MONTGOMERY, Ala. | The Alabama State Lady Hornets are carrying a load of momentum heading into the first home weekend of SWAC action Saturday and Monday against Mississippi Valley State and UAPB, respectively.
 
Alabama State (4-9, 1-1 SWAC) comes in after a big win in conference play last Monday night at Grambling, trouncing the Tigers by 14 points. A pair of sophomores – Ayana Emmanuel and Tyesha Rudolph – led the Lady Hornets in both contests last weekend, combining to score 81 of Alabama State's points over the weekend.
 
#What2Watch4
Emmanuel nearly set a new career-high with a season-high 27 points - she scored 30 in the SWAC opener against Grambling last season. On the weekend, she posted 52 points with nine rebounds, six assists and two steals.
 
Rudolph has caught fire recently, setting season-highs for points in each of the last three contests – including a couple of career-high point totals in the last two games. Saturday in Jackson she scored 12 points thanks to a 10-point outbreak in the second quarter alone, then proceeded to shatter that with 17 points in the victory Monday night.
 
#LadyHornetLeaders
Emmanuel leads the team in three major statistical categories: scoring 11.9 points per game, shooting 36 percent (18-for-50) from behind the arc and converting 82.2 percent (37-for-45) of her free throw attempts. The team is led in rebounding by freshman Aniyah Smith, who has grabbed 60 this season and averages six rebounds per game. Courtney Lee is the team's top facilitator, averaging 3.5 assists per game.
 
Entering the weekend, Alabama State ranked 10th nationally with 16.5 offensive rebounds per game while leading the league in both free throws made and free throw attempts.


#DowningTheDevilettes
The Devilettes of Mississippi Valley State have been on the wrong side of several single-digit losses, leading to a 1-11 record (0-1 SWAC) this season. MVSU knocked of Florida A&M in a one-point thriller earlier this season, but have lost five of its 11 games by less than 10 points.
 
Ayonna Cotten leads the team averaging 12.6 points per game and 2.6 assists per game, while shooting 44.8 percent from behind the arc and 85.2 percent from the free throw line. The team's top rebounder is Diamond Wraggs at 6.0 per game.
 
#TamingtheLions
Arkansas Pine-Bluff (2-9, 1-0 SWAC) opened its SWAC season on the right foot, downing Mississippi Valley in both teams' conference opener last Saturday. The Lady Lions scored 38 points off turnovers on their way to a three-point win over the Devilettes.
 
UAPB started the season 0-9 before winning its last two contests, mostly thanks to production from top-scorers Kyeonia Harris (10.3 ppg) and Jayla Atmore (9.9 ppg). Freshman Nissa Sam-Grant leads the squad with 5.1 rebounds per game, while Harris paces the team with 35 assists and 25 steals.
 
#Season/CourtsideTix
Season tickets are still available for Alabama State basketball by calling 334-229-4551 or by visiting BamaStateSports.com. There are also still a limited number of courtside seats available for all home games, and for more information contact Deputy Director of Athletics Terrance Jones at tjones@alasu.edu. 
 
#STATEofMind
For complete coverage of Alabama State University women's basketball, follow the Hornets on social media at @BamaStateWBB (Twitter), @BamaStateSports (Instagram) and /BamaStateSports (Facebook) and visit the official home of Alabama State athletics at www.BamaStateSports.com.