The Opening Tip
• The top two offenses in the Big South collide as Longwood takes High Point, part of a six-game road sprint to close the season.
• The six-game road stretch is the longest road swing for Longwood this season and longest since eight straight on the road in the 2012-13 season that saw them play eight straight away from Farmville. The Lancers have never played six straight road conference games since joining the Big South.
• With 11 conference wins, Longwood has already bested the program-record of eight Big South wins, set in 2012-13 and matched last season.
• The Lancers currently sit third in winning percentage in the Big South standings but second by the ratings index the should every team not complete a full, 20-game conference slate.
• Longwood is one of only two teams in the Big South to use the same starting lineup in every single game it has played this year. The five woman crew comprised of
Kyla McMakin,
Akila Smith,
Anne-Hamilton LeRoy,
Tra'Dayja Smith and
Adriana Shipp all average at least 25 minutes and eight points per game.
Last Time Out
• In another back-and-forth affair that has become a staple between Longwood women's basketball and Gardner-Webb, Gabrielle Caponegro hit a go ahead jumper with under one second remaining as the Runnin' Bulldogs pulled out a narrow 75-73 win over the Lancers on Saturday night.
• Caponegro's clutch shot snapped a three-game win streak for the Lancers (12-9, 11-5 Big South), and offset a Longwood effort in which they survived an early 15-0 Gardner-Webb run, 25-14 first quarter deficit and four-point fourth quarter deficit to take a four point lead with 1:48 remaining, 73- 69.
• However, the Runnin' Bulldogs (8-12, 8-7 Big South), celebrating their senior day at Paul Porter Arena, rallied to end the game on a 6-0 run. Lauren Bevis hit a huge three to tie the game late and Caponegro hit the game-winner in the closing seconds.
By The Numbers
• Longwood's offense leads the Big South in scoring in conference games, totaling 71.6 points per game, one of two teams, along with High Point, to average more than 70 points per game. The Lancers have scored at least 80 points seven times, going 6-1, with the four of those wins being by double digits. The team scored at least 80+ only three times in 2019-20.
• Point guard
Tra'Dayja Smith tied a single-game program record with 15 assists in the game one victory over Charleston Southern. As a team, the Lancers set a season-high mark with 23 helpers in the game, and totaled 41 assists in the two-game series with the Bucs.
• The Lancer offense has pounded the offensive glass, ranking second in the Big South with 14 offensive boards per game.
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Akila Smith leads the charge to the offensive glass for the Lancers. Her 3.9 rank 24th nationally and second in the Big South. She has grabbed 10 offensive rebounds in a game three times this season and is one of five players on the team to have at least 20 offensive rebounds with
Brooke Anya (25),
Mallory Odell (25),
Kyla McMakin (25) and
Adriana Shipp (24) joining her.
• Smith also gobbles up defensive rebounds at a high rate and is 12th in the nation in total rebounds (216), averaging 10.3 boards per game. That rebounding prowess coupled with a deft touch around the basket has allowed her to rack up 12 double-doubles, tied for seventh most in the nation.
• On defense, the Lancers are active and disruptive. They are 11th in the nation in total blocks with 111 and lead the Big South with 5.5 blocks per game while ranking fourth in the conference with 8.1 steals per game.
• Smith anchors the back line of that defense and has set the single-season blocks record now in back-to-back seasons after recording her 75th block of the 2020-21 campaign, topping her previous record of 73 set one season ago. She is third in both total blocks (75) and blocks per game (3.6). She has had at least four blocks in a game nine times this season and has 172 career blocks, surpassing
Heather Tobeck's career record of 158.
• Two players rank in the top 10 in the Big South in steals per game:
Akila Smith (2.1, third) and
Kyla McMakin (1.6, ninth). • Against ETSU, Longwood forced 32 turnovers, the most in a single game in the team's three seasons under head coach
Rebecca Tillett.
• The Lancers also boast the one of the top turnover margins in the Big South, thanks to an offense that turns the ball over only 14.3 times per game, third lowest in the Big South, coupled with a defense that forces 16.4 turnovers per game (fifth in the league). Senior point guard
Tra'Dayja Smith keys the offense, leading the Big South with 5.4 assists per game while posting a 1.6 assist to turnover ratio.
• Longwood has been lights out from the free throw line this season. The team leads the Big South with a .773 shooting percentage (283-366) from the charity stripe. Three players rank in the top five in the league, with
Kyla McMakin in second after shooting .870 (80-92),
Tra'Dayja Smith third (.866, 58-67) and
Anne-Hamilton LeRoy fifth (.800, 72- 90).
Series History
• The Lancers and Panthers meet for the 23rd time in Longwood's Division I era, and the 16th time as conference foes in the Big South
• Both matchups in 2020 were decided by just seven points, with High Point sweeping the season series
• Both matchups will be on the road, where the Lancers most recently fell 86-79 on Feb. 29, 2020. Longwood had four Lancers finish in double figures, including
Kyla McMakin, who scored 25 points to break the Longwood single-season freshman scoring record.
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