Riverdale Baptist Grad Aids Bowie State Team

A pattern has developed in the basketball career of Brianna Taylor, an Upper Marlboro native and senior guard at Division II Bowie State University. After two years of high school at Archbishop Carroll, she transferred to Riverdale Baptist and played two years there.

Then she headed to college at Cheyney State University in Pennsylvania. "I think she wanted to get away," said Donna Polk, the Bowie State head coach.

She was there for two seasons before heading to Bowie State. Taylor, now in her second season with the Bulldogs, said she transferred to Bowie State to play for a winner. And she has been able to do that this season, as the Bulldogs improved to 16-8 overall with a 68-55 win at home Feb. 16 against the University of the District of Columbia.

A senior guard, Taylor had 10 points, three rebounds and one assist in 20 minutes off the bench in that game. Bowie State lost, 53-40, at Virginia State on Saturday as Taylor had eight points in 29 minutes as the Bulldogs fell to 16-9 overall and 11-6 in league play.

In the first 25 games, she made six starts and was averaging 15.6 minutes, 6.0 points and 2.0 rebounds per contest.

Bowie State is slated to host Virginia Union tonight. It is Senior Night for Taylor, Brittney Jackson, Tiana Lewis, Teaunsha Robinson and Brittne Gowdy. Taylor is the only senior in that group who did not play four years at the school, Polk said.

After losing four in a row in January, the Bulldogs won nine of their next 10 games. "We came together as a team and played team ball," said Taylor, standing in the lobby of the A.C. Jordan Arena after the win over UDC. "We started to jell as a team."

What has made the difference after the losing streak? "It is a mindset and not taking things for granted. We did not do the little things, like boxing out. We have to have our mindsets right and peaking going into the last two weeks," said Polk, the former girls coach at Bowie High.

Taylor said she began playing basketball in a youth program at Ft. Meade when she was about 7 or 8. She also looked into the college program at Stony Brook before heading to Cheyney.

Last year at Bowie State she played in 23 games (16 starts) and averaged 14.6 minutes and 4.7 points per contest.

"She comes in and give us a park off the bench," Polk said. "She is a slasher. That style of basketball has helped us. She has definitely helped us out."

Bowie State will take part in the CIAA tournament, which begins Feb. 28 in Charlotte.

Bryan Wilson plays for the men's team at Bowie State and he also played at Riverdale Baptist, and is also from Upper Marlboro.