January 21, 2013

Written by Ariel V. Germain, Assistant Sports Information Director 

Game Notes: Howard at North Carolina Central

Live Stats (NCCU) / Video

2012-13 Information Guide

DURHAM, N.C. (www.howard-bison.com) – January 20 – The Howard University women's basketball team goes for its third consecutive Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference victory with a Monday, Jan. 21 matchup against the Lady Eagles of North Carolina Central University in Durham, N.C., at the McDougald-McLendon Gymnasium at 5:30 p.m. 

For the fourth MEAC win, HU defeated the Lady Aggies of North Carolina A&T State University on Saturday, Jan. 19 in Greensboro, N.C. 

Senior Saadia Doyle finished the contest with her sixth double-double with 19 points and 13 rebounds, while Nicole Deterville tallied a season-best nine points.  Senior Kara Smith finished eight points, as Cheyenne Curley-Payne and sophomore Cheyenne Brown gathered four points apiece.  Curley-Payne also notched a team-best five assists.

Statistically, the mighty blue and white shot 31 percent from the field, 11 percent from behind the arc and 61 percent from the charity stripe.

On the season, Howard is 9-7, 5-1 at home, 3-5 on the road and 4-1 in the MEAC. 

Lady Bison Bites

• Niki Reid Geckeler is in her fourth season as head coach

• Finished second in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference

• Saadia Doyle is fifth in the country in scoring with 22.6 points per game

• Cheyenne Curley-Payne is 25-out-of-50 in country in assists with 5.7per game

• Saadia Doyle has been named MEAC Player of the Week three times this season

• This is the first and only regular-season meeting between Howard and North Carolina Central

• Howard has defeated MEAC foes Delaware State (54-40), Coppin State (67-54), Norfolk State (56-45), and N.C. A&T (44-42)

• The Lady Bison take on the Lady Eagles after defeating NCAT on Saturday, Jan. 19

• Nicole Deterville tallied a season-best nine points

• Saadia Doyle finished with her sixth double-double with 19 points and 13 rebounds, while Kara Smith tallied eight points

• On the season, the Lady Bison average 55.2 points per game, 35 percent from the field, 29 percent from the long range, and 65 percent from the free-throw line 

Probable Starters

No.	Name	Ht.	Yr.	Pos.	MPG	PPG
5	Cheyenne Curley-Payne	5-8	Sr.	G	36.2	7.8
10	Jerrelle Gorham	5-8	R-Jr.	G	29.1	5.4
13	Saadia Doyle	5-10	Sr.	G	34.8	22.6
32	Nicole Deterville	6-0	Sr.	F	23.4	2.2
44	Kara Smith	6-0	Sr.	F	33.7	10.1

Primary Reserves

No.	Name	Ht.	Yr.	Pos.	MPG	PPG
24	Imani Bailey	5-9	Fr.	G	15.5	3.5
34	Portia Deterville	6-0	Sr.	F	9.5	0.3
22	Victoria Gonzalez	6-0	Fr.	F	10.6	2.8

Scouting North Carolina Central

• Vanessa Taylor is in her first season at North Carolina Central University

• The Lady Eagles are members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference

• NCCU is currently 0-16 overall, 0-3 in the MEAC, 0-3 at home, and 0-13 on the road

• The Eagles fell to Bethune-Cookman 55-32 on Monday, Jan. 14 in Daytona Beach, Fla.

• Tenika Neely scored a team-high nine points, while Aja Hoyle and Amber Neely tallied six points apiece

• NCCU shot 30 percent from the field, 17 percent from the three-point range and 50 percent from the free-throw line

• The Lady Eagles average 37 ppg., while going 27 percent from the field, 25 percent from three-point range and 62 percent from the free-throw line

Seeing Double

Lady Bison standout begun her double-double performances, on the season Doyle has:

• 21 points and 10 rebounds (DePaul)

• 12 points and 11 rebounds (Northwestern)

• 24 points and 10 rebounds (Delaware State)

• 25 points and 10 rebounds (Pepperdine)

• 26 points and 15 rebounds (Coppin State)

• 19 points and 13 rebounds (North Carolina A&T) 

Consecutive Honors for Doyle

Saadia Doyle was name Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Preseason Player of the Year for the second consecutive season.  The honor was announced on Thursday, Nov. 1.

What Have You Heard about the Herd

Along with Doyle's accolades, the Lady Bison were predicted to finish first in the MEAC this 2012-13 season. 

Major News

Among 340 mid-major Division I institutions in the country, the Lady Bison ranked 12th above Richmond (Atlantic 10), Harvard (Ivy) and Central Michigan (Mid-American) on the preseason list.

For more information on Lady Bison Basketball or for up-to-date scores and statistics, visit the official website of Howard Athletics at www.howard-bison.com.

-HU-