By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Hooper Eblen Center will be rocking Thursday morning as school children around the Upper Cumberland will converge on the arena for Tennessee Tech Women's Basketball's annual Education Day contest between the Golden Eagles and Tennessee Wesleyan.
Tipoff for the game is slated for 11 a.m. on Thursday. Roger Ealey and Frank Harrell will have the call on 106.1 The Eagle, while Dylan Vazzano and Steve Smith will broadcast the game on ESPN+ (subscription required).
Tennessee Wesleyan comes into the game with a 5-4 record, including a 3-4 record in Appalachian Athletic Conference play. The game will count as an exhibition contest for the Lady Bulldogs, but will count for the Golden Eagles in the overall standings.
The season slate has bounced back between wins and losses with no back-to-back results to date for TWU. The Lady Bulldogs won their December 6 contest at Union 77-68, but have a trip down to South Carolina on Tuesday night to take on Columbia International before they even come into the Eblen Center Thursday morning.
Jacelyn Stone leads the Lady Bulldogs in scoring with a 12.3-point average, while Anna Crowder (9.7 ppg) and Mikalee Martin (8.3 ppg) are close to a double-digit average. Crowder is also leading the team in rebounding with a 6.0-board clip, while Sierra Bates is averaging 4.4 rebounds.
The two teams have squared off almost every year in Kim Rosamond's tenure at Tennessee Tech with only the 2020-21 season missing from the consecutive string. The Golden Eagles have won all 10 meetings in the series, including an 85-52 victory last season.
In last season's game, it was Yeika Jimenez Diaz who led TWU in scoring with 14 points off the bench, while Bates and Cambree Mayo scored seven. Reagan Hurst led the Golden Eagles with 14 points, while Peyton Carter scored 13, Maaliya Owens 11 and Anna Walker 10.
While the Golden Eagles are coming off of a 63-47 loss to Middle Tennessee this past Sunday, it was a game that showed growth on the Tech lineup as the game was much closer against similar lineups. Entering Thursday's game with a 2-6 record thus far, the Golden Eagles now enter a portion of the schedule where they can build some momentum before opening Ohio Valley Conference play on Dec. 28.
Owens leads Tech in scoring with a 12.8-point average, while Reghan Grimes is averaging 8.5 points and Reagan Hurst 8.3. Walker narrowly missed a double-double against Middle Tennessee with 13 points and nine rebounds. Grimes leads the team in rebounds at 4.6 per game, with Yaubryon Chambers leading in steals with 13, Cayla Cowart in assists with 22 and Walker in blocks with 12.
Tickets for Tennessee Tech basketball are on sale now – call (931) 372-3940, visit the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office or order online at TTUsports.com.
