Howard Bison (22-7, 12-1 MEAC) at Norfolk State Spartans (16-12, 11-2 MEAC)
Norfolk, Virginia; Thursday, 5:30 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Howard plays Norfolk State after Zennia Thomas scored 22 points in Howard’s 84-65 win over the Morgan State Lady Bears.
The Spartans are 9-2 on their home court. Norfolk State is 3-8 against opponents with a winning record.
The Bison are 12-1 in conference matchups. Howard is second in the MEAC giving up 61.4 points while holding opponents to 38.7% shooting.
Norfolk State is shooting 37.5% from the field this season, 1.2 percentage points lower than the 38.7% Howard allows to opponents. Howard averages 8.5 more points per game (67.0) than Norfolk State gives up to opponents (58.5).
The teams play for the second time in conference play this season. Howard won the last meeting 68-59 on Jan. 31. Zoe Stewart scored 14 points to help lead the Bison to the victory.
TOP PERFORMERS: Da’Brya Clark is averaging 14.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.6 steals for the Spartans. Niyah Gaston is averaging 1.5 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
Ariella Henigan is averaging 8.3 points and 1.8 steals for the Bison. Thomas is averaging 15.8 points over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Spartans: 9-1, averaging 71.8 points, 39.7 rebounds, 14.6 assists, 12.9 steals and 4.9 blocks per game while shooting 39.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 50.6 points per game.
Bison: 10-0, averaging 71.6 points, 36.2 rebounds, 13.2 assists, 10.5 steals and 3.9 blocks per game while shooting 42.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 58.0 points.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.