Tigerettes limp into SIAC tourney against Miles
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (goldentigersports.com)— Will the third time be the charm for the Tuskegee University women’s basketball team? They will get their answer when they take on Miles College in the opening round of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament.
The game will tip off at 7 pm at Bill Harris Arena, at the Birmingham Crossplex.
Tuskegee (5-20), the seventh seed from the West Division, comes into the tournament having dropped their final four games of the regular season – including a 67-53 loss to Miles at Bill Harris Arena to close out the regular season last Monday.
The Tigerettes and Miles, the second seed in the West Division, have met twice this season with Miles winning both including a 51-32 loss at home back on February 1. In the two losses to Miles, the Tigerettes have struggled from the floor including shooting just 18.5 (10-of-54) percent from the floor in the first game. In the regular season finale, they shot 33.3 (18-of-54) percent from the floor.
A bright spot in the two losses was junior Rachel Brownlee, who finished the regular season fourth in the SIAC in scoring at 17.2 points per game and in the top 20 in rebounding at 6.3 rebounds per game. The junior guard went for 14 points in the first loss and 16 in the game last week – including 12 in the first half.
Brownlee has scored in double figures in 22 consecutive games, and has hit the march in 24 of 25 games – including nine 20-point games this season.
Freshman Aryana Jackson, second on the team in scoring since joining the team in January, was held to four points in the first meeting but responded with 21 of her own in the regular season finale last week. Senior Halle Bentley grabbed 13 rebounds in the first meeting, while Cheyanne Williams grabbed 10 in the second game.
While they struggled shooting against Miles, the Tigerettes held Miles just 6 (1-for-18) percent from beyond the arc in the first meeting and outrebounding the Lady Golden Bears in both games.
Ashley Stegar scored 21 points in the last game, while the steady pace for Miles against Tuskegee this season has been Shaquinta Sales, averaging 10 points and 10 rebounds in the two games.
The winner of the contest advances to the quarterfinals to face the winner of the Claflin (third seed from the East) and LeMoyne-Owen (sixth seed from the West) on Thursday afternoon.
