It’s the time of year college hoop fans come together.
The time we all hope, dream and pray for the successful outcome for our various teams.
That time of year is conference play!
And for the Georgia College women’s basketball team, that particular part of the season has already started!
GCSU will tip-off their first home conference game of the year this Wednesday night at the Centennial Center at 5:30. The opposition: The Georgia Southwestern Lady Hurricanes, making the trek from Americus, Ga.
The Lady ‘Canes are 7-5 overall and 2-0 on the Peach Belt Conference, tying them for first place in the west division of the PBC with Columbus State University. (There are two divisions this season, east and west, due to the additions of Flagler College and the University of Montevallo this past spring.)
Behind the Lady Hurricanes in third? None other than the Bobcats at 8-4 and 1-1 in PBC competition. This game, therefore, is important for tops in the division and for conference tournament seeding at the end of the season.
It might be simple to overlook the Lady Hurricanes, who have been in the cellar the past two seasons in ‘The Belt.’ Altogether, Georgia Southwestern has gone 9-45 from the beginning of the ’07 until the end of last year’s campaign.
To say the ‘Canes were a wreck is an understatement. In the same 9-45 stretch, Georgia Southwestern was just 3-37 in conference battle. Put lightly, “Ouch!” That’s a winning percentage of .167 in 56 total games the past two years. The team one it’s first game in the ’07-’08 season, the foundered, dropping 25 in a row!
At that time, though, the team was young and inexperienced. Notice the trend in improvement each year: 2007-2008: 1-26 (0-20 PBC); 2008-2009: 8-19 (3-17 PBC); 2009-present: 7-5 (2-0 PBC). Baby steps, you could say.
Good things come to those who wait, eh?
The Lady Hurricanes are now bidding for a dramatic turnaround after being well below average the past two years.
Led by junior guard and forward Kanita Holloway (18 pts, 6 reb per game) off the bench, the ‘Canes seem to be a lethal threat. Holloway is extremely athletic down low, as well as potent from the outside
A huge one-two punch from the Lady Hurricanes down low will be the two starting forwards: senior Brittany Reynolds (14 pts, 7 reb) and senior Whitley Wiltz (11 pts, 9 reb). Both players don’t stand over 6-feet, but are strong, quick and athletic.
Switching sides of the court to Georgia College, the Bobcats are fresh off a major upset at #11 Clayton State this past Saturday in Morrow, Ga. Sensational junior guard Chimere Jordan led GC with 18 points, all coming from behind the arc! Another junior guard, Dominique Huffin chipped in with 15 points.
The story of the game, though, was the rebounding effort by head coach John Carrick’s women. GCSU tallied 44 total boards, while Clayton nabbed just 37, well below their season average. Senior forward Antoinette Reames did the dirty work, snatching down 11 total rebounds, ten of which were on the defensive glass. Junior forward Tammeshia Law almost reached double figures in rebounding, pulling down nine.
GCSU also shot a whopping 48 percent from three-point range, hitting nine more than the Lakers.
Strong rebounding plus effective shooting led to GCSU gaining the victory.
Which brings us to tonight’s matchup: ‘Cats vs. ‘Canes
Georgia College will look to limit the aggressive post-play from Georgia Southwestern and continue to be strong on the boards. The matchup to watch in the game is Wiltz vs. Reames. Both should provide physical play down low and if both stay out of foul trouble, should see lots of hardwood in the contest.
Also, junior guard Nadirah Gardner for Ga. SW matching up against senior guard Shandrea Moore of GCSU will be exciting to feast your eyes upon. Both are talented, unselfish players who move the ball effectively for both styles of offense each team play.
One thing I’m looking for is the bench play of both teams. As both teams are three to five players deep, point production will be crucial for those who sub into the ballgame.
The Bobcats must bring energy, focus and a sense of urgency to the floor in order to be successful. And it starts the way it did at Clayton: with defense.
Last year Georgia College won both meetings between the two squads, first at home, then in Americus at the Storm Dome.
We’ve got a good one on tap!
See you at 5:20 on Peach Belt TV!
(www.pennatlantic.com … register online for free webcast! Enter in e-mail and create own password. The process is simple.)
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