Longwood Opens Home Slate Saturday with ETSU
Women's Basketball
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The Opening TipÂ
•   The Lancers host the East Tennessee State Buccaneers in their home opener in the friendly confines of Willett Hall after opening the 2020-21 season on the road at Duke.
•   Longwood went 7-8 in Willett Hall in the 2019-20 season, with home court advantage helping propel the team to a nine-win turnaround and a home Big South playoff game. The seven wins at home were the most since the team joined the Big South in 2012-13 and the most since posting a 7-5 record at home in the 2009-10 season.
•   Longwood returns nine letterwinners from the 2019-20 campaign, including reigning Big South Freshman of the Year and All-Big South First Team member Kyla McMakin, who was also selected to the Preseason All-Big South First Team this fall, and All Big South Freshman team guard Anne-Hamilton Leroy.
•   Senior point guard Tra'Dayja Smith became the first player in Longwood history to be named to the preseason watch list for the Nancy Lieberman Award, which honors the nation's top point guard.
Last Time Out
•   Despite 24 points from reigning Big South Freshman of the Year Kyla McMakin and a double-double from junior forward Akila Smith, the Lancers (0-1) dropped their season opener to the Blue Devils, 94-64 Wednesday afternoon at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C.
•   Duke (1-0) offset McMakin and Smith's production with a balanced offense that produced five players in double-digit scoring, and a size advantage that yielded a rebounding advantage of 53-29.
•   Longwood also got eight points from Adriana Shipp in her collegiate debut, six points from Big South All-Freshman selection Anne-Hamilton LeRoy, and five points, three assists and three steals from senior point guard Tra'Dayja Smith.
By the Numbers
•   Longwood's offense finished the 2019-20 season ranked second in the Big South in scoring offense, racking up 67.9 points per game, and the team returns 77.6% of it's scoring from a season ago.
•   The Lancers knocked down 32.9 percent of their three-pointers, good for the second best mark in the Big South. Kyla McMakin led the team with 2.4 made triples per game.Â
•   Longwood blocked shots at an eye-opening rate, leading their conference with 176, more than 50 greater than second place. Leading the block party at the rim was Akila Smith, who shattered Longwood's block record with a league-best 74 rejections.
•   The Lancer defense also ranked third in the conference in steals per game with 9.0 steals per game, while forcing 16.9 turnovers per game.
•   Longwood was money at the charity stripe in 2019-20, shooting a Big-South best 74.8 percent from the line. Kyla McMakin led the team in percentage at 80.4 percent after sinking 82 in 102 attempts.Â
•   McMakin paced the conference in scoring, averaging 18.8 points per game on her  way to Big South Freshman of the Year honors while breaking Longwood's freshman scoring record with 565 points. The Virginia Beach, Va. native also set Longwood's Division I single-game scoring record  with 36 points against Presbyterian on Feb. 8
•   Lancer floor general Tra'Dayja Smith was the top passer in the Big South, as her 6.5 assists per game ranked 4th in Division I. She also recorded the first triple-double in Longwood history, notching 12 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists against Charleston Southern on 1/9/2020.
•   Akila Smith's program single-season record  74 blocks gives her 98 career blocks  through two seasons, ranking her 8th in program history in career blocks, trailing Heather Tobeck's record of 158.
•   Longwood returns two starters who averaged double-digit points per game a season ago in Kyla McMakin (18.8) and Anne-Hamilton LeRoy (11.1). Graduating senior Dayna Rouse also averaged double figures in 2019-20 (15.0).
Series History
•   ETSU and Longwood square off for the first time in over 43 years, their first matchup since 1977.  Â
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•   The Lancers defeated the Bucs in the team's first matchup, grabbing an 82-63 win.
•   Saturday's game will serve as the season opener for ETSU, as the Lancers opened their season on Wednesday at Duke, dropping a 64-94 decision. Â
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