STORYLINES – VS NEWBERRY COLLEGE
Fresh off the South Atlantic Conference's biggest upset of the season, Newberry College will attempt to keep the momentum rolling at UVA Wise Saturday. The Wolves scored a 58-56 overtime win over defending league champion and preseason conference favorite Anderson Wednesday. In the win, three Wolves scored in double figures led by Talia Roberts who made 4-of-7 field goals en route to a game-high 16 points off the bench. Newberry's defense played a pivotal role in scoring the upset. Anderson was limited to just 32.4 percent shooting from the field which included a 22.2 percent showing from beyond the 3-point line. The Wolves' defense was even better after halftime as the Trojans scored just 25 points combined in the final two quarters and overtime. Second-year coach Joanna Tincher's squad has relied on its defense all season. Opponents are shooting just 35.8 percent from the floor against the Wolves. The field goal percentage defense leads the conference and ranks 39th nationally.
ABOUT UVA WISE
UVA Wise will look to even its SAC record with a win over Newberry Saturday. Most recently, the Cavaliers suffered a 101-86 setback at Catawba as the Indians scored 46 third quarter points to secure the win. Freshman Caitlyn Ross continues to improve; the guard is averaging 13.8 points per game and 6.8 assists per game while shooting 52.9 percent from the floor for the season and is coming off her best week of the season. Last week, Ross averaged 18.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 5.0 steals over a two game stretch. Ross dropped a season-high 25 points while adding seven assists at Catawba. Three Cavs have already reached double-figure made 3-pointers this season with Hanna Oliver and Mackenzie King having made 15 each while Kalee Johnson has connected on 10 3-pointers. As a team, the Cavs are making 34.5 percent of their long range shots while holding opponents to 30.5 percent shooting from distance. Overall, UVA wise is shooting 48.1 percent from the field. The number leads the SAC and ranks 10th nationally. The Cavs also rank in the top 25 in scoring checking in at number 23 at 80.5 points per game. UVA Wise has scored 80 or more points six times this season and is 2-0 at home when reaching the 80-point mark. This will be the final home game of 2019 for Jamie Cluesman's team. Next up, the team will travel to Tusculum Wednesday before wrapping up the 2019 portion of the schedule with a trip to King next Saturday.
