NORFOLK, Va., — Norfolk State redshirt senior Chanette Hicks was named Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Player of the Year, the conference office announced Friday. Alaina Rice of Florida A&M was named Rookie of the Year, while Hicks also earned Defensive Player of the Year honors. Morgan State head coach Ed Davis was named Coach of the Year.
All awards were voted on by the league’s head coaches and sports information directors.
Hicks is among the nation’s best on both sides of the ball this season, ranking second in steals per game (a MEAC-best 4.8 per game) and 13th in scoring (20.1 points per game). Her 219 made field goals are the sixth-most among Div. I players, and Hicks has been key in the Spartans going 12-4 in league play this season and earning the tournament’s No. 2 seed. She ranks eighth in the MEAC in field goal percentage (.466), and she also leads the MEAC with 4.9 assists per contest. In conference play, Hicks averaged 18.2 points, 4.5 assists and 4.5 steals per game, and she had 16 20-point games – including three 30-point efforts and one triple-double (20 points, 14 assists, 11 steals against Virginia University of Lynchburg).
Hicks is the first women’s basketball player in MEAC history to win Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season.
Rice averaged 10.3 points per game for the Lady Rattlers, to go along with 2.4 assists per contest. She was one of the best 3-point shooters in the league, ranking eighth at 32.1 percent. The two-time MEAC Rookie of the Week dropped a season-high 22 points at Howard on Jan. 25, and she had 17 double-digit scoring efforts on the season. She grabbed a season-high 11 rebounds at South Carolina State, five steals against Coppin State and she hit five 3-pointers against Maryland Eastern Shore.
Davis led the Lady Bears to a 12-4 MEAC record this season, which included wins over Norfolk State and North Carolina A&T State and was good enough for the No. 3 seed in the MEAC Basketball Tournament – this, after Morgan State was picked to finish seventh in the preseason, predicted order of finish. Overall, the Lady Bears come into the tournament with a 16-13 record, and they are one of five MEAC programs that had a winning record in the regular season. In non-conference play, Morgan State defeated the likes of Marshall and Texas State.
Joining Hicks on the 2020 All-MEAC First Team are Bethune-Cookman’s Amaya Scott, Coppin State’s Chance Graham, Morgan State’s Chelsea Mitchell, and North Carolina Central’s Paulina Afriyie.
The 2019-20 regular-season co-champions, All-MEAC First Team members and honorees – such as Player, Rookie, Defensive Player and Coach of the Year – will be recognized in pre-game presentations prior to their first games of the 2020 MEAC Basketball Tournament (March 10-14 in Scope Arena in Norfolk, Va.).
Voted on by the league’s head coaches and sports information directorsPlayer of the Year: Chanette Hicks, Norfolk State
Rookie of the Year: Alaina Rice, Florida A&M
Defensive Player of the Year: Chanette Hicks, Norfolk State
Coach of the Year: Ed Davis, Morgan State
| Name | Pos. | Ht. | Class | School | Hometown |
| Amaya Scott | F | 6-1 | Jr. | Bethune-Cookman | Sunrise, Fla. |
| Chance Graham | F | 6-1 | Sr. | Coppin State | Upper Marlboro, Md. |
| Chelsea Mitchell | G | 5-9 | Sr. | Morgan State | Columbia, Md. |
| Chanette Hicks | G | 5-6 | r-Sr. | Norfolk State | Norfolk, Va. |
| Paulina Afriyie | F | 5-11 | Sr. | N.C. Central | Bronx, N.Y. |
SECOND TEAM
| Name | Pos. | Ht. | Class | School | Hometown |
| Ashanti Hunt | G | 5-11 | Gr. | Bethune-Cookman | Washington, D.C. |
| Ayonna Williams | G | 5-4 | Sr. | Howard | Washington, D.C. |
| La’Deja James | G | 5-8 | r-Sr. | Norfolk State | Virginia Beach, Va. |
| Cinia McCray | G | 5-9 | Sr. | N.C. A&T State | Broadview, Ill. |
| Kieche White | G | 5-4 | Jr. | N.C. Central | Washington, D.C. |
THIRD TEAM
| Name | Pos. | Ht. | Class | School | Hometown |
| Daniella Hatcher | G | 5-8 | r-Jr. | Bethune-Cookman | Orlando, Fla. |
| Sharajah Collins | G/F | 5-7 | Jr. | Delaware State | Winter Haven, Fla. |
| Jayla Thornton | G | 5-9 | Jr. | Howard | Newark, N.J. |
| Dahnye Redd | F | 5-11 | r-Jr. | Morgan State | Darby, Pa. |
| Deja Winters | F | 5-11 | Jr. | N.C. A&T State | Cleveland, Ohio |
ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
Name Pos. Ht. Class School Hometown
| Tatum Hayes | G | 5-7 | Fr. | Bethune-Cookman | Fort Myers, Fla. |
| Alexandria Hamilton | G | 5-7 | Fr. | Coppin State | Columbus, Ohio |
| Alaina Rice | G/F | 5-9 | Fr. | Florida A&M | Rockledge, Fla. |
| Anissa Rivera | F | 6-1 | Fr. | N.C. Central | Capitol Heights, Md. |
| Jayah Hicks | G | 5-11 | Fr. | South Carolina State | Wayne, Mich. |
Courtesy: MEAC
