The ladies’s bracket begins the MEAC basketball event Wednesday at midday, with regular-season champion Norfolk State taking up No. 8 seed South Carolina State. The Spartans have an extremely gifted roster that shall be robust to beat, however there are a number of gamers that observers ought to be aware of this week.
Kierra Wheeler, Norfolk State
Prince isn’t the one nice individual to return out of Minneapolis, Minnesota, as Wheeler’s Inexperienced and Gold Rain dampened the victory hopes of many Norfolk State opponents.
A favourite for convention participant of the yr, she’s averaging 17.5 factors and 9.8 rebounds per contest, leads the group in blocks (34), and is third in steals (45). Pairing with NC State switch Diamond Johnson is the closest factor to a Dream Staff that HBCU basketball has to supply, and if Wheeler’s on her recreation, Norfolk State shall be very robust to beat.
Tyana Walker, Howard
The Bison suffered a serious blow when preseason participant of the yr Future Howell was misplaced for the season with an ACL harm, however first-year guard Tyana Walker has stuffed in admirably for coach Ty Grace’s Bison.
Walker is Howard’s main scorer at 12.1 factors per recreation and has taken and made essentially the most three-point pictures on the Bison.
It has actually been a group effort for Howard to earn the convention event’s second seed, but when Walker can proceed to shine, Howard has an opportunity. In spite of everything, they’re the one group to beat Norfolk State in convention play this season.
Morgan Callahan, North Carolina Central
The Chicago native has been the spark for a shock Eagle squad that completed the common season 15-14 and 9-5 within the MEAC, adequate for the third seed. Callahan leads Central in scoring (13.7 factors per recreation), rebounding (8.8), and positioned second in steals (42) and blocked pictures (20) and third in assists (45).
If Callahan is at her greatest, Central might make issues troublesome for any group they play on this event.
Laila Lawrence, Coppin State
Eagles North misplaced final season’s main scorer Jewel Watkins to the switch portal however didn’t lose any manufacturing due to Lawrence, who leads Coppin in scoring (14.1 ppg), rebounds (10.6), steals (51) and blocks (34).
Lawrence and fellow junior Religion Blackstone make for a terrific dynamic duo that might pressure Norfolk State to work a bit within the convention semifinals ought to they get previous Maryland-Jap Shore.
Arianna Seawell, Maryland-Jap Shore
Talking of the Preventing Hawks, head coach Fred Batchelor has put collectively a group so gifted and unselfish that their main scorer has not began a single recreation this season.
If such a prize existed, ahead Arianna Seawell could be the runaway winner of the MEAC’s sixth girl of the yr award, averaging 11 factors and 6 rebounds a recreation to guide the Hawks in these classes in 29 video games off the bench. Lawrence vs. Seawell shall be a really intriguing matchup to kick off Thursday’s video games, so if you may get to the Scope at midday, we extremely recommend you make it occur.
