Storylines –Tusculum GameDespite being picked 11th out of 12 schools in the Preseason SAC Coaches' Poll, Tusculum College is off to a 3-0 start in the early going. Most recently, Shynese Whitner scored 16 points to lead a quartet of Pioneers in double figures as Tusculum cruised to a 63-45 victory over Brevard College in the conference opener for both teams. Whitner is off to an incredible start, the senior hit a game-winning half-court shot in Tusculum's 73-70 overtime win at King. In the team's season opener at Lees-McRae, the guard scored 11 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, handed out eight assists and finished with eight steals. Her performances against King and Lees-McRae landed her player of the week accolades. Tusculum has dominated opponents on the boards in the early going, averaging 45 rebounds a contest while allowing the opposition just 38. The Pioneers' defense has been phenominal as well, thus far, teams are shooting just 29.8 percent against Tusculum overall and 12 for 54 from the 3-point line. An area that has given Tusculum difficulties has been the free throw line, through three games opponents have attempted 84 foul shots while the Pioneers have been to the stripe just 29 times in that span. Separated by just 88 miles, UVa-Wise and Tusculum are meeting for the first time since 2000. The Cavaliers have not scored a victory over the Pioneers since 1992.
About UVa-WiseComing off an 86-60 loss at West Virginia State, UVa-Wise will look to rebound on Saturday. The Cavaliers were playing their third game in six days when they fell to the Yellow Jackets on Monday. In the loss, center
Kayla Carey scored 14 points to register double figures for the third consecutive game to start the season; meanwhile, fellow post player
Alle Moore had the strongest game of her young career. The freshman scored six points and grabbed five rebounds in 14 minutes of play. UVa-Wise struggled on defense in the loss, West Virginia State shot 63 percent from the field in the opening half en route to 56.1 percent for the game. The Yellow Jackets won the battle of the glass 38-30 as the Cavs also surrendered 48 points in the paint. A positive for UVa-Wise in the early going has been the team's ability to get to the free throw line. The Cavs went to the stripe 27 times in Monday's loss and have reached the free throw line an average of 26 times per contest. As a team, UVa-Wise is shooting 66.7 percent from the line and is outscoring its opponents by an average of five points per game at the stripe. The Cavs have been able to gain extra possessions having won the turnover battle in each contest. Through three games, the Cavs are forcing 21.7 turnovers per contest while committing 15.7 turnovers a game. Saturday's game against Tusculum starts a five-game home stand for Coach
Kristin Kunzman's squad.
