NEW ORLEANS (February 5, 2025) – Cherie Spencer, a scoring machine for the Northshore High School girls' basketball team, has been selected as the Allstate Sugar Bowl Athlete of the Month for January. Athletes of the month have been selected by the New Orleans Sports Awards Committee since 1957. The athlete must be a native of the greater New Orleans area or must compete for a team in the metropolitan region to be eligible. Spencer is the first Northshore athlete to earn the honor since May of 2009 when baseball player Chad Gough-Fortenberry was recognized.
 
Allstate Sugar Bowl Athletes of the Month
 
Spencer, who has signed to play basketball at North Texas, averaged 34.7 points, 12 rebounds and four assists per game as Northshore posted a 7-2 record in January. The senior capped the month with a sensational performance in a 78-70 victory over Fontainebleau in District 7-5A action. The 5-10 guard scored a career-best 52 points, including 20 in the fourth quarter.
 
"I knew we didn't want to lose this game," said Spencer. "It was very important in district play. I just kept my energy up and kept doing what it takes to get the win. I was hitting my shots here and there, but once the fourth quarter hit, I knew I had to lock in."
 
It was a masterful performance by Spencer, who buried eight 3-pointers and went 18 of 21 from the free throw line. Trailing 61-54 after three quarters, Spencer ignited the Panthers' comeback with back-to-back 3s in the opening minute of the fourth quarter. 
 
"I've never had a player score 52 points nor do I think it will happen again," Northshore coach Michael Gowland said. "It's a rare feat in a high school game. She was phenomenal. She said in the locker room at halftime that we were not losing and she was going to make sure of it. She was true to her word."
 
Spencer scored 32 points in a game against Edna Karr on Jan. 9 to tie the Northshore's all-time scoring record with 2,104 career points. Then on Jan. 10 against Sacred Heart, the 5-10 guard drained a long jumper at the 4:44 mark of the first quarter to become the school's all-time leading scorer. She finished with 28 points in that game, a 55-32 victory. She also had games of 48 points (1/25 against Salmen) and 44 points (1/14 against Fontainebleau) in January.
 
Spencer won the honor over three college basketball stars and an outstanding collegiate swimmer.

• Jamal Gibson averaged 28.1 points and 18.4 rebounds per game and shot 60.6 percent from the field in eight games in January as the SUNO men's basketball team moved into HBCU Athletic Conference play. He scored 41 points against Rust, 37 against Fisk and 33 against the University of the Virgin Islands. In addition to surpassing the 1,000-career point mark during the month, he was named NAIA National Defensive Player of the Week on Jan. 8 and earned five HBCUAC honors during the month (Offensive Player of the Week twice, Defensive Player of the Week three times). In 22 games this season, Gibson is averaging 23.0 points and 16.1 rebounds. He has a double-double in all but one game in his two-year career. Gibson has a unique story – he is 26 years old and did not graduate from high school, but was spotted by a SUNO assistant coach in a local recreation league.
   
• In eight January games, Jerkaila Jordan averaged 20.9 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 2.3 steals per game for the Mississippi State women's basketball team. The John Curtis Christian graduate erupted for a career-best 40 points on 13-of-21 shooting in a battle to SEC rival Missouri on Jan. 27, while also scoring 24 points each against top-10 teams South Carolina (1/5) and Oklahoma (1/9). The graduate student added eight rebounds and two steals in her career effort against Missouri and her 40 points were the most by an SEC player in league play this season. An All-SEC Second Team selection last year, the 5-10 guard is averaging a team best 16.5 points per game as well as 6.0 rebounds (second on the team) and 1.7 assists per game for the season.
   
• For the month of January 2025, James White has been sizzling hot for the UNO men's basketball team. The 6-5, 202 Conyers, Ga., native currently paces the Southland Conference averaging 19.2 points per game and is third in the league in rebounding, pulling down seven boards per outing.  He is fifth in the Southland in field goal percentage, knocking down 42.9% of his shots. For the month of January, the senior finished slightly above his season average, scoring 19.4 points per game. His high-water mark for the month came against Houston Christian (1/25), scoring 29 points, shooting 11 out of 15 from the floor and 6 out of 7 from the charity stripe. His season high was a 31-point effort against Tulane (11/22).
   
• Maya Wilson had a strong month for the Tulane swimming team as she competed in a pair of meets (FIU Sprint Invite – 1/4/25 & vs. Little Rock – 1/25/25). The Burbank, Calif., native set two school records and won a total of six individual events (50 free – FIU Sprint, 100 fly – FIU Sprint, 100 free – FIU Sprint, 200 free – FIU Sprint, 100 Free – Little Rock and 200 Free – Little Rock). Her times against Little Rock (100 free – 48.50) and (200 free – 1:45.56) were both personal bests and new school records. She is currently ranked No. 1 in the conference in the 100 free and the 200 free and helps pace the No. 1 ranked 400 free relay team (3:19.33) and the No. 2 ranked 200 medley relay team (1:40.16). Her 100 free mark is the 43rd fastest in Division I this season. For her outstanding individual efforts, the graduate student was also named the AAC's Swimmer of the Week on Jan. 28 for the second time this season.

The Allstate Sugar Bowl has established itself as one of the premier college football bowl games, having hosted 28 national champions, 107 Hall of Fame players, 52 Hall of Fame coaches and 21 Heisman Trophy winners in its 91-year history. The 92nd Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic, which will double as a College Football Playoff Quarterfinal, is scheduled to be played on January 1, 2026. In addition to football, the Sugar Bowl Committee annually invests over $1 million into the community through the hosting and sponsorship of sporting events, awards, scholarships and clinics. Through these efforts, the organization supports and honors thousands of student-athletes each year, while injecting over $2.5 billion into the local economy in the last decade. For more information, visit www.AllstateSugarBowl.org.