Tusculum Women Defeat Belmont Abbey 55-46

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Tusculum University overcame 30 percent shooting by forcing Belmont Abbey College into 25 turnovers as the Pioneers opened the 2019-20 season with a 55-46 victory in the South Atlantic Conference/Conference Carolinas Women's Basketball Challenge at King University Friday night.

Mia Long scored 13 points and added three steals for the Pioneers (1-0), who were outrebounded 44-27 by the Crusaders (0-1) but went 7-for-17 from three-point range and 20-for-25 at the foul line in the game. Both teams were hot from the field in the third quarter, as Tusculum outscored Belmont Abbey 31-26 in the period but just 24-20 for the other three quarters combined.

Kasey Johnson returned to the lineup for the Pioneers after missing last season and finished with 12 points and five rebounds in 31 minutes, including 3-for-3 from three-point range. Maddie Sutton also reached double figures for Tusculum with 12 points to go along with six rebounds.

Keyanna Spivel led the Crusaders with a game-high 16 points, hitting 10-for-11 from the foul line, but the Crusaders were just 15-for-49 from the field (30.6 percent) and converted 16 offensive rebounds into just nine points. Belmont Abbey was just 3-for-19 from three-point range in the game, including 1-for-9 in the second half.