LORMAN &045; With memories so warm to recall, Shirley Walker finds it easy to think back to the 1999-2000 Alcorn team that posted a 22-9 record and made it to the NCAA Tournament.

What is so vivid about that successful season was the ownership a group of juniors, including current Lady Braves assistant Cherea Wood, accepted in order to get Alcorn a Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament championship and qualified for the round of 64.

After Saturday’s impressive 68-56 win over Mississippi Valley State, the efforts of junior forward Candace Roberts are not going unnoticed by Walker.

&uot;We said it was a time for the juniors to step up because that’s what led us to the Big Dance a couple of years ago,&uot; Walker said. &uot;(Roberts) sees where we’re coming from and she’s started to show that leadership.&uot;

Roberts scored a game-high 18 points and her 11 rebounds were tops along with teammate Natasha Dennis.

It was the 6-0, Utica native’s first double-double since she posted career highs in both categories against Houston Baptist earlier this month.

Saturday marked her fourth double-double of the season.

True freshman Rasaan Powell, who had one of her best game of her young career, knew finding playing time behind two extremely polished posts, such as Roberts and another junior Tnonealyer Powers would be difficult.

&uot;I expected to play somewhat because I’ve been working so hard in practice. But they’re extremely good posts,&uot; said Powell, who earned all-district honors in basketball and softball while at Columbia High. &uot;They’ve taught me to be patient and not to worry about the referees.&uot;

The win pushed the Lady Braves two games past .500 in SWAC play and into a tie for fourth place with Grambling, which lost to Texas Southern on Saturday.

Lump the performances of Roberts, Powell and Powers together on Saturday and the trio accounted for 36 points and 21 of their team’s 44 rebounds.

&uot;I thought they really attacked the post well,&uot; said Valley head coach Nathaniel Kilbert, a former Alcorn assistant. &uot;They were real aggressive in rebounding the ball. They killed us on the boards.&uot;

&uot;I think when the game got close we didn’t play tough enough. We had an opportunity to take a lead and we couldn’t do the job. You can’t miss opportunities like that on the road, especially here.

Walker could not have asked for a better start from her squad as the Lady Braves built a 12-2 lead in the first four minutes, were perfect on two trips to the foul line and took great care with the ball.

However, after beginning 1 of 4 from the field, Valley buried its next three shots, including a trey, to pull within five, 14-9, with 14:03 left in the opening half.

Despite finishing the first, 3 of 10 from beyond the 3-point arc, the Devilettes made the most of their opportunities with their second make bringing them within a deuce, 16-14, with 11:51 left.

Robin Williams began working Shirley Gooch over on the low block, backing here in toward the goal to keep Valley’s deficit to a bucket. Two more consecutive trips where Williams flexed her muscle on Gooch was enough for Walker, who reinserted Powers.

Won 61-55 in Itta Bena back Jan. 17. snapped a four-game losing streak last time out with a 52-48 victory over Alabama A&M