Women's Basketball 2/21/2015 7:19:00 PM

Lady Tigers Earn 9th Conference Win; Kalu Hits 2,000

Box Score

SAVANNAH, Ga. – The Savannah State women's basketball team rolled to their 9^th Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) in Tiger Arena on Saturday with a 70-59 rout of Howard.

SSU has now won 10 of their last 12 games, and are on a season long, four-game winning streak.

MEAC Preseason Player of the Year Ezinne Kalu scored her 2,000 career point as a Lady Tiger. Among active players in NCAA Division I women's basketball, Kalu leads all players in career steals (355), and is third in career scoring (2,004).

Kalu is the first basketball player in Savannah State's Division I history (since 2002-03) to reach 2,000 career points.

On the court Saturday, SSU was led by three starters and a key bench player. Senior Jasmine Norman led the field with 17 points. Norman – a true sixth women in SSU's offense this season – now has 920 career points as a Lady Tiger.

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Behind Norman, sophomore Kenyata Hendrix went 5-for-13 from the field for 13 points. Senior Bria Dorsey tacked on 10 of her own in the win, and led the field in steals with five.

With the win, Savannah State improves to 14-10 on the season and 9-3 in the MEAC. They are in second place in the conference standings. SSU trails 10-2 Hampton, who they beat 61-55 in Tiger Arena on Jan. 24.

In Tiger Arena since the beginning of the 2013-14 season, the Lady Tigers are now 18-5. This season they improve to 8-3 in the Tiger Den.

Howard's Jasmine Hill opened the scoring on Saturday with a 3-pointer in the first minute. Kalu responded with a 5-0 run to give SSU an advantage they would not relinquish for the remaining 35 minutes.

With 14:57 to play, SSU opened a 9-0 run behind a layup from Tiyonda Davis. Norman closed out the run with a fast break layup off a steal. Davis finished the night with 8 points and 7 rebounds.

As a team, SSU leads the MEAC in steals, averaging 12.1 a game. Nationally, the Lady Tigers are ranked fourth in steals per game.

The Lady Bison hung in there however, and several minutes after SSU's big run opened a 9-0 run of their own behind another 3-pointer from Hill. The big run cut SSU's lead to 22-20 with 6:52 to play.

Hill led Howard on the night with 13 points, going 2-for-3 from downtown and 4-for-12 from the field.

SSU again pushed away from Howard with a 6-2 run that was capped by two good free-throws from Kalu; her 1,998^th and 1,999^th career points.

Howard continued to battle in the waning minutes of the opening half. With 1:19 to play, Sydni Johnson hit a 3-pointer to cut SSU's lead to 33-30. However, Davis and freshman Jada Young put in points in the final minute to send SSU to the locker room with a 37-32 lead.

The Lady Tigers are now 11-2 on the season when leading at the half.

Savannah State came out firing in the second period, opening with a 10-0 run for their largest lead of the game, 47-32, in the first 3 ½ minutes.

The Lady Bison again responded with a 6-0 run that cut SSU's lead to back under double-digits. With 15:36 to play, SSU led 47-38.

At the 14:25 mark of the second period, Kalu once again made her mark on the history books at Savannah State, scoring her 2,000 and 2,001 career points on a fast break layup off a steal; a trademark play for the redshirt senior.

Howard was unable to keep up with SSU down the stretch as the Lady Tigers continued to drill home the points from all directions. The Lady Tigers have the No.1 scoring offense in the MEAC, averaging 63.5 points a game.

Savannah State wraps up a three-game home stand with a visit from Florida A&M on Monday. The Lady Tigers hit the road next weekend to play S.C. State, before hosting N.C. Central and then finishing the regular season at FAMU on March 5.

The 2015 MEAC Championship is scheduled for March 9-14 in Norfolk, Va. Tickets and more information are available at www.meacsports.com

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Players Mentioned

#1 Bria Dorsey: G; 5' 7"; Senior

#2 Kenyata Hendrix: G; 5' 10"; Sophomore

#4 Jasmine Norman: G; 5' 9"; Senior

#12 Jada Young: F; 5' 10"; Freshman

#23 Ezinne Kalu: G; 5' 8"; Senior

#44 Tiyonda Davis: C; 6' 2"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#1 Bria Dorsey
: 5' 7"; Senior
: G

#2 Kenyata Hendrix
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: G

#4 Jasmine Norman
: 5' 9"; Senior
: G

#12 Jada Young
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: F

#23 Ezinne Kalu
: 5' 8"; Senior
: G

#44 Tiyonda Davis
: 6' 2"; Sophomore
: C