North Carolina isn’t just ACC country.
Charlotte received tons of on-court excitement earlier this month due to NBA All-Star festivities, but basketball madness persists as the Division II Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) hosts its conference tournament in the North Carolina sports mecca.
On Wednesday night during the 2019 CIAA Women’s Quarterfinal at Bojangles Coliseum, Virginia Union sophomore Shareka McNeill tied the CIAA Women’s Basketball Tournament scoring record with 59 points in the 38 minutes she played. Her 59 points outscored the entire Livingstone College team, who finished with a team total of 57. 59 points is also a record shared only with then-CIAA-school, North Carolina Central’s, Cassie King in 2005.
McNeil's Record Night Leads Lady Panthers past Livingstone https://t.co/9gsV64ROfA
— CIAA (@CIAAForLife) February 28, 2019
In the 91-57 Virginia Union victory, McNeill shot 19-of-29 from the field: 14-of-20 from three-point range. Along with her historic scoring, she contributed on the defensive end, recording four steals.
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The Panthers were dominant in every single statistic in the box score, despite no other Virginia Union player reaching double digits. VU shot nearly 46 percent from the field team-wide and 47.1 percent from range.
Livingstone simply could not find an answer for McNeill, who began the game with dominance; she had 22 points with 2:45 left in the first quarter.
This is no isolated incident: McNeill is averaging 23 points per game this season.
It was not until the fourth quarter that Livingstone outscored Virginia Union. The delayed spark that came in the form of a 19-10 Livingstone advantage was too delayed to change the outcome of the game. Virginia Union will now advance to the semifinal round of the conference tournament.
The Panthers will take their talents to the Spectrum Arena on Friday at 1 pm ET. VU will face the winner of the Johnson C. Smith vs. Lincoln contest.
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