NORFOLK, Va. (WTKR) — Whether they were hitting big shots or coming up with crucial stops, Norfolk State freshmen Da'Brya Clark and Anjanae Richardson showing they're capable of doing anything on the basketball court.
Except feeling the first year jitters.
"It's been real crazy, it's been surreal," Richardson said.
The duo have become key contributors for a Spartan team that repeated as MEAC Women's Basketball Tournament champions last Saturday and will head to Stanford on Friday for their first game of the 2024 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament.
Richardson, a Manor High School product, has suited up for 31 games this year with four starts. The Manor native is third on the team in scoring average at 7.1 points per game and is playing 18.6 minutes per night.
Clark has played in all 32 games this season, starting 12 of them, while averaging 6.7 points per game and 3.3 rebounds a contest.
"Just to do this in my first season has been amazing," Clark said. "I can be here, I can do this."
Neither were excluded from the growing pains most freshmen feel.
"The first week on campus, Lord knows I was drained," Clark said. "I was tired, I was ready to turn around, go home, give it all up. But I'm glad I stayed with it."
"Nothing's given, you have to earn every bit of playing time you get," Richardson said. "So I just work every time, every practice, every rep and just work for what I can get."
As time moved forward, the offseason workouts and training sessions paid off quickly.
"Our very first game of the season against William & Mary, I feel like I may have played the most minutes in that game," Clark remembered. The guard played 33 minutes in the comeback win over the Tribe.
"Second game versus Drexel, I had the game-winner," Richardson said. "Or the last game at home we played against Howard, I feel like I just played calm, stayed poised. I wasn't really in my head too much, I was just out there hooping."
When there have been tough moments, the two have been able to lean on each other.
"She's literally in the dorm next to me," Richardson said. "If I ever need to talk to her or she needs to talk to me, we know that we have each others back."
Now after a quick rise into key rotation pieces for the Spartans, Clark and Richardson step into one of college basketball's biggest spotlights when they play the Cardinal on the road Friday night at 10:00 p.m.
"If you told me at the beginning of the year we're going to go play at Stanford, I would never have believed you," Richardson said.
With so much experience under their belt already, the freshmen duo are ready to show the nation they're well prepared to handle that kind of pressure.
"We're confident, there's not doubt in our minds," Clark said. "We're just ready for the next stage."
