Jan. 7, 2008

Complete Release in PDF Format

North Carolina Central University travels to Norfolk, Va. to play the Spartans of Norfolk State University on Monday, Jan. 7 at 7 p.m. ... This will be the Eagles' 18th road game of the season... NCCU will play in its 11th state this season (North Carolina, New Jersey, Florida, North Dakota, Maryland, Iowa, Ohio, Kentucky, Nebraska, Michigan, Virginia) when the Eagles face the Spartans on Monday... Like NCCU, Norfolk State was once a member of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) before transitioning to Division I... The Spartans are now members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), the same conference NCCU has submitted an application to for membership... This will be NCCU head coach Henry Dickerson's 250th game as a college head coach.

THE SERIES: This will be the 33rd meeting between the Eagles of North Carolina Central University and the Spartans of Norfolk State University. Norfolk State leads the series 25-7. NCCU won the last meeting 76-74 on Feb. 22, 1997, in Durham, N.C. The two teams have not played since NSU left the CIAA. NCCU's last win over the Spartans in Norfolk, Va. was on Dec. 1, 1993.

GAME COVERAGE: Listen to the NCCU vs. NSU game on WRJD 1410 AM or on-line at NCCUEaglePride.com. Chris Hooks and Danny Worthy will call the live action.

UP NEXT: NCCU will play the Wolfpack of North Carolina State University on Wednesday, Jan. 9 in Raleigh, N.C. ... This will be the Eagles' 19th road game of the season... This will be the Eagles' third meeting against an ACC opponent during the school's first campaign in Division I.

THE EAGLES' COACH: Henry Dickerson (Morris Harvey, 1973) is in his fourth season as head coach at North Carolina Central and enters the contest with a 40-64 record at NCCU and a 112-137 career record. Dickerson arrived at N.C. Central in 2004-05 after a five-year stint as head coach at Tennessee-Chattanooga, where he was 72-73 and won two Southern Conference divisional titles from 1997-2002. He also served as associate head coach at Chattanooga from 1989-97, and held assistant coaching positions at Marshall from 1983-89 and Charleston from 1979-83.

EAGLES POSSESS 20/20 VISION: On Saturday (Jan. 5) against East Carolina University, two Eagles scored 20 points or more in a game for the first time since the end of the 2004-05 season. Against ECU, senior forward Charles Futrell scored a game-high 23 points, while junior guard J'Mell Walters added 20 points in the 79-62 setback. The last time that occurred for the Eagles, Jonathan Moore tallied 25 points and Curtis Knight had 20 points versus Johnson C. Smith University during the CIAA Tournament inside the RBC Center in Raleigh, N.C. on March 3, 2005.

OPENING TIP STREAK ENDS, ANOTHER BEGINS: NCCU had controlled the opening tip in five consecutive games, but the streak ended on Dec. 30 against Concord University. NCCU 6-6 senior forward Charles Futrell had won jump balls against UNC Wilmington, Western Kentucky, Creighton, Nebraska and Houston Baptist. Futrell won the opening tap at Western Michigan on Wednesday (Jan. 2) and then again at East Carolina on Saturday (Jan. 5) ... has another streak started?

AYALA FOR THREE... THE STREAK CONTINUES: NCCU junior guard Bryan Ayala has made a three-point field goal in all but one contest this season (at North Dakota State, Nov. 17), including 16 games in-a-row. The streak nearly ended on Dec. 30 when Ayala, who was suffering from a stomach virus, played only 17 minutes and his only field goal was a three-pointer with less than a minute remaining against Concord University. He is currently shooting 29-of-99 from long range, a 29.3 percent success rate.