Complete Game Notes

Game 22
Howard (11-10, 6-3 MEAC) at South Carolina State (6-15, 1-8 MEAC)

Date: Monday, February 8
Place: Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center, Orangeburg, S.C.
Series: Howard leads 33-20

The Game
Howard enters Monday's contest with an 11-10 (6-3 MEAC) mark. HU defeated Winston-Salem State, 55-44 in a non-conference matchup on Feb. 6 while South Carolina State (6-15, 1-8 MEAC) was downed by Hampton, 67-47 in its last time out on Saturday.

Junior Zykia Brown had a season-high 30 points the win over the Lady Rams. Freshman Cheyenne Curley-Payne added 12 points while Brown led the team in rebounds with nine. Portia Deterville pulled down eight rebounds on the defensive end.

Whitney Wiley (23 points) and Sophilia Hipps (11 points) paced South Carolina State in the loss to the Lady Pirates.

Scouting South Carolina State
South Carolina State is 6-15 (1-8 MEAC) with its lone conference win over Norfolk State. Whitney Wiley is averaging 14.5 points per game while Sophilia Hipps (13.6 ppg), Paris Alston (8.0 ppg) and Joi Walker (7.8 ppg) round out the scoring for the Lady Bulldogs. Alston is tops on the team with 6.0 rebounds per game.

South Carolina State is coached by Doug Robertson, who is in his 2^nd season at SCSU. He has a 59-55 record in four years as a head coach.

Last Time Out
Howard rallied from a 22-point deficit and Zykia Brown had a season-high 30 points as the Bison defeated Winston-Salem State (WSSU), 55-44 Saturday afternoon at the C.E. Gaines Center.

The Bison completed its biggest comeback of the season without the services of Saadia Doyle, Howard's leading rebounder and second-leading scorer.

Howard trailed by double-digits early in the contest behind poor shooting and foul trouble, which led to a 31-12 deficit at the half. The Bison shot 17% in the stanza (5-of-29) and committed 10 fouls, while WSSU made 9-of-18 field goals and converted 8-of-12 from the charity stripe.

The Rams opened the second half with a three ball by Talnesha Kee's and the WSSU advantage ballooned to 22 with 18:55 remaining.

Howard, however, slowly climbed back in it behind strong defense and 43% shooting in the second period. The Bison forced 17 second half turnovers and limited Winston-Salem State to five field goals, and the offense got going when Brown exploded for 25 of her 30 points after the intermission. 

Brown led all scorers with a game-high 30 points to go along with nine rebounds while shooting 60% from the field (9-of-15) and 80% (4-of-5) from 3-point range.

Freshman Sensation
Freshman Saadia Doyle (5-11, F) has posted double-doubles in 13 of 20 games this season, a feat that puts her sixth in the NCAA rankings at press time. The Atlanta, Ga. native is averaging 16.6 points and 11.2 rebounds per outing and was named the MEAC Rookie of the Week five times this season. A warrior on the boards, Doyle's 11.2 rebounds per game total ranks seventh highest in the NCAA. Her 22 rebounds vs. Coppin State is the sixth highest total in the NCAA this season. Doyle also ranks top-60 in the nation in field goal percentage (49.6 FG %, 54^th) and top-100 in points per game (16.6 ppg, 82^nd). NCAA Stats updated thru Feb. 4.

Twin Towers
Freshmen Nicole Deterville (6-1, F/C) and Portia Deterville (6-1, F/C) are the first set of twins to play under the Coach G era. Nicole and Portia join teammate Amanda Edwards (6-0, F) from Toronto, Canada and are mainstays in the Bison frontcourt. 

Weekly Honors
Zykia Brown was named the MEAC Player of the Week on Dec. 14 after posting 23 points and nine rebounds against George Mason. Saadia Doyle was named the MEAC Rookie of the Week five times this season (Dec. 17, Dec. 21, Dec. 30, Jan. 25 and Feb. 1).

Brown Nets 1,000 Points
Zykia Brown joined the 1,000 club in the Bison's win over Norfolk State on Jan. 18. She was the 16^th player in women's basketball history to accomplish that feat.

Curley-Payne Heats Up
Freshman guard Cheyenne Curley-Payne has been getting quality minutes backing up starting point guard Jalisa Pullins. The California native averages 3.4 points, 2.8 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game. She leads the team in assists per game and ranks eighth in the MEAC in the same category. The freshman also ranks 12^th in the league in steals per game.

Current Streaks
Overall: Won 3
Home: Lost 1
Away: Won 4

On Deck
The Lady Bison host North Carolina A&T on Saturday, Feb. 13. Game time against the Lady Aggies is slated for 2 p.m. at Burr Gymnasium.