SALISBURY, N.C. --- Catawba College received a game-high 20 points and seven assists from Lyrik Thorne in a 73-63 victory over Tusculum University Saturday afternoon in South Atlantic Conference women's basketball from Goodman Gymnasium.
The Indians (24-4, 16-2 SAC), the top team in the latest NCAA Division II Southeast Region rankings, won their ninth straight game and improved to 14-0 at home by building a 19-point lead against the Pioneers (20-8, 11-7 SAC), who would rally within seven in the fourth quarter before Catawba went on a 10-0 run to regain control.
Three players recorded double-doubles for the Pioneers, with Jami Tham collecting 18 points and 11 rebounds to set the SAC single-season record with 25 double-doubles. Tham had shared the record of 24 with Kayla Marosites of Carson-Newman, which she set during the 2019-20 season. Mya Belton had 15 points and 10 rebounds and Deidre Cheremond added 10 points and 17 boards off the bench. Tusculum last had three players with double-doubles in a game on Nov. 25, 2014 when Rainey Story, Kristen McMillion and Brianna Mitchell did so at Brevard.
Tusculum shot just 17.2 percent (5-for-29) from the field in the opening half but got hot in the second half, hitting 51.4 percent (18-for-35) including 5-for-10 from three-point range. The Pioneers had a 45-42 advantage in rebounds over the Indians, but committed 19 turnovers which led to 21 points for the Indians, who are ranked 20th in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association Division II poll and 13th in the D2SIDA national poll.
Janiya Downs had 19 points and eight rebounds along with three steals for Catawba, with Sara McIntosh also reaching double figures with 14 points and seven rebounds. The Indians shot 38.6 percent (27-for-70) from the field and went 11-for-16 from the foul line, all in the second half.
Tusculum had five turnovers in the first 4 1/2 minutes but trailed just 6-4 following a jumper by Tham with 5:12 left in the opening quarter. Catawba finished the quarter with a 9-0 run over the final 3 1/2 minutes as the Pioneers missed their last eight shots from the field. McIntosh had back-to-back baskets to kick off the run, which was capped by a three-pointer from Mercedes Wampler with 46 seconds to go as Catawba led 17-6 after one period.
The Pioneers were able to keep the deficit between nine and 11 points as Alyssa Walker and Blayre Shultz hit back-to-back shots and Cheremond sank two free throws which left Catawba ahead 23-14 with 5:39 left in the half. Two foul shots from Shultz would bring Tusculum within 23-16 with 5:06 to go, but Catawba would end the half with a 14-3 run on three-pointers from Thorne, Downs and Wampler. Tusculum missed its final 10 shots of the half and had five turnovers as the Indians went to intermission with a 37-19 lead.
Thorne led all players with 12 points in the first half and McIntosh added 10 on 5-for-8 shooting for the Indians, who hit 39.0 percent (16-for-41) from the field and 5-for-16 from long range. Shultz had a team-high seven points in the first half for the Pioneers while Cheremond had 10 rebounds to go along with four points. Tusculum went 9-for-11 from the foul line in the first half to offset its shooting woes, but turned the ball over 13 times.
After missing their first 11 three-point attempts, Belton hit three in a row in the first four minutes of the third quarter to bring the Pioneers within 43-30 with 6:18 to go. Catawba would go back up 55-37 on a basket by Janiya Foskey with 1:51 remaining, but a three-pointer from Sophie Henry and a layup by Cheremond in the final 90 seconds would leave Tusculum trailing 55-42 heading to the fourth.
Tusculum scored the first six points of the fourth quarter, with a basket by Cheremond cutting the Catawba lead to 55-48 with 8:23 to play. However, the Pioneers would miss their next six shots and consecutive three-pointers from Jada Porter, Thorne and Downs would increase the Catawba lead to 68-50 with 4:05 left. Tham would score six points in the final two minutes and Henry banked home a 35-footer at the buzzer to set the final score.
Shultz joined Tham, Belton and Cheremond in double figures for the Pioneers with 10 points along with three assists and two steals. Henry finished with six points and five assists for Tusculum while playing all 40 minutes. Wampler collected eight points and six rebounds for Catawba, while Foskey had six points in eight minutes off the bench for the Indians.
Tusculum, the second-place finisher in the SAC Mountain Division, will host Lenoir-Rhyne in the SAC Championship quarterfinals on Wednesday, March 1 at 5:30 p.m. at Pioneer Arena. The Bears (21-7, 11-7 SAC), who were third in the SAC Piedmont Division, lost 80-77 at UVA Wise on Saturday for their second straight loss and fifth in the last eight games heading into the postseason. Lenoir-Rhyne beat Tusculum 73-66 at Pioneer Arena on Feb. 11 in the only regular-season meeting between the teams.
