Iyanna Warren propels Bison to Fourth Straight Title Game Appearance

 The Howard University Women's Basketball team advanced to a fourth consecutive MEAC title game with a 69 - 56 victory over the North Carolina Central Eagles in MEAC tournament semifinals. 

   Howard women's basketball player Iyanna Warren (2) dribbling at the 2024 MEAC tournament. Photo Credit: Jalisa Fulwood, Howard Athletics

By Ray Rogers

Norfolk, VA- Iyanna Warren scored 21 points 6 rebounds and 3 assists to lead Howard to a 69 - 56 victory over North Carolina Central (NCCU) Friday at the Norfolk Scope Arena. 

The storyline entering Friday’s contest was NCCU earning a sweep of the season series in tightly contested games both of which were decided in OT. The Bison sought to make the regular season a distant memory early and it was Senior guard Kaiya Creek who set the tone.

Creek connected on a three-pointer to begin the game followed by a North Carolina Central turnover as the Bison looked poised and eager to get another shot at the defending conference champ Norfolk State. The early advantage was short-lived as NCCU battled back to knot the game at 5 with seven minutes to play in the opening quarter. NCCU led by 3 before an 8-0 run led to a 13-8 Bison lead late in the first. Howard extended that advantage by a point to close the first quarter leading 21-15.

The Bison, who are known for playing strong defense, appeared confident in limiting NCCU, who shot 30.8% from the field in the first quarter. 

 

The second quarter featured an eerily similar theme as NCCU sought to climb back into the contest Kaiya Creek knocked down a crucial three-pointer to give Howard a 25 - 17 lead with 7:25 remaining in the quarter. NCCU had a whopping 16 turnovers in the first half which was the difference.

Howard led 34 - 27 at the half. 

Deuce on the Loose

The action started slowly in the second half as NCCU again sought to claw their way back into the game in light of stifling defensive pressure by the Bison.  

Tensions seemed to boil over when NCCU committed a hard foul on Iyanna Warren with 5:29 left in the third quarter that appeared to spark with Bison. The spark was led by Warren, known by her teammates as “Deuce”. Deuce hit a jumper that preceded a 6-0 run for Howard which gave the Bison an 11-point edge with 2:25 left in the quarter. 

Warren scored 10 second-half points and drew an astounding 12 fouls on the Eagles leading 11 free throw attempts. Warren finished 9/11 from the charity stripe equaling NCCU as a team.

The Bison overall were 26/37 on free throws with the huge disparity playing a key role in the outcome. Howard head coach Ty Grace credited her team for playing aggressive which starts with her point guard.

“That’s what we talked about. We talked about getting downhill and getting them into foul trouble. She just happens to be the best at it” referring to Warren. Coach Grace knows that level of aggression will be essential in defeating Norfolk State whom they split the regular season which was the only conference loss for the Spartans.

The MEAC Tournament  Women’s Championship game tips off Saturday at 4 pm EST.