The women’s bracket starts the MEAC basketball tournament Wednesday at noon, with regular-season champion Norfolk State taking on No. 8 seed South Carolina State. The Spartans have an incredibly talented roster that will be tough to beat, but there are several players that observers should take note of this week.
Kierra Wheeler, Norfolk State
Prince is not the only great person to come out of Minneapolis, Minnesota, as Wheeler’s Green and Gold Rain dampened the victory hopes of many Norfolk State opponents.
A favorite for conference player of the year, she’s averaging 17.5 points and 9.8 rebounds per contest, leads the team in blocks (34), and is third in steals (45). Pairing with NC State transfer Diamond Johnson is the closest thing to a Dream Team that HBCU basketball has to offer, and if Wheeler’s on her game, Norfolk State will be very tough to beat.
Tyana Walker, Howard
The Bison suffered a major blow when preseason player of the year Destiny Howell was lost for the season with an ACL injury, but first-year guard Tyana Walker has filled in admirably for coach Ty Grace’s Bison.
Walker is Howard’s leading scorer at 12.1 points per game and has taken and made the most three-point shots on the Bison.
It has truly been a team effort for Howard to earn the conference tournament’s second seed, but if Walker can continue to shine, Howard has a chance. After all, they are the only team to beat Norfolk State in conference play this season.
Morgan Callahan, North Carolina Central
The Chicago native has been the spark for a surprise Eagle squad that finished the regular season 15-14 and 9-5 in the MEAC, good enough for the third seed. Callahan leads Central in scoring (13.7 points per game), rebounding (8.8), and placed second in steals (42) and blocked shots (20) and third in assists (45).
If Callahan is at her best, Central could make things difficult for any team they play in this tournament.
Laila Lawrence, Coppin State
Eagles North lost last season’s leading scorer Jewel Watkins to the transfer portal but did not lose any production thanks to Lawrence, who leads Coppin in scoring (14.1 ppg), rebounds (10.6), steals (51) and blocks (34).
Lawrence and fellow junior Faith Blackstone make for a terrific dynamic duo that could force Norfolk State to work a bit in the conference semifinals should they get past Maryland-Eastern Shore.
Arianna Seawell, Maryland-Eastern Shore
Speaking of the Fighting Hawks, head coach Fred Batchelor has put together a team so talented and unselfish that their leading scorer has not started a single game this season.
If such a prize existed, forward Arianna Seawell would be the runaway winner of the MEAC’s sixth woman of the year award, averaging 11 points and six rebounds a game to lead the Hawks in those categories in 29 games off the bench. Lawrence vs. Seawell will be a very intriguing matchup to kick off Thursday’s games, so if you can get to the Scope at noon, we highly suggest you make it happen.
