NORFOLK, Va. – Norfolk State women's basketball turns back the clock more than two decades on Tuesday, when it welcomes former CIAA rival St. Augustine's to Joseph Echols Hall at 6 p.m. The Spartans (4-6) hope to put a 30-point road loss to High Point behind them in their second-to-last home date of the calendar year.
 
The Opening Tip
High Point shot 51.6 percent from the floor and 57.9 percent from the 3-point arc en route to an 83-51 victory over Norfolk State on Saturday afternoon. The Panthers made 11 of their 15 shots in the first quarter, including five 3-pointers, giving themselves enough cushion to hold off the comeback-minded Spartans.
 
The Panthers became the first team to shot 50 percent or better from the floor against NSU since Coppin State made 58.5 percent of its shots in a 78-54 win over the Spartans in the MEAC Tournament on March 7, 2016.
 
Raven Russell paced the Spartans in scoring with a season-high 17. The senior made five of her 10 shot attempts and was 6-of-7 at the foul line. Khadedra Croker netted a season-best 13 points and grabbed six rebounds. The Suffolk, Virginia native also made an impact on the defensive end of the floor, where she blocked three shots and became just the sixth Spartan to record 100 or more rejections in her NSU career.
 
High Point came out of the blocks hot, opening the game on a 12-2 run. The Panthers made each of their first five shots and did not miss from the floor until the 4:47 mark of the quarter. Both sides shot a combined 7-for-11 (63.6 percent) from beyond the arc in the first quarter. The Panthers made five of their six treys in the period.
 
Norfolk State out-scored High Point 17-10 in the second quarter and closed out the half on a 7-0 run to trim the deficit to single digits at the intermission. The Spartans entered the break shooting 41.7 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from downtown. HPU shot 56.3 percent in the half and made seven of its 10 attempts from deep.
 
The Spartans gave the Panthers their best shot in the third quarter, cutting the deficit to five points late in the period before the Panthers rallied to restore their nine-point advantage. Norfolk State buoyed its struggling offense in the third quarter with a heavy dose of free throws, going to the line 12 times in the quarter and making eight foul shots. Russell and Croker both turned in 3-for-4 performances at the charity stripe in the quarter.
 
Leading by nine to start the fourth quarter, High Point built a 20-point advantage within the first five minutes of the period. NSU scored just two points in the final five-plus minutes of the contest and the Panthers ended the game on an 8-0 run.
 
Sizing up St. Augustine's
Tuesday's game at Echols Hall marks the end of a stretch of four road games in six days for the Lady Falcons. SAU entered Monday with a 2-6 record but plays Chowan on Monday night. So far, St. Augustine's is winless on the road, going 0-4 away from home.
 
Head coach Montel Jones is in his first year at the helm of the program after spending the previous two seasons as the lead assistant coach of the men's program.
 
Angela Caraballo is SAU's leading scorer (11.3 points per game) and is the only Lady Falcon averaging double-digits on the season. The junior guard is a potent threat from 3-point range, shooting 44.8 percent (13-for-29) from deep this year, and averages more than one steal per contest.
 
All-Time Series vs. St. Augustine's
One-time CIAA rivals meet for the 27th time on Tuesday, and the Spartans are 20-6 all-time against their former conference mates.
 
The two sides first met on Feb. 15, 1975. The upstart Spartans won that game, 50-43, to cap a perfect 7-0 run through the CIAA in their first season as a program.
 
NSU currently owns an 11-game winning streak against the Lady Falcons, dating back to the 1991-92 season. The sides have met just once since the Spartans made the jump to Division I for the 1997-98 season. Norfolk State downed the Lady Falcons 99-59 at Echols Hall on Nov. 15, 2016.
 
NSU made half of its shots in that game while holding SAU to 29.7 percent from the floor. Six Spartans registered double-digit points, led by 18 from Kiara Phillips.
 
Three NSU players logged double-doubles against the Lady Falcons. Jordan Strode scored 13 points with 10 rebounds, Kayla Roberts chipped in 12 points and 11 boards and Khalilah Ali contributed 11 points and 11 rebounds.
 
NSU vs. the CIAA
A former member of the conference, NSU is 261-73 all-time against current CIAA members.
 
The Spartans won the CIAA's Northern Division seven times, including a stretch of six-straight between 1990 and 1996. During that span, NSU was 106-6 in conference play, a winning percentage of .946.
 
In addition, Norfolk State was a nine-time winner of the CIAA Tournament and finished as runner-up on three occasions.
 
Head coach Larry Vickers is undefeated against Division II competition with wins over CIAA members Lincoln (Pa.) and St. Augustine's. Vickers also defeated Cheyney, 93-40 earlier this season.
 
What's Next?
In NSU's final home nonconference game of the year, the Spartans entertain William & Mary on Friday at 2 p.m.