BIRMINGHAM, Ala. &045; Candace Roberts and her Alcorn teammates thought their trip on cloud nine after beating Jackson State on Feb. 7 was a non-stop flight back to Lorman.

However, the Lady Braves forgot they had a layover in Grambling, La., two nights later. Alcorn’s friendly skies experience made an emergency landing thanks to 33 turnovers during a 77-51 loss to the Lady Tigers.

The Lady Braves (13-14) will try to put that loss and the 74-72 defeat they suffered against Grambling (12-14) in Lorman on Jan. 12 aside as the two teams open the 2004 Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament at 10 a.m. today.

&uot;We had just beaten Jackson State, the top team at the time, and we were (high) from that win,&uot; said Roberts, who scored 12 points, but also had five turnovers in the loss last month. &uot;I don’t think we were thinking about Grambling. We just caught a bad L. Yet we’re still here to prove to everybody who said we couldn’t do it wrong.&uot;

While the Lady Tigers swept the season series with Alcorn, the Lady Braves come in to the Fair Park Arena as the No. 4 seed to Grambling’s fifth, after finishing with a better SWAC regular season record.

Lady Tiger senior guard Scherwanda Boston, a first-team All-SWAC selection Tuesday, averaged 20 points in the two wins against Alcorn this season.

Boston has drawn enough bouquets from Lady Braves head coach Shirley Walker to make Jessica Simpson blush. Walker believes Boston is the consummate leader.

&uot;(Boston) did everything for herself and her team to win,&uot; Walker said. &uot;I’d love to have someone like her on my floor because she’s a winner. She carries the weight on her shoulders.&uot;

While Boston commands plenty of attention from defenders, Roberts said keying on an individual is not how the Lady Braves suffocate opponents.

Alcorn is 8-1 this season when holding opponents to less than 40 percent shooting from the field. The Lady Tigers, guided by head coach David Ponton, have hit better than 37 percent of their shots during the 2003-04 season.

&uot;I do know meeting Grambling is going to be tough to take,&uot; said Walker, who is concerned with the early tipoff time. &uot;They’re always in the top of the bracket in our conference. They always have talent. I hope my team can meet the challenges. This is the postseason, and we’re not ready to put the uniforms in the mothballs.&uot;

Walker has won six SWAC Tournament championships in her 26-year reign at Alcorn. A seventh would be heaven and only increase the aura around the &uot;First Lady of SWAC.&uot;

However, while not pessimistic of her team’s chances, she worries about the Lady Braves’ decision-making at times.

&uot;They’ve shown a lot of inexperience when meeting different teams,&uot; Walker said. &uot;But they have gotten better at knowing what to do. But they are new to this. We’re very excited, but I’m trying to make them understand that this is a job they’ve got to do.&uot;

Point guard LaToya Johnson, an All-SWAC second teamer, is the only Lady Brave averaging double-digit points per game (13.5).

Coaches beat a dead horse about the difficulty teams have in beating one opponent three times a season. Walker is not one of the coaches.

She believes it’s her responsibility to prepare her team, and her team shoulders responsibility to show up &045; no matter how early &045; with sound body, mind and soul.

&uot;(The Lady Tigers) have beaten us twice, and I hope they don’t think they’re going to keep doing it because I’m not going to let that happen,&uot; Roberts said.