NEWBERRY - The Newberry College women's basketball team earned its ninth home victory by defeating the No. 12 Tusculum Pioneers Wednesday night, 77-68.
Two time SAC Player of the Week Helen McKinney (Owensboro, Ky.) led her squad to victory, earning a team high 22 points on 8-for-16 shooting from the field. She also corralled eight rebounds and five assists. Anita Bulcher (Russia, Ohio) earned her sixth double-double of the season with a team high 13 boards and 15 points.
Nikki Van Dine (Columbus, Ohio) was the leading scorer for the Pioneers, scoring 20 points on 6-for-15 shooting from three-point range. Kat Spears (Memphis, Tenn.) also played well and earned a team high eight rebounds. She also racked up 12 points and two steals.
Tusculum struck first Wednesday night and earned a quick 16-9 lead in the first few minutes of the game. Their lead eventually ballooned up to 11 points, but the scarlet and gray never let the lead grow any larger. NC slowly climbed back into the game but still trailed at the half, 43-40.
The game was close at the half and so were the statistics. Both teams shot 41% from the floor but Tusculum had the edge in three-point shooting by going 5-for-10 from downtown. Newberry stayed in the game by earning 14 points in the paint and shooting 12-for-14 from the foul line.
Janine Ward (Tallevast, Fla.) pushed the action in the first half by scoring nine points and pulling down four boards. Laura Marquardt (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) and Bulcher also earned nine points in the opening period. Van Dine earned a team high 12 point in the first half, all from three-pointers.
Tusculum started the second half by going up 49-42, but their lead would not last long. The scarlet and gray took their first lead of the contest by going on an 18-4 run that erupted the crowd at Eleazer Arena. The ladies of NC kept their foot on the gas as their lead never shrunk to less than five points. The pressure paid off as the scarlet and gray went home with a nine point victory.
Newberry dominated the paint on both sides of the court in the second half. They scored 18 points down low and held Tusculum to only four. The scarlet and gray also held the No. 12 team in the nation to only six field goals in the final 20 minutes. McKinney owned the final period by scoring 17 of her 20 points.
In the end, the game came down to excellent defense from Newberry. Tusculum came into the game with the second highest field goal percentage in the nation (48%), but only shot 32% from the field on Wednesday. NC also outrebounded the Pioneers, 42-36. The scarlet and gray are now 9-1 at home this season.
The win puts the Newberry College women's basketball team at 15-9 overall and 8-5 in the SAC. The scarlet and gray are now tied with Carson-Newman for third place in the conference. They will leave town this Saturday to take on Wingate at 2 p.m. No. 12 Tusculum (21-4, 11-3 in the SAC) will also hit the road this Saturday to play Brevard at 2 p.m.
