| Crosstown Rivals Clash in Cameron | |
NC Central - Monday 12/28 @ 7 PM - Cameron Indoor Stadium
Last Year: 10-17
Current Record: 1-9
Significant Losses: The Eagles lost their one Div-I level star in post player
Jori Nwachukwu, who averaged 18.5 ppg and 7 rpg. Also gone is lead guard
LaVonna Hailey, who scored 5 ppg and dished out 4 apg.
Who's Coming Back:The two most significant returning players are wing Chasidy
Williams, who averaged 12 ppg and 5 rpg; and shooter Blaire Houston, who put up
9 ppg, 2.5 apg and 2.5 rpg to go with 29% shooting from three. Also returning
are guard Danielle DeBerry, who scored 5 ppg; 5-9 post LaToya Bennett, who
averaged 4 ppg and 6 rpg; and guard Shanise Blanks, who scored 2 ppg.
The Skinny: Central continues to struggle as they transition to Division I
basketball, with a grueling schedule that served to toughen up the squad last
year. Indeed, after starting last season 0-9, they won 10 of their last 18
games. The Eagles just played 6 road games in a row, finally triumphing over
Duke victim Houston Baptist. The good news for Central is the spectacular play
of frosh guard Joanna Miller, a former Califorinia All-State player who is
averaging 18 ppg, 5 rpg, 3 apg and 2 spg. Thrust into the role of primary
scorer and distributor, she's also averaging a staggering 7 turnovers a game.
Duke will obviously attack her dribble and force her to make quick decisions,
which will also serve to get the ball out of her hands. Bennett has stepped up
to score 9 ppg and 6 rpg, while DeBerry and Blanks are averaging 8 and 7 ppg,
respectively. Contrary to her name, Blanks is shooting a sizzling 42% from
long range. The tallest regular on the team is only 6-1, which means Duke will
try to post up on them and lob over them as much as possible. The Eagles do
average 10 spg, so Duke will need to be careful with the ball. Otherwise, Duke
should stick to its normal habits: press (since NCCU averages 26 turnovers a
game), pound it inside, get offensive rebounds and hound the shooters.
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- Miller going off and getting
to the foul line.
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