GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University women's basketball team carries a season-best three-game winning streak into the penultimate week of the regular season, as the Pioneers continue to jockey for position in the crowded middle of the South Atlantic Conference standings.
The Pioneers (10-14, 8-12 SAC) swept three games last week to propel themselves into sole possession of eighth place in the league heading into Wednesday's game at Lincoln Memorial at 5:30 p.m. Tusculum returns home on Saturday, Feb. 19 to face Coker at 2 p.m. before closing the regular season next week with a home game against UVA Wise and a road trip to Anderson. Tusculum is a game behind seventh-place UVA Wise (9-11) in the conference standings at the start of the week.
Tusculum finished off a home-and-home sweep of Mars Hill on Wednesday with an 84-52 victory at Pioneer Arena, then the Pioneers went to Limestone and avenged an early-season 19-point loss by beating the Saints 56-49 on Saturday. A win on Wednesday would give Tusculum a four-game winning streak in each of the last five seasons.
RECAPPING THE WEEK
Tusculum led from start to finish to earn an 84-52 victory over Mars Hill Wednesday evening at Pioneer Arena. Mya Belton finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds and Jalia Arnwine scored a game-high 18 points for the Pioneers, who beat the Lions (1-20, 1-18 SAC) for the second time in three days. Brianna Dixon added 13 points for the Pioneers, who led 52-24 at halftime and by as many as 39 points in the fourth quarter.
Belton's double-double was her seventh of the season and came in 22 minutes of playing time. Lexi Patty had a career-best nine rebounds and scored six points, and Sophie Henry finished with two points, three rebounds, four assists and five steals for the Pioneers. Twelve different players scored for the Pioneers, including Averie Price who came off the bench for a career-high seven points and three rebounds in 10 minutes. Tusculum's bench accounted for 29 points in the game, and the Pioneers had a slim 43-42 edge in rebounding over the Lions.
On Saturday, Dixon tied her career highs with 22 points and 13 rebounds to lift Tusculum to a 56-49 victory at Limestone. Alyssa Walker added 13 points and eight rebounds off the bench and Belton had seven points, 13 rebounds and five blocked shots for the Pioneers, who broke a 40-40 tie with a 12-1 fourth-quarter run.
Dixon shot 8-for-15 from the field, connecting on a career-best four three-pointers, to match her previous career high of 22 points set against Carson-Newman on Jan. 20, 2021. Dixon's 13 rebounds equaled her career best set against Queens on Jan. 19 and produced her second career double-double. The Pioneers shot 32.7 percent (18-for-55) from the field, but sank nine three-pointers and never trailed after taking the lead for good in the final minute of the first half.
PROFILING THE PIONEERS
Dixon was named SAC Player of the Week after averaging 18.0 points and 7.3 rebounds per game in three wins last week. Dixon reached the 20-point mark for the third time this season and has scored in double figures 10 times in 14 games. She has made nine three-pointers over the last three games after hitting eight over the previous eight contests. Dixon will qualify for the SAC leaderboard after Wednesday'a game, and would rank 12th in the conference in free throw percentage at 79.3 percent and ninth in assists per game at 3.1.
Arnwine is at 13.6 points per game and has scored in double figures in nine consecutive games and 17 of the last 18 contests. Arnwine is 11-for-26 (42.3 percent) from three-point range over the last four games, and has made at least one three pointer in 33 of her last 34 contests. Arwnine is 16th in program history with 1,110 points, 29 shy of Julie Helle (1978-82) who is 15th with 1,139 points. Her 53 three-pointers this season are one short of her season career high of 54, set last season, and rank fourth in the SAC.
Belton is third on the team in scoring at 12.7 points per game, and continues to rank second in the SAC in rebounding at 9.3 per game. Belton has reached double figures in rebounds 12 times and scoring 18 times, resulting in seven double-doubles. Belton has blocked 10 shots over her last three games and is up to fifth in the SAC at 1.5 blocks per game and 16th in steals at 1.5 per game.
Walker's 13 points against Limestone put her in double figures for the third time this season and the first time since scoring a season-high 17 at Queens on Dec. 1. Walker is 16-for-17 at the foul line this season after going 6-for-6 at Limestone. Henry was held without a steal at Limestone for the first time in 11 games, but she remains fourth in the SAC in steals per game at 2.1. Henry ranks 10th in the SAC in assists at 3.1 per game.
The Pioneers have held eight opponents under 50 points this season, contributing to Tusculum ranking second in the SAC in scoring defense at 59.8 points per game. Tusculum is also second in opponent shooting at 36.9 percent, and ranks third in three-pointers made per game at 7.9. Tusculum is 10th in the conference in scoring average at 61.4 points per game, and 11th in field goal percentage at 36.4 percent.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Lincoln Memorial (9-13, 7-12 SAC) lost for the eighth time in nine games with a 56-51 setback to Limestone at home on Monday afternoon. The Railsplitters committed 23 turnovers and went to the foul line just two times in the game, despite putting four players in double figures. Lindsay Proffitt and Lauren Flowers scored 12 points apiece while Irelynn Davisson and Mikayla Kuehne each finished with 10.
Davisson, a grad transfer from Belmont Abbey, leads the Railsplitters in scoring at 13.3 points per game and leads the SAC with 68 three-pointers. She is second in the conference in three-point shooting at 45.9 percent and has at least one three in 18 straight games. Davisson scored a season-high 29 points in the Railsplitters' lone win since Jan. 20, a 72-56 victory at Coker on Feb. 5.
Kuehne is averaging 12.5 points and team highs of 6.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game, while Proffitt averages 11.0 points and shoots 49.7 percent from the field. Proffitt has canned 49 three-pointers to rank fifth in the conference and is shooting 45.8 percent for third-best in the league. Flowers also averages double figures at 10.4 points per game and is shooting 48.2 percent from the field.
Lincoln Memorial leads the SAC in three-point shooting at 9.6 per game and is second in accuracy from deep at 38.1 percent. However, the Railsplitters are just ninth in the conference in scoring at 63.3 points per game due in part to ranking last in the league in both free throws made (8.6) and attempted (12.0) per game. LMU is also last in the conference in rebounding at 33.6 per game, and is last in both steals (5.4) and blocks (1.7) per game. The Railsplitters are third in the SAC in scoring defense at 59.9 points per game.
The Railsplitters' 55-47 win at Pioneer Arena on Dec. 4 cut the Pioneers' lead in SAC regular-season meetings to 19-12. LMU leads the all-time series over Tusculum by a 45-35 margin and the Railsplitters are 26-13 all-time at home against the Pioneers since the first meeting in 1978.
Coker (6-16, 5-15 SAC) is idle this week until Saturday's game at Tusculum, and the Cobras will come to Pioneer Arena with their first two-game winning streak since mid-November. Coker beat Mars Hill 75-64 on the road on Saturday as a balanced attack was led by 14 points from Saquita Joyner and 12 off the bench from Ahlea Myers. The Cobras overcame a 30-point performance from the Lions' Maddie Gillie to finish the season series sweep.
Joyner is the lone player to average double figures for the Cobras at 12.8 points per game, and she also averages a team-best 7.4 rebounds per game. Joyner, who did not play in last Wednesday's 75-57 win over Queens, has scored in double figures in five straight games. Myers averages 7.6 points per game and guard Abigail Keesling is at 7.3 points per contest. Keesling leads the Cobras with 27 three-pointers while Myers is tops in assists at 2.8 per contest.
The Cobras are next-to-last in the conference in scoring offense (58.8 ppg) and rank last in foul shooting at 63.5 percent. Coker is 11th in the SAC in three-point percentage (25.7 percent) and ranks 12th in opponent three-point shooting at 35.7 percent. The Cobras allow 68.9 points per game to rank 10th in the league.
The Pioneers have won 12 straight meetings with the Cobras, including a 64-45 road victory on Jan. 15. Tusculum has scored 70 or more points in six of the last seven wins over Coker, and leads the all-time series 14-3. The Pioneers have won seven in a row at home over the Cobras, and are 7-1 all-time at Pioneer Arena against Coker.
TICKETS
Admission for 2021-22 Tusculum home basketball games is $10 for all entrants and children 12 and under will be admitted free. Tusculum students will be admitted free and valid Tusculum ID is required. Fans may also purchase tickets online in advance through HomeTown Ticketing at www.TusculumPioneers.com/information/tickets . Spectators using HomeTown Ticketing can choose to print tickets at home or use mobile entry tickets at the gate. All attendees are currently required to wear face masks while inside Pioneer Arena.
FOLLOW THE PIONEERS
Fans can watch the action of Tusculum women's basketball all season at www.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.
