Games Notes

LIVE STATS

PRESS CONFERENCE

DURHAM, N.C. -- The No. 15 seed Hampton University women's basketball team (20-11, 12-4 MEAC) will return to action on Saturday, when they face the No. 2 seed Duke Blue Devils (27-5, 12-2 ACC) at 2:30 p.m. at Cameron Indoor Stadium in the first round of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament.

Melanie Warner scored a game-high 17 points and grabbed a career-high 16 rebounds, while Quanneisha Perry added a double-double of her own with 15 points and 12 rebounds to lead Hampton to a 57-46 win over South Carolina State in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) championship game at the Joel Coliseum on Saturday. The Blue Devils claimed their first ACC Tournament title under head coach Joanne P. McCallie, beating sixth-seeded N.C. State 70-60.

The Lady Pirates are 0-3 all-time against Duke. The last meeting was Dec. 28, 2003, when Duke won 90-59 in Los Angeles, Calif. Duke also beat the Lady Pirates on Nov. 28, 2002 (71-34) and on Dec. 8, 1992 (83-47).

The Lady Pirates have won 14 out of the last 15 games, beating their opponents by an average of 21 points per game. Duke has won 9 of its last ten games.

The Blue Devils are the 2010 ACC Regular Season and Tournament Champions. Coming into this game with a 27-7 record and are the No. 2 seed in the Memphis Region. McCallie, the ACC Coach of the Year, is in her third season as head coach of the Blue Devils. The team is lead by First Team ALL-ACC junior Jasmine Thomas and Third Team ALL-ACC senior Joy Cheek.

 
Thomas, who is from Fairfax, Va., is a John R. Wooden Award, Naismith and State Farm Wade Trophy National Player of the Year candidate. Thomas is averaging 15.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.8 steals. 

Cheek, a native of Charlotte, NC, is averaging 10.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.1 
assists. This year, Cheek has scored in double figures 14 times and is one of 10 finalists for the Lowe's Senior Class Award. She was just named to the WBCA's So You Want to Be a Coach Program class of 2010. 

The Blue Devils are averaging 71.6 points per game and only allowing their opponent 55.1 points per contest. Duke is shooting 42 percent from the floor and 31 percent from 3-point range. They are averaging 43.3 rebounds a game, while their opponents are only grabbing 34.5 rebounds a contest. The Blue Devils average 14.3 assist per game; however, they are committing 17.9 turnovers per contest.

The game will be televised on ESPN2, with Beth Mowins and Stephanie Ready handling the call on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. For more information on Hampton University women's basketball, please call Derrick Coles, Assistant Sports Information Director, at (757) 727-5906, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.