GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Tusculum University shot 55.2 percent from the field and placed four players in double figures as the Pioneers defeated Lander University 77-64 in non-conference women's basketball from Pioneer Arena Wednesday evening.
Jami Tham recorded her seventh straight double-double with game highs of 20 points and 13 rebounds, Mya Belton tied her season high with 19 points and had nine rebounds, Sophie Henry posted a career-high 12 points and dished out seven assists, and Deidre Cheremond poured home 16 points and pulled seven boards in just 13 minutes off the bench for the Pioneers (6-1), who earned their fourth straight victory by outrebounding the Bearcats (2-4) by a 38-18 margin. Tusculum entered the week ranked sixth in the latest D2SIDA Southeast Region poll.
Tanyia Gordon led Lander with 16 points and five assists, Cory Santoro hit four three-pointers and had 14 points and Quadaija Langley shook off a mid-game injury to contribute 13 points and five assists for Lander, which shot an even 50 percent (26-for-52) from the field and went 10-for-25 from three-point range. However, the Bearcats were unable to stop the Pioneers inside, where Tusculum had a 44-20 edge in paint scoring and a 16-3 margin in second-chance points off 13 offensive rebounds.
Tham, who leads Division II in double-doubles with seven in as many games, shot 9-for-15 from the field and added a season-high three steals for the Pioneers. Belton was 4-for-6 from three-point range and blocked three shots, while Henry was 6-for-9 from the floor to surpass her previous high of 11 points set at North Georgia on Nov. 15. Cheremond was also 6-for-9 shooting in the game, and converted a four-point play in the final seconds of the third quarter to stretch Tusculum's lead to 10 after Lander had trimmed a 14-point deficit to two.
Tusculum shot 17-for-28 (60.7 percent) from the field in the second half, with Cheremond and Belton each scoring 12 points after intermission to lead the Pioneers. The Pioneers did not take the lead for good until late in the second quarter, but closed the first half with a 10-0 run that would stretch to 17 straight points early in the third period. After a 14-2 Lander surge in the third quarter brought the Bearcats within two, the Pioneers would run up 10 of the next 12 points to build a lead that would not drop below seven in the fourth quarter.
Lander opened the scoring on its first possession on a three-pointer by Langley, but a bucket by Belton, a three-pointer from Alyssa Walker and a layup by Blayre Shultz gave Tusculum a 7-3 lead with 6:49 left in the opening quarter. Tusculum would lead 13-9 on a foul shot by Walker with 4:38 left in the quarter, but a three from Langley would tie the game at 15 with 3:22 remaining. Gordon would score the final points of the period on a late jumper to tie the score for a fourth time at 19-19 after one.
Tusculum trailed for most of the second quarter, but Lander led by no more than three points as the teams combined for one field goal in a three-minute stretch. Tusculum regained the lead at 29-28 on a basket by Tham with 2:30 left in the half, while Lander would go scoreless for the final 5:44 on 0-for-7 shooting with three turnovers. A putback by Cheremond in the final 10 seconds of the quarter would send the Pioneers to the break with a 35-28 lead.
Tham led all players with 10 points and five rebounds in the first half, with Belton adding seven points and six boards. The Pioneers shot 50 percent (15-for-30) from the field but just 2-for-7 on three-pointers in the first half. Lander was led by nine points from Langley and eight from Santoro, but the Bearcats shot 44 percent (11-for-25) and turned the ball over nine times as a team which led to 13 points for the Pioneers.
Tusculum's 10-0 run to end the first half was followed up with seven straight points to start the third quarter, including consecutive baskets from Tham and a three-pointer by Belton that gave the Pioneers a 42-28 lead with 8:44 to go in the period. With a hobbled Langley on the sidelines, Santoro hit back-to-back threes as part of an 11-0 run that brought the Bearcats within 42-39 with 4:58 left in the third. Tusculum's lead sat at 46-44 after a Gordon jumper with 2:50 to play, but Cheremond would score the final six points of the frame including a rare four-point play with 2.5 seconds left to send the Pioneers to the fourth with a 56-46 advantage.
Lander would cut the margin to 57-50 on a layup by Gordon with 9:16 left, but a three-pointer by Belton pushed the Pioneer advantage back to 10 and a Cheremond three gave Tusculum a 67-54 lead with 6:55 to play. Tusculum would go back up 14 at 71-57 on a putback by Tham with 5:47 remaining, but Lander was able to pull back within 72-64 on a Kayla Sanders layup with 3:55 left. However, the Bearcats would miss their final four shots as the Pioneers salted away the win on a basket by Tham and a three-pointer from Belton in the closing minutes.
Walker finished with six points and matched her career high with four assists in 31 minutes for the Pioneers, while Shultz had four points and five assists in 39 minutes. Belton, who played all 40 minutes, equaled her season high of 19 points set against North Greenville on Nov. 12 while moving into a tie for sixth place on the Tusculum career three-pointer list with Sydney Wilson at 140.
Tusculum will open its South Atlantic Conference schedule on Saturday, Dec. 3 at Lincoln Memorial, beginning at 2 p.m. The Railsplitters (5-2, 1-0 SAC) won their third straight game Wednesday evening with an 84-54 win over Mars Hill in their conference opener.
