GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- After navigating a gauntlet of early-season games against some of the top teams in the South Atlantic Conference and the Southeast Region, the Tusculum University women's basketball team will begin the second half of its conference slate with a pair of road games this week.

The Pioneers (5-10, 3-8 SAC) will visit Mars Hill University on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m., then make the long trek to Hartsville, South Carolina to face Coker University on Saturday at 2 p.m. Tusculum has yet to face either the Lions or Cobras this season, after having played six of their first 11 league games against the current top five teams in the league standings.

Tusculum battled nationally-ranked Wingate and Catawba last week, dropping a 66-62 decision to 24th-ranked Wingate on Wednesday and a 58-48 verdict to 17th-ranked Catawba on Saturday. The Pioneers have concluded the season series with both the Bulldogs and the Indians, who are a combined 19-1 in conference play this season and hold down the top two spots in the SAC standings. At 3-8 in the conference, the Pioneers are tied for tenth place with UVA Wise and Newberry, a half-game behind Queens (3-7) in eighth place and even in the win column with seventh-place Lenoir-Rhyne (3-5).

RECAPPING THE WEEK
Hannah Clark scored 12 of her game-high 26 points in the final five minutes, including tiebreaking foul shots with 35.5 seconds remaining, as Wingate rallied for a 66-62 victory over Tusculum Wednesday at Pioneer Arena.

Clark scored 14 of Wingate's 19 fourth-quarter points after the 24th-ranked Bulldogs (12-1, 10-0 SAC) erased a double-digit halftime deficit against the Pioneers for the second consecutive game. Wingate, which came from 17 down at the half to beat Tusculum 64-59 at Wingate on Dec. 20, trailed 34-22 at halftime but went on a 15-2 run to start the third quarter to even the score at 37-37. Clark shot just 7-for-19 from the field, but went 10-for-10 from the foul line to surpass her season high of 20 points set against Tusculum in the December meeting.

Deidre Cheremond led the Pioneers with a career-high 24 points along with eight rebounds, while Jalia Arnwine had 17 points on five three-pointers to go along with seven boards. Mya Belton contributed 13 points and nine rebounds, including the 100th three-pointer of her career, and Brianna Dixon dished out a career-best nine assists to go along with six points and four rebounds. Tusculum shot 10-for-33 from three-point range in the game, but went just 3-for-20 beyond the arc in the second half and finished the game at 36.2 percent (21-for-58) from the field.

On Saturday, Catawba closed the third quarter with an 11-0 run and went on to a 58-48 victory over Tusculum at Pioneer Arena. The Indians (12-1, 9-1 SAC), ranked 17th in the WBCA Division II and 10th in the D2SIDA national polls, erased a six-point Pioneer lead by holding Tusculum scoreless for the final 4:57 of the third quarter. Catawba's defense held Tusculum to 23.7 percent (14-for-59) from the field in the game including 0-for-21 from three-point range.

Cheremond led the Pioneers in scoring for the second straight game, finishing with 13 points and a career-high 19 rebounds before fouling out with 3:07 left in the fourth. Belton also recorded a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds, while Dixon also reached double figures for Tusculum with 11 points to go along with five boards.

Tusculum outrebounded Catawba 50-37 in the game, including 18 offensive rebounds which the Pioneers turned into 16 points. The 50 rebounds for the Pioneers were a season high, while Cheremond and Belton became the first Tusculum duo to record a double-double in the same game since Maddie Sutton and Kasey Johnson against Anderson on Feb. 15, 2020.

PROFILING THE PIONEERS
Cheremond is averaging 15.7 points and 11.7 rebounds over the last three games for the Pioneers, shooting 51.5 percent (17-for-33) from the field and 84.6 percent (11-for-13) from the foul line. Cheremond has scored in double figures five times this season and has boosted her season averages to 7.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.

Belton has regained the lead in scoring average for the Pioneers at 12.5 points per game, with nine straight games in double figures and 12 in 15 games this season. Her double-double against Catawba was her fifth of the season, all in the last eight games, and increased her season average on the boards to 8.9 per game which is third in the SAC. Belton is seventh in the conference in blocked shots at 1.3 per game.

Dixon has scored in double figures three times in five games this season and is third on the team in scoring at 11.2 points per game, while shooting 79.2 percent (19-for-24) from the foul line. Arnwine, whose streak of consecutive games with a three-pointer ended at 24 against Catawba, is averaging 12.2 points per game and ranks third in the SAC with 29 three-pointers. Arnwine, who is 32 points shy of becoming the 20th member of the 1,000 Point Club at Tusculum, is currently shooting career bests from the field (37.3 percent) and three-point range (36.7 percent).

Junior guard Jordan Rogers is fourth on the team in scoring at 8.0 points per game and ranks third on the squad with 2.6 assists per contest. Freshman guard Lexi Patty has come off the bench in the last two games and is averaging 4.4 points per contest for the Pioneers, with senior guard Elle Hutchinson in the starting lineup in her place. Hutchinson has turned the ball over just twice in her last 44 minutes of playing time and is averaging 3.0 points and 4.0 rebounds over the last three contests.

Tusculum has taken over the lead in field goal percentage defense in the SAC, allowing 36.7 percent shooting from the field this season. The Pioneers are third in the conference in scoring defense at 61.5 points per game, and have moved up to fifth in foul shooting at 69.8 percent. Tusculum has dropped to 10th in field goal percentage at 36.2 percent.

SCOUTING THE LIONS
Mars Hill (1-11, 1-9 SAC) dropped its third straight game on Saturday with a 71-46 loss at Newberry. All-Conference guard De'Ja Marshall led Mars Hill with 25 points, six rebounds and four steals, but the Lions shot 34.6 percent overall and turned the ball over 23 times while being outrebounded by a 43-28 margin.

Marshall is averaging 16.0 points and 8.6 rebounds per game, ranking seventh in the conference in scoring and fifth in rebounding. Marshall's 25 points at Newberry were one off her season high of 26 set at Carson-Newman on Dec. 15. She has scored in double figures in all but one game this season and has posted five double-doubles.

Senior forward Zanah Boyd also averages double figures for the Lions at 11.6 points per game, to go along with 6.1 rebounds per contest. Freshman guard Maddie Gillie is averaging 9.5 points per game off the bench and is shooting 40.8 percent (20-for-49) from three-point range. Eleven different players have made at least one start for Mars Hill, whose only win was a 61-59 home victory over Lincoln Memorial on Dec. 11.

The Lions are at or near the bottom in several statistical categories within the SAC, ranking last in scoring offense (58.2 ppg) and scoring defense (78.7 ppg), last in field goal percentage offense (34.3 percent) and defense (44.1 percent) and next to last in turnovers at 20.9 per game. Mars Hill is next-to-last in the SAC in rebound margin (minus-8.8 per game) and last in both assists per game (8.9) and blocked shots per game (1.8).

Mars Hill went 2-18 overall last season and finished 2-17 in conference play, with wins over Queens in the season opener (83-78) and at home against Lenoir-Rhyne on Feb. 8 (75-71). Tusculum has won eight straight against Mars Hill, winning 69-46 at home on Jan. 13 of last season and 111-59 on the road on Feb. 10, and the Pioneers now lead the all-time series 29-25.

SCOUTING THE COBRAS
Coker (3-6, 2-5 SAC) returns this week from a month-long layoff due to COVID protocols, as the Cobras host Wingate on Wednesday before welcoming the Pioneers on Saturday. Coker has not played since a 49-46 loss at Queens on Dec. 11, and will be playing their first home games this week since Dec. 4, when the Cobras beat UVA Wise 75-70. Coker also has wins over Francis Marion (89-67) and Mars Hill (67-53), which gave the Cobras an early 2-1 record before losses in five of their next six contests.

Senior forward Saquita Joyner leads the Cobras in scoring, and is the only player in double figures at 13.5 points per game to go along with a team-high 8.6 rebounds per contest. Joyner, who is fourth in the SAC in rebounding and 11th in field goal percentage at 47.5 percent, has two double-doubles this season, which includes 21 points and 11 rebounds against Mars Hill on Nov. 20.

Senior guard Ahlea Myers averages 8.1 points and a team-high 3.2 assists per game, and senior forward Hope Richardson is averaging 6.1 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, with Richardson ranking fourth in the SAC in blocked shots with 1.6 per game.

Coker ranks last in the SAC in three-point percentage at 24.4 percent, and is next-to-last in opponent three-point percentage at 36.0 percent. The Cobras are ninth in the league in both scoring offense at 60.2 points per game and scoring defense at 67.1 points per contest. The Cobras are fifth in the league in rebounding at 42.0 per game and fifth in blocked shots at 3.6 per game.

The Cobras were 10th in the SAC standings at 7-11 last season and ended the year with a 7-13 record, losing 80-66 to Lincoln Memorial in the opening round of the SAC Championship tournament. The Pioneers have won 11 straight meetings with the Cobras, sweeping last year by scores of 92-51 at home on Jan. 16 and 84-59 on the road on Feb. 20. Tusculum leads the all-time series with Coker by a 13-3 margin.

FOLLOW THE PIONEERS
Fans can watch the action of Tusculum women's 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.