shaw sweeps season series against vsu
Lady Bears Conclude Regular Season with Four Game Winning
Streak
February 19, 2008 – Raleigh, NC – The Shaw University Lady Bears hosted their “Senior Night” shootout against the Virginia State University Lady Trojans. Shaw led the Lady Trojans by as many as 11 points and bucketed 30 bench points to win the second game of round two against VSU, 49 – 45. The Lady Bears record now stands at 18 – 11 Overall, 15 – 3 CIAA, and 6 – 2 Division.
After a “smoke filled” opening and introduction, the Lady Bears hit the hardwood to take possession of the tip-off. However, the Lady Trojans tallied the first points to the scoreboard after sophomore guard #23 Dominique Dunn sunk her first shot from the sideline. Shaw’s eighth year Head Coach Jacques Curtis took his first thirty second timeout at the 13:52 mark after VSU made two free-throws to possess a 5 – 0 lead. After Shaw misfired on their first eight straight attempts, it was not until the 12:59 mark that the Lady Bears got their first score after #33 Celanese “Sharp Shooter” Bozeman (Guard / 5 – 9 / Junior / Hampton, VA tickled the twine from behind the arc. Shaw sliced their point deficit to two, 9 – 7 VSU, after #25 Jamie “Guru” Goshen (Guard / 6 – 0 / Senior / Chesapeake, VA) made a three-pointer and one of two free throws. For the first time of the game, the contest was tied at 13 – 13 with a fast break lay-up by #2 Jessica “The Answer” Davis (Guard / 5 – 5 / Junior / Cleveland, OH) and then she dished a no look pass to #50 Tavia “The Enforcer” Clemendor (Forward / 6 – 0 / Senior / Danville, VA) for the score. The second tie, 16 – 16, occurred after #21 NaKeisha “Hoop Queen” Anthony (Guard / Forward / 5 – 10 / Senior / Charlotte, NC) made her first basket with a little less than five minutes remaining. Shaw loosened the noose when #15 Tammy “Playmaker” Lanier (Guard / 5 – 6 / Freshman / Atlanta, GA) made a three-pointer and then #20 Ari “Miss Clutch” Cureton (Guard / 5 – 8 / Senior / Harrisburg, PA) deposited her second made basket to cap an 8 – 2 scoring run. Shaw led 24 – 18 with just sixty seconds left on the game clock. The Lady Bears led 24 – 21 at the intermission.
Shaw sped out of the locker room to advance their point margin advantage to nine, 33 – 24, with a 9 – 3 scoring run. VSU voyaged to be back within five, 35 – 30 Shaw, with a couple of lay-ups by junior guard #3 Katania Walker. Yet, Shaw struck their opponents with a 6 – 0 scoring run to grasp a double digit lead, 41 – 30. Once again, the Lady Trojans made their presence known with plentiful post production and critical conversions from the charity stripe. Inside the two minutes mark, Shaw’s levitated large lead was grounded to as slim as three points, 45 – 43. Shaw paused for a full timeout with 46.4 seconds on the game clock leading 47 – 45. Then, VSU’s third Head Coach James Hill, Jr. requested a full timeout with 15 seconds remaining in the contest. Shaw’s #11 Shana “Showtime” Andrus (Guard / 6 – 0 / Freshman / Akron, OH) scooped up a steal caused by #32 Jasmine “Hollywood” Riviera (Forward / 5 – 9 / Senior / Jacksonville, NC) and seal the success with two made free throws.
Leading the Lady Bears in scoring was #11 Shana Andrus with 10 points (six rebounds /three steals / one block). Providing scoring was #2 Jessica Davis, #15 Tammy Lanier, #21 NaKeisha Anthony, and #33 Celanese Bozeman all with six points each. In addition, Anthony was crowned Shaw’s “Rebounding Queen” as she took possession of a game high eight offensive rebounds and three defensive rebounds for a team high 11 rebounds.
The Shaw University Lady Bears will prepare for competition in the 33rd Annual CIAA Women’s Basketball Tournament held on February 25th through March 1st in Charlotte, NC.
