By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information
FLORENCE, Ala. – It's been nearly 40 years since the Tennessee Tech women's basketball team has taken on North Alabama, but the Golden Eagles are on the road down to Florence to take on the Lions.
Tipoff on Thursday from CB&S Bank Arena at Flowers Hall is scheduled for a 6 p.m. start. Roger Ealey will have the call on 106.1 The Eagle, while Benjamin Ray and Matt Daniels will call the action on ESPN+ (subscription required).
Thursday's contest is the last non-conference action for the Golden Eagles as Tech opens Ohio Valley Conference action next Thursday in the Eblen Center with Little Rock coming into town for a rematch of the OVC tournament championship game and the winless Trojans looking to open the league campaign with a revenge victory.
But first, the Golden Eagles have to contend with the host Lions. Entering Thursday's contest with a 4-7 record, North Florida topped Samford 69-64 on Tuesday afternoon to break a two-game skid, which included a three-point loss at Chattanooga and an overtime defeat at Arkansas State.
There are a few common opponents on their slate as the Lions fell 83-72 at Missouri and 70-57 at Alabama A&M. North Alabama also defeated OVC opponent UT Martin 70-63 before the Thanksgiving break. UNA takes on Auburn on New Year's Eve before opening Atlantic Sun play on Jan. 6 against Central Arkansas.
The Golden Eagles have only faced UNA once in program history, and you have to go back to December 1, 1984, to find that contest. Cheryl Taylor dominated in the paint to collect 26 points and 22 rebounds as she was 9-for-13 on the floor and 8-for-10 at the free-throw line, while Chris Moye chipped in with 18 points as the Tech women defeated North Alabama 74-58.
UNA's offense is pretty stout as the Lions are averaging 72.55 points per game, but they are also allowing 71.82 on the defensive end. As a team, UNA is shooting .427 from the field, .339 from long-range with an average of 8.7 3-pointers a game, while shooting .791 from the free-throw line with an average of 13.5 free tosses made a game.
Alexis Callins leads the team with an average of 17.3 points a night, shooting .447 from the field and .360 from 3-point range with 68 made baskets and 32 made treys. Alyssa Clutter is averaging 11.5 points and 4.9 rebounds. Sara Wohlgemuth has a team-best 63 assists, averaging 5.7 a game, while also averaging a near-team-best 5.0 rebounds a game. India Howard has her topped on the glass at 5.1 caroms.
The Lions are averaging a strong 15.4 assists per game as UNA move the ball around, but they also average 18.8 turnovers a game.
Tech, meanwhile, comes into the game with a 4-6 record, winning back-to-back games with a 104-43 Education Day victory over Tennessee Wesleyan and a 77-59 win over Northern Kentucky on Monday night. In the last three games, including Tech's 63-47 loss to Middle Tennessee, the Golden Eagles are averaging 76 points a game, while shooting .431 from the field, .325 from 3 and .745 at the stripe. Tech has also led on the glass with a 36.7 to 31.0 average, more than doubled the amount of assists with 63 to 30, and forced nearly 23 turnovers a game.
Graduate Maaliya Owens, who scored 28 against Northern Kentucky – two short of her career-high of 30 scored against Kentucky – averaged 18.0 points in the last three games, while Anna Walker averaged 11.3 points and a team-best 6.7 rebounds in that span.
For the season as a whole, Owens is averaging 15.4 points and 4.1 rebounds, while Reghan Grimes is averaging 8.7 points and a team-high 4.6 rebounds. Reagan Hurst is averaging 8.4 points and 3.1 caroms, with Walker averaging 8.3 points and 4.5 ricochets to continue the balance at the top of the Tech charts.
As a team, the Golden Eagles are scoring 67.4 points a game and allowing 64.9. Tech is shooting .419 from the field, .344 from 3-point range with 7.4 treys a night, and .717 at the charity stripe with an average of 12.4 made per game.
After starting 0-4 on the season, the Golden Eagles have won four of the last six games, beating Stetson and Lincoln Memorial before dropping back-to-back games against Kentucky and Middle Tennessee.
Tickets for Tennessee Tech basketball are on sale – call (931) 372-3940, visit the Hooper Eblen Center ticket office or order online at TTUsports.com.
