ATLANTA (May 15) - Alisha Andrews, an All-CAA point guard and two-time pick to the CAA All-Defensive Team at UNCW, will transfer to Georgia State as announced by head coach Sharon Baldwin-Tener. Per NCAA rules, Andrews will sit out this 2012-13 season and will have two years of eligibility remaining when she joins GSU's active roster when it begins as a member of the Sun Belt Conference in 2013-14.
Andrews has ranked in the Top 50 in the nation in both assists and steals in each of her two seasons at UNCW. The 5-foot-2 speedster led UNCW in scoring (11.9), assists (4.8) and steals (2.7) this past season. She was named to the All-CAA second team and picked for a second time to the CAA All-Defensive Team. Andrews had been the CAA Rookie-of-the-Year and an All-Defensive Team pick.
A proven winner, Andrews was a key part of UNCW teams that set a school-record with 24 wins in her freshman year and followed with a 20-win season this year. The Seahawks earned WNIT post-season bids both seasons.
In her first two seasons, Andrews has scored 751 points (11.4 career average), aided by her 132 three-point baskets made (two per game at a 34.1% rate) and her 75.3% shooting at the free throw line. A deft passer, she has 324 assists (4.9 per game). Quick on defense, Andrews has made 186 steals (2.8 per game) and even grabbed 208 rebounds (3.2 per game) from her point guard position.
"Being able to bring in a player of Alisha's caliber will be a great addition to our program and give her a chance to finish her career in her hometown," commented head coach Baldwin-Tener. "Alisha is a tenacious competitor with a proven winning track record in both college and high school. With the ball in her hands and her aggressive style of play, she will make the whole team around her better players."
Andrews has produced seven games of 20 or more points, nine games with four or more three-point baskets, nine games with five or more steals, eight games with eight or more assists and seven games with six or more rebounds. She's had three double-double games of points and assists. Andrews scored in double figures in 40 games with the Seahawks.
An Atlanta native, Andrews was an All-State first team pick and the DeKalb County Player-of-the-Year at Redan High School. She was a catalyst in the Raiders' 58-game winning streak during her final two seasons that ended with a loss in the state championship game in her final game. Stone Mountain and Andrews had earned the state championship her junior season. The 1,000-point scorer had been tabbed the second-best point guard in the state of Georgia by ESPN.com.
As a freshman at UNCW, Andrews finished No. 20 in the NCAA in steals, No. 28 in three-point shooting percentage and No. 39 in assists. As a sophomore, she was No. 42 in assists and No. 45 in steals.
Andrews will become the sixth newest addition to the Georgia State class. Previously signing were a trio of junior college standouts and a pair of high school seniors. Six-foot-two Maryam Dogo was No. 2 in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) in rebounding and No. 5 in scoring, guard Kesheria McNeil was the No. 10 scorer in NJCAA basketball and guard Kayla Dayton was in the Top 15 in the NJCAA in three-point field goals made and in percentage. Six-foot Morgan Jackson was a second-team All-State pick at East Hall High in Gainesville, while guard Gaby Moss was a top scorer and three-point shooter in metro Washington, D.C. at T.C. Williams High.
