By Jonathan Caudle, TTU Sports Information
Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles (17-11, 10-7 OVC) vs. Jacksonville State (13-15, 9-8 OVC)
Game 29 • Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020 • 4:45 p.m. (CT)
Jacksonville, Ala. • Pete Mathews Coliseum
Video Stream: ESPN+
Listen: 106.1 The Eagle (Dylan Vazzano)
Live Stats: Statbroadcast
Twitter Updates: @TTUWBB
Series Record: Tech leads, 23-11 (Last: Tech L 66-50, 2/13/20)
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. – Tennessee Tech women's basketball travels to Jacksonville for its regular season finale on Saturday to face the Jacksonville State Gamecocks and defend its fifth-seed placement in the OVC Tournament. Tipoff is slated for 4:45 p.m. inside Pete Mathews Coliseum.
About the Golden Eagles
Tech enters the regular season finale looking to garner a statement win and snap a three-game losing streak to end the season and tie for fourth or secure a fifth-seed placement in the OVC tournament.
Tech's scoring is led by junior Kesha Brady, who is averaging 14.5 points per game this season. Juniors Mackenzie Coleman and Jordan Brock have also averaged double-figure scoring this season for the Golden Eagles, averaging 11.6 and 10 points per game, respectively.
The Golden Eagles rank first in the OVC in 3-point field goal percentage (.350), assists (427), assist/turnover ratio (1.06), assists per game (15.3), fewest fouls (416), and personal fouls per game (14.9). As a team, Tech averages 69.7 points per game, while allowing only 64 points per game.
About the Gamecocks
Jacksonville State bounced back from a 73-56 loss against UT Martin on Thursday with a 63-45 victory over the Tennessee State Tigers.
The Gamecocks duo of Destiney Elliott and Taylor Hawks lead JSU, averaging 12.7 and 11.5 points per game, respectively. Hawks also leads the team in assists, dishing out 2.8 per contest, and steals, collecting 1.5 per game this season. Defensively, Chloe Long leads the Gamecocks on the boards, averaging 6.9 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game.
In the OVC, the Gamecocks rank first in fewest turnovers (389) and turnovers per game (13.9). Nationally, the Gamecocks rank 21st in 3-point field goals attempted (679) and 25th in 3-point field goal defense (.275).
Tech vs. Jacksonville State
Tech leads the all-time series over Jacksonville, 23-11. The Golden Eagles hold the advantage in Cookeville, 12-5, and in Jacksonville, 11-5. However, the Gamecocks hold a 1-0 advantage at neutral locations. In their last meeting, Jacksonville State earned a 66-50 victory over the Golden Eagles during Tech's Education Day on Feb. 13.
Last Time Out
Following a 46-44 Tech lead, the Belmont Bruins locked down to outscore the Golden Eagles 22-8 over the final eight minutes of play to defeat Tech 68-52.
Junior Mackenzie Coleman netted a team-high 18 points, shooting 78 percent (7-of-9) from the field, a perfect 100 percent (3-of-3) from 3-point range, and 50 percent (1-of-2) from the line. She also added a team-high six rebounds, two blocks, and two assists in the win. Fellow junior Jordan Brock and senior Akia Harris also turned in solid performances, netting nine points and eight points each, respectively.
Senior Anacia Wilkinson tallied three blocks in the contest, putting her at 200 career blocks and becoming the first Golden Eagle to ever surpass the 200-block mark during their career. Harris' pair of assists in the contest put her in sole possession of sixth place for career assists in the Tech record books.
Stingy Defense
The Golden Eagles have held 18 of their 28 opponents below 70 points this season, 12 of which were held below 60 points. Through 28 games, the Golden Eagles have surrendered just 64 points per game. Since the beginning of the 2018-19 season, the Golden Eagles hold a 29-6 advantage when holding opponents to 65 points or less.
Record-breaking Career
Anacia Wilkinson became the Tennessee Tech career-leader in blocked shots with 200 rejections to date, which also marks her as the first ever Golden Eagle to surpass 200 blocks during their career. The record was previously held by Melinda Clayton from 1986-90, who tallied 194 career blocks. Wilkinson also set the school record last season for blocked shots in a season with a dominant 92 blocked shots, as well as tying the single-game record for blocks twice during her career with nine against Tennessee State during the 2018-29 season and a second time earlier this season against Morehead State on Jan. 4. Wilkinson leads the Tech record books in blocks per game, averaging 2.0 per contest throughout her career.
Dropping Dimes
Akia Harris gained sole possession of sixth place for career assists in Tennessee Tech program history after dropping a pair of dimes against the Belmont Bruins on Thursday, dishing out 499 assists so far.
Approaching Milestones
Jordan Brock has netted 989 career points as a Golden Eagle, putting her just 11 points away from breaking the 1,000-point mark and becoming the 31st Golden Eagle in school history to achieve the feat. She has also been a dominant long-range threat for the Golden Eagles ever since arriving in Cookeville. Brock currently sits 2nd all-time at Tech in made 3-pointers with 211 through 90 contests and 15 away from breaking the school record, held by current assistant coach Allison Clark.
Akia Harris has also collected 971 points throughout her career at Tech and is just 29 points shy of becoming the 31st player in Tech history to surpass the 1,000-point mark during their career as a Golden Eagle. She has also collected 499 assists, ranking sixth in program history, and needs just one more to become the sixth in program history to surpass 500 career assists.
A Look Ahead
The Golden Eagles will prepare for the OVC Tournament from March 4-7. Tech will play its first game on Thursday, March 5 with its opponent to be determined by seeding after the Jacksonville State game.
Photo by Thomas Corhern
