WBB Game Day Central: N.C. Central
2/3/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Complete Game Notes (PDF format)
Live Video Streaming (Big South Network)
Live WWMC Radio Broadcast
Live Stats
Home Game Information
North Carolina Central Women's Basketball Webpage
The Game
Liberty (16-4, 7-1 Big South) will play its final non-conference game of the 2009-10 regular season Thursday at 5 p.m., when the Lady Flames host North Carolina Central (7-13) at the Vines Center. Liberty will attempt to record its 10th consecutive win in its first-ever meeting with the Lady Eagles on the hardwood.
Last Time Out
The Lady Flames broke open a tight game with an 11-2 burst to end the first half, Monday evening at Radford, and went on to wrap up a 4-0 road swing with a 63-45 victory over the Highlanders. Devon Brown led all players in both points (20) and rebounds (11), helping Liberty win for the 27th time in the last 30 meetings with its Commonwealth foe.
On Deck
Liberty will remain at home for a key Big South Conference matchup versus Gardner-Webb, Monday at 7 p.m. The Lady Flames and the Bulldogs are currently tied for first place in the conference standings, with matching 7-1 Big South records.
Lady Flames On The Air
All Lady Flames basketball games may be heard LIVE on WWMC 90.9 FM "The Light." Jamie Hall, in the midst of his 16th year of broadcasting Lady Flames basketball, is once again handling the courtside play-by-play duties for road games. Nick Pierce and Josh Wood serve as the primary commentators for home contests.
Lady Flames On TV
All 15 of Liberty's home women's basketball games will be televised in 2009-10, including 14 on the Flames Sports Network (FSN) and one on SportSouth/MASN. FSN's regular announcing team consists of Ray Jones on play-by-play and Jamie Hall on color.
Scouting North Carolina Central
The North Carolina Central Lady Eagles, in the third year of transition to the NCAA Division I level, enter Thursday's contest having won five of their last seven games. On Saturday, North Carolina Central posted its first road win of the season, defeating Savannah State by a 54-43 score.
The Lady Eagles will play five Big South Conference opponents this year. North Carolina Central is 0-2 versus Big South foes thus far, dropping contests to Gardner-Webb and UNC Asheville. After Thursday, the Lady Eagles' next two games are against Big South squads. N.C. Central will travel to Winthrop Feb. 9 and to Presbyterian Feb. 16.
North Carolina Central's roster lists only one senior--5-10 forward/center Latoya Bennett--and only three players who stand 6-0 or taller. Joanna Miller, a 5-7 freshman guard from Los Angeles, has enjoyed a strong rookie season. She leads the Lady Eagles in both points (18.9 ppg) and steals (2.6 spg). Bennett is the team's second-leading scorer at 9.2 ppg and pulls down a team-high 7.3 rpg.
The Coaching Matchup
Liberty Head Coach Carey Green is in his 11th season with the Lady Flames, and has led his team to nine Big South titles. A five-time Big South Coach of the Year, Green owns a 253-81 career record and is the all-time wins leader at Liberty and among Big South women's basketball coaches. His career winning percentage (.757) ranked ninth all-time among NCAA Division I women's basketball coaches at the season's outset. Green is coaching against North Carolina Central for the first time.
Joli D. Robinson owns a 204-185 record in her 14th season as North Carolina Central's head coach. Robinson was a three-time CIAA Coach of the Year and led the Lady Eagles to four NCAA Tournament appearances when her team played at the NCAA Division II level. The winningest coach in program history, Robinson has never coached against Liberty.
Liberty-North Carolina Central Series Notes
Liberty is meeting North Carolina Central for the first time. The Lady Eagles' are the third and final new opponent on the Lady Flames' 2009-10 schedule. Earlier this season, Liberty was victorious in its first-ever meetings with Tulane and Lafayette.
Taking on the Tar Heel State
The Lady Flames' game against North Carolina Central will mark their seventh contest versus a Tar Heel State opponent this season. Liberty is 5-1 versus North Carolina squads thus far, posting wins over Winston-Salem State, UNC Greensboro, North Carolina A&T, UNC Asheville and High Point. Gardner-Webb is the only North Carolina team which has defeated the Lady Flames in 2009-10.
After Thursday, Liberty has three more Tar Heel State tilts remaining on the schedule, including its second matchups of the year against Gardner-Webb (Feb. 8), UNC Asheville (Feb. 27) and High Point (March 8).
Liberty will also play the 2010 Big South Women's Basketball Championship in North Carolina, with High Point hosting the event for the second straight season.
Liberty Versus Non-Conference Opposition
Liberty is 9-3 against non-conference opponents this season, boosting its all-time non-conference ledger to 275-296. The Lady Flames have won 16 of their last 19 non-Big South tilts at the Vines Center.
Liberty's best-ever season against non-conference foes came in 1997-98, when the Lady Flames went 14-1 outside the Big South. Liberty's lone non-conference setback that season came to eventual national champion Tennessee in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Fabulous in February
Liberty has won 92 of its last 97 games played during the month of February, dating back to the 1997 Big South Championship. The only teams to defeat the Lady Flames in February since then are High Point (three times), UNC Asheville and Winthrop.
The Lady Flames own a 173-121 all-time mark during the year's second month, including a 73-5 record under Carey Green. Liberty, which went 6-0 in February a season ago and is 1-0 this February, has seven scheduled this month.
A Whole Lot of Winning Streaks
The Lady Flames have won a season-high nine consecutive games, which marks their second winning streak of at least five games so far this season.
Liberty has now enjoyed 18 winning streaks of at least five games during Carey Green's 11 seasons as head coach.
Among the Nation's Best
Through games played on Tuesday, Liberty's nine-game winning streak is tied for the eighth-longest active winning streak in the nation. Other teams with nine consecutive wins include East Tennessee State, Eastern Illinois, Fresno State, Gonzaga and Iona.
Connecticut owns the nation's longest current winning streak, which now stands at 61 games.
Keys to Success
Liberty has won its last nine games, by an average of 23.2 points per contest. Here are a few notable statistics from the winning streak.
-- The Lady Flames have won the rebounding battle in all nine games, by an average of 19.2 boards per game.
-- Devon Brown has scored in double figures in all nine games of the streak.
-- Avery Warley has boosted her production to 11.2 ppg and 8.9 rpg during the winning streak.
-- Liberty has been able to win both at home (5-0) and on the road (4-0).
-- The Lady Flames have been strong in the second half, outscoring their last nine opponents by an average margin of 36.4 to 23.6.
Here's Another Streak
Liberty has outrebounded 10 straight opponents by at least 10 rebounds, a streak which started Jan. 2 at Gardner-Webb. During the span, the Lady Flames are winning the rebounding battle by an average of 19.2 boards per contest, 43.0 to 23.8.
20-Game Checkpoint
With Liberty's victory at Radford on Monday, the Lady Flames' record stands at 16-4 through the season's first 20 contests. That matches the fourth-best start in program history, as the 1996-97 Liberty squad also won 16 of its first 20 games.
The 1997-98 Lady Flames started out 20-0, while the 2007-08 team was 18-2 through 20 games and the 2002-03 squad opened the year at 17-3.
Bravo to Brown
Devon Brown won the Big South Player of the Week award on Tuesday, for the second time this season. She averaged 24.5 ppg and 11.0 rpg during the Lady Flames' road wins at High Point and Radford.
Brown is the only conference player to capture a pair of Big South Player of the Week awards so far in 2009-10. It also marked the fourth consecutive week a Liberty player has received a conference award. Jelena Antic captured back-to-back Big South Freshman of the Week plaudits on Jan. 12 and 19, while Avery Warley was recognized as Big South Player of the Week on Jan. 26.
20/20 Vision
Devon Brown (29 points) and Avery Warley (26 points) both set new career highs for points during Saturday's 75-62 victory at High Point. In the process, the duo became the first pair of Lady Flames to score 20 points in the same game since Megan Frazee had 22 points and sister Moriah Frazee added 20 in a 76-57 triumph over High Point on Jan. 29, 2008.
Brown and Warley's 55 combined points are the most by a Liberty duo in the same game since Nov. 25, 1997. That day, Elena Kisseleva (35 points) and Sharon Wilkerson (33 points) teamed up to score 68 points in an 85-77 home win over Campbell.
First-Half Defense
Points have come at a premium for Liberty's opponents during the first half this season. The Lady Flames limited Radford to 15 first-half markers on Monday, the seventh time Liberty has held its opponent under 20 points in the opening period. The Lady Flames have gone on to win all seven contests.
Only three of Liberty's first 20 opponents have managed to score 30 points during the opening 20 minutes of play. The Lady Flames are yielding an average of just 23.4 points in the first half of games in 2009-10.
No Triples? No Problem
Liberty did not make any three-pointers during Monday's game at Radford, shooting 0-3 from behind the arc. It was the seventh time this season that the Lady Flames have connected on either zero or one triples in a contest. Liberty is 6-1 in those games, despite its lack of three-point shooting.
Turning Up the Heat in the Furnace
The 2009-10 campaign is the 18th season the Liberty women's basketball team has called the Vines Center its full-time home. The "Furnace" has served as a favorable venue for the Lady Flames over the years. Liberty is 196-52 (.790) all-time at the Vines Center, including 10-2 last season.
The Lady Flames are 8-1 to start this year's 15-game home schedule and are 104-10 in their last 114 home games, dating back to the 2001-02 season.
A Tale of Two Halves
Liberty has regularly stepped up its level of play during the second half this season. The Lady Flames are outscoring opponents by an average score of 36.7-25.3 during the final 20 minutes of play, thus far this season.
Liberty is shooting .514 from the field after halftime, while limiting opponents to a .316 second-half field goal percentage.
