stretch occurred in DSU's 86-66 road victory at Morgan State (Feb. 1) with a career-high 35 points (13-of-23), which followed up a 28-point (13-of-21) effort against Wesley (Jan. 27). As a result, she was named MEAC Player of the Week for the first time ever. In addition, she was named MEAC Rookie of the Week for the sixth time after scoring a game-high 26 points (11-of-28), to go along with five rebounds, three assists and two blocks in DSU's 64-60 loss at home to South Carolina State (Feb. 10). Currently, Bankston sits third in the MEAC in scoring (19.7 ppg).
MEAC Struggles
Currently, Delaware State sits 12th in the MEAC standings with its 1-11 mark. In these 12 games, the Lady Hornets are being outscored 73-61 and shooting 38 percent from the field, including 25 percent from long distance. On the glass, teams are out-rebounding DSU, 525-438, whereas the Hornets have struggled to take care of the ball with 212 turnovers, compared to 148 assists.
Can't Shake the Injury Bug
Throughout the season, the Lady Hornets have been hit hard on the injury front. Before playing a game, center Janay Carter and guard Aaliyah Davis both suffered season-ending knee injuries, whereas guard Raine Bankston also went down with a season-ending knee injury after starting five games.
Later in the year, guard Diamond Williams (ankle) missed three games before returning to action against NCCU (Jan. 18), while guard Raven Bankston suffered a sprained ankle in practice and did not suit up in DSU's loss at Coppin State (Feb. 3) for the first time this season. On the frontline, freshman Kareena Pitts has been inactive the past six games because of a foot injury.
Hawkins Done for the Season with Shoulder Injury
The Hornets took another hit on the injury front with leading scorer (20.7 ppg) and rebounder Tierra Hawkins (10.2 rpg) officially ruled out for the rest of the season due to a shoulder injury. In her final game, Hawkins recorded her eighth double-double of the season with 11 points (5-of-18) and a game-high 15 rebounds in DSU's 50-47 loss at North Carolina A&T (Jan. 20). Hawkins wraps up her junior campaign as one of eight players in the country averaging 20+ points and 10+ rebounds per game. In DSU's 86-73 win at home over Wilmington (Nov. 20), she tallied 30 points to eclipse 1,000 career points to become the 15th player in Hornets history to reach this milestone. Currently, she sits eighth on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,280 points. Also, Hawkins was named MEAC Player of the Week twice this season (Nov. 25 and Jan. 6).
Moving Up the Career List
Senior Deanna Harmon tallied four assists in DSU's recent loss at FAMU to claim the second spot on the squad's all-time career assists list with 266… Junior Jade Washington recorded six assists in the Hornets' loss at FAMU to move into ninth all-time (219) on DSU's career assists list.
At This Point Last Season…
The Lady Hornets were 8-16 overall and 5-6 in MEAC play, coming off a 69-67 loss at home to Morgan State.
Coming Up Next…
DSU will face Morgan State at home this Monday evening (5:30 p.m.). Earlier in the season, the Lady Hornets defeated the Bears on the road, 86-66.
