NORFOLK, Va. | The Florida A&M University women's basketball team trailed by as many as 19 in the second half, but the Lady Rattlers' fourth-quarter comeback came up just a bit short in a 59-51 loss to Norfolk State on Monday afternoon in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) game at Joseph G. Echols Memorial Hall.
Florida A&M (4-15 overall, 2-6 MEAC) fell behind 17-8 after one quarter and 27-18 at the break. Norfolk State (12-7, 6-0) outscored FAMU, 20-11, in the third period before holding off the late rally attempt.
Corey Staples paced FAMU with 15 points, on 6-of-11 shooting, with four rebounds, two assists and one block. Alaina Rice registered 11 points, four boards, one block and one assist, while Shalaunda Burney-Robinson pulled down a game-high 13 boards, along with six points and one assist.
La'Deja James led Norfolk State with 15 points, five steals, four assists and four rebounds, while Chanette Hicks came off the bench to provide 12 points, four boards, three steals and two assists. Mikaela Jones chipped in 10 points, seven rebounds, a team-high four blocked shots and one steal.
How It Happened
Florida A&M held a slim, 5-2, lead after a Corey Staples 3-pointer with 8:30 remaining in the opening period, but Norfolk State used a 12-0 run over the next three minutes to take a 14-5 advantage after a bucket by Armani Franklin with 5:45 left.
A Staples triple cut the margin to 14-8 with 56 seconds left, but La'Deja James answered with a trey with 20 seconds left to send the Spartans into the second period with a 17-8 lead.
Neither team could get much going offensively in the second quarter as Norfolk State took a 27-18 advantage into the break.
A free throw by Shalaunda Burney-Robinson trimmed the deficit to 29-22 with 7:39 remaining, but Norfolk State responded with a 11-4 run to grab a 40-26 advantage after a bucket by Chanette Hicks with 3:02 left.
The Spartans extended the lead to 47-28 after a Danyael Goodhoope layup with 1:05 remaining and the Lady Rattlers cut the margin to 47-28 after a free throw by Asia Royster right before the end of the period.
Florida A&M got a 3-pointer by Alaina Rice with 4:35 left to cut the margin to 53-42, but Norfolk State proved to be too much down the stretch in picking up the home victory.
Inside the Numbers
> Florida A&M shot 33.3 percent (19-of-57) from the floor and 75.0 percent (6-of-8) from the charity stripe
> Norfolk State was 24-of-57 (42.1 percent) from the field and 8-of-13 (61.5percent) from the foul line
> FAMU registered 39 rebounds, with 27 coming on the defensive end
> NSU pulled down 34 rebounds, including 26 on the defensive glass
> The Lady Rattlers finished with 23 points off 23 NSU turnovers, 18 points in the paint, 17 second-chance points, 16 bench points and two fastbreak points
> The Spartans recorded 38 points in the paint, 27 points off 29 FAMU turnovers, 22 bench points, 18 fastbreak points and seven second-chance points
Up Next
Florida A&M returns to action with three straight home games, beginning on Saturday against rival Bethune-Cookman. Tip-off against the Wildcats is set for 2 p.m. from the Al Lawson Center.
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