GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- After closing out a three-game home-stand, the Tusculum University men's basketball team will be on the road for four of its next five contests beginning with a pair of South Atlantic Conference road trips this week.

Tusculum (12-6, 12-4 SAC) will open the week with Wednesday's rematch against arch-rival Carson-Newman University beginning at 7:30 p.m. from historic Holt Fieldhouse in Jefferson City. TU will follow with Saturday's rematch with Newberry College starting at 4 p.m. from Eleazer Arena.

The Pioneers enter this week as the third-leading team in scoring defense allowing just 70.7 points per game. The only two better defensive squads are this week's foes including Carson-Newman (66.4 ppg) and Newberry (68.1 ppg).

The Pioneers, who are listed ninth in the latest D2SIDA Southeast Region Media Poll, will be looking to bounce back after Saturday's 65-62 home loss to Lenoir-Rhyne University. The Black & Orange held a nine-point lead in the second half and were up by seven with eight minutes remaining in regulation. L-R connected on the go-ahead three-pointer with 2.8 seconds remaining to avenge an earlier 20-point loss to the Pioneers.

Tusculum has sole possession of third place in the league standings and are 7-2 in its last nine outings, but dropped two of three on its season-long three-game home slate, which included setbacks to Lenoir-Rhyne and SAC co-leader Queens University of Charlotte.

TU junior Justin Mitchell scored a career-high 21 points in Saturday's loss to Lenoir-Rhyne as he went 9-of-15 from the floor including 3-of-4 from three-point territory. TU also got 12 points and nine rebounds from graduate student Brandon Mitchell who shot a sizzling 6-of-7 from the field in his 25 minutes of action.

The Pioneers open the month of February this week, which during the Coach J.T. Burton era (2018-present) has been a very successful one. Over the last three seasons, Tusculum boasts an impressive 17-4 record in the month of February including a perfect 5-0 last year.

SCOUTING THE PIONEERS

With a 12-6 overall record heading into February, the Pioneers will be looking to secure the program's fourth consecutive winning season. TU went 5-2 in January including a perfect 2-0 on the road to improve to 6-2 in away game this season. Tusculum is also riding a three-game road winning streak heading into the month.

Tusculum has been getting it done on the defensive end where the Pioneers are allowing 70.7 points per game (3^rd in SAC) including 63.3 ppg in their last nine contests. TU is limiting the opposition to shoot 43.2 percent from the field (3^rd in SAC) including a SAC-best 30.3 percent from beyond the three-point arc (29^th in NCAA II). Tusculum's 7.8 steals per game are second in the conference while also blocking 3.9 shots per game (4^th in SAC / 48^th in NCAA II).

TU graduate student Trenton Gibson continues to lead the Pioneers averaging 18.5 points per game (2^nd in SAC). Gibson is coming off the worst shooting game of his career where he went 0-for-9 from the floor and was limited to a career-low three points. The three-point effort snapped a 27-game streak of double-digit scoring for Gibson who has scored 10 or more points in 80 of his 97 career games at Tusculum.  He scored 23 points each in this year's first encounters with Carson-Newman and Newberry.

Gibson, the 2021 SAC Player and Scholar Athlete of the Year, continues to be the only player in the league who is listed in the top-10 statistically in scoring (2^nd), rebounding (6.8 rpg – 9^th) and assists (5.4 apg – 2^nd). His 5.4 assists per game average is ranked 20^th in the nation and is dishing out 8.3 helpers per game in his last three outings. He is also first in the league in free throw percentage shooting 86 percent from the foul line (41^st in NCAA II) as his 80 made free throws are tops in the SAC (42^nd in NCAA II).

The two-time All-Conference honoree needs 14 points to become the 10^th player in the 111-year history of the Tusculum program to score 1,500 points in a career. He is currently listed in the top-10 in the TU record book in 10 statistical categories including: field goals made (465 – 9^th), field goal attempts (1123 – 5^th), free throws made (445 – 3^rd), free throw attempts (553 – 2^nd), free throw percentage (.805 – 6^th), rebounds (624 – 9^th), rebound average (6.43 rpg – 4^th), assists (414 – 3^rd), assists per game (4.27 apg – 6^th) and steals (118 – 7^th).

Sophomore forward Inady Legiste is TU's second leading scorer averaging 10.2 points per game. Ever since posting 19 points in last month's win over Catawba, Legiste has been held to single figures offensively including six points in Saturday's loss to Lenoir-Rhyne. He is grabbing 4.1 rebounds per game and his .527 field goal percentage is 13^th in the league. He leads the Pioneers in blocked shots averaging 1.5 per game, which is second-best in the conference.

Virginia State University transfer forward William Vedder is third on the team averaging 9.8 points off the bench. He is shooting 52.9 percent from the field (12^th in SAC) and grabbing 5.4 rebounds per contest (21^st in SAC). While at VSU, he helped the Trojans to three CIAA Division titles as well as three trips to the NCAA Tournament. Vedder is coming off back-to-back nine-point performances last week. He poured in 16 points in this year's first meeting with Carson-Newman but was limited to two points in 11 minutes on the floor against Newberry.

Justin Mitchell is fourth on the team averaging 8.7 points per game including 12.8 ppg in his last four contests. During that four-game stretch, he is shooting a sizzling 22-of-34 from the field (64.7%) while also averaging 4.0 rebounds per game. His 1.4 steals per contest are best on the team and ninth in the conference. He is the only player on the Tusculum roster to have started in every game this season.

Graduate student forward Brandon Mitchell leads the Pioneers in rebounding and field goal percentage. His 6.8 rebounds per game are eighth in the league, while his .641 field goal percentage is fourth-best in the SAC. He is averaging 7.8 points per game, which is the fifth-best average on the squad. In his last six games, he is averaging 9.8 points and 7.5 rebounds contest, while shooting 29-of-47 (.617) from the field.

Mitchell has hauled in 740 rebounds in his Tusculum career which are tied for the third-most in program history. His 333 career offensive rebounds are listed second in the SAC record book, while his TU-record 190 career blocked shots are the second-most by an active NCAA Division II player and are ninth in league history.

James West IV, a 2021 All-SAC honorable mention selection, is averaging 6.5 points and 1.3 rebounds per game this season. After missing three games due to injury prior to the holiday break, West is getting back to his All-Conference form and has connected on a pair of three-pointers in each of his last three games. In his brief TU career, he is averaging 10.1 points per game including 2.07 three-point fields goals per contest.

True freshman KJ Crump has earned a start on 16 occasions in his rookie campaign including his last 12 outings dating back to Dec. 1 when he scored a season-best 18 points in TU's 81-74 upset win at No. 4 Queens University of Charlotte. His .390 three-point percentage is best on the team (13^th in SAC) as he is posting 5.8 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.

Junior college transfer Jalen Crowder was held scoreless on Saturday, after posting 15 points against Queens and followed with a season-best 17 markers on 5-of-6 shooting from downtown in last Wednesday's home win over Anderson. He has connected on 10 of his last 19 three-point tries and is averaging 5.0 points per game.

Lipscomb University transfer Jacob Hobbs has been in the starting lineup in the last nine games where TU has posted a 7-2 mark. That string of starts began in this year's first meeting with Newberry where he scored a career-best 21 points as he shot 7-of-12 from the floor including three 3-pointers and went 4-of-5 from the free throw line. Hobbs is averaging 4.3 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.

SCOUTING CARSON-NEWMAN

After a 7-5 start to the 2021-22 campaign, the Carson-Newman Eagles have turned their fortunes in January with a 7-2 record to improve to 14-7 overall and 11-6 in SAC play. Veteran C-N head coach Chuck Benson has the Eagles in fifth place in the league and knocking on the door for the top-four in the SAC standings.

The Eagles only two losses of the month came on the road with a heart-breaking 82-79 overtime loss at Wingate and most recently last Wednesday in a 73-57 setback at in-state rival and No. 16/18 Lincoln Memorial.

After a grueling three-game road trip, the Eagles returned home on Saturday and posted a gritty 55-47 win over Newberry for C-N's ninth consecutive win at Holt Fieldhouse. The Eagles are 10-2 at home this season with their only losses coming against King (77-66) and Queens (83-81). That was part of a three-game losing streak for the Eagles, which included a 73-69 loss at Tusculum in the season's first encounter.

Carson-Newman has been getting the job done, especially on the defensive end where the Eagles lead the SAC in scoring defense (66.4 ppg – 47^th in NCAA II) and are second in field goal percentage defense (.406 – 34^th in NCAA II).

Guard Tripp Davis is C-N's leading scorer this season averaging 13.1 points per contest including a team-best 20 markers against the Pioneers in this year's first meeting. It was his second-best scoring outing of the season, surpassed only by his 23-point showing at Wingate for the 2021 All-SAC honoree.

Junior guard Luke Brenegan is averaging 12.1 points, 3.9 assists (13^th in SAC) and 2.9 rebounds per game. The 2021 All-SAC honorable mention pick returned to the C-N lineup after missing the road outings at Anderson and LMU. His return Saturday including 14 points for his eighth consecutive double-digit outing. He poured in a career-best 34 points in a road win at Catawba earlier this season. In November's game at Tusculum, Brenegan posted 10 points, four rebounds and three assists against the Pioneers.

Senior forward EJ Bush is second on the team in scoring averaging 11.7 points per game this year. He is also grabbing 5.2 rebounds per game, while shooting 48.3 percent from the floor and 40 percent from downtown. The 2021 SAC Tournament MVP has started in all 21 games this year for C-N including his 12-point effort at Tusculum in November where he went 5-of-7 from the field.

The Eagles boast the SAC's top-rebounder and shot blocker in junior center Bryant Thomas who is hauling in 8.2 rebounds per game and 2.16 blocked shots per contest (20^th in NCAA II). Thomas is averaging 10.5 points while shooting 55.8 percent from the field. He has accounted for five double-doubles this season and has eclipsed 10 boards on nine occasions. He tallied 14 points and six rebounds against Tusculum in November.

Sophomore guard Ren Dyer is fifth on the team in scoring (10.4 ppg) and second in rebounding (6.1 rpg). The 2021 SAC Freshman of the Year has scored in double figures in his last five contests, but has been out of the C-N line-up since scoring 11 points on Jan. 22 at Wingate.

SCOUTING NEWBERRY

After starting the season 0-5, the Newberry Wolves have gone 9-4 and have climbed into sixth place in the league standings. The Wolves, under the tutelage of head coach Jason Taylor, had their three-game winning streak halted last week with road losses to Queens (76-61) and Carson-Newman (55-47). Prior to hosting Tusculum, Newberry will welcome Wingate on Wednesday.

Following the winless start to the year, the Wolves rattled off wins in six of their next seven games with the lone set-back coming in a 73-57 loss at Tusculum.

The Wolves are second in the conference in scoring defense (68.9 ppg) and are fourth in the SAC in field goal percentage defense (.437) and three-point field goal percentage defense (.308)

The duo of juniors TJ Brown and Quandaveon McCollum are both averaging 13.2 points per game, while senior Marcus Ford is third with his 11.9 points per game average.  McCollum is the Wolves top player on the glass, grabbing 7.3 boards per game, while Ford leads the team in assists, dishing out 3.3 helpers per game.

Brown is coming off a 19-point performance at Carson-Newman on Saturday to pace all scorers in the game.

THE SERIES

Carson-Newman: Wednesday will be the 180th recorded meeting between Tusculum and Carson-Newman in a series which has been dominated by the Eagles leading 119-60. The series of late has been going the way of the Pioneers with TU winning 24 of the last 40 encounters. Since 2003, TU is 12-6 versus the Eagles at Holt Fieldhouse while the series has been even in the 24 games (12-12) played in Greeneville during that span. TU head coach has a 6-2 record against Carson-Newman during his tenure in Greeneville.

Newberry: Saturday will be the 48th meeting between Tusculum and Newberry in a series which began in 1978. Tusculum leads the very competitive series 24-23 as the Pioneers have won five of the last six meetings including last December's 73-57 win in Greeneville. Six of the last seven meetings have been decided by 10 points or less with two of those going into overtime.

FOLLOW THE PIONEERS

Fans can watch the action of Tusculum basketball all season at TusculumPioneers.com on the Pioneer Sports Network and the SAC Digital Network. The radio call of the games will also be available locally on WSMG Radio on 95.5 FM and 1450 AM, as well as online at https://jewel955.com/listenlive.

Tusculum fans are encouraged to visit the athletic web sites of our road opponents prior to traveling for information regarding attendance policies at away events.