JACKSON, Tenn. — Sixth-ranked Campbellsville women's basketball has put the Thanksgiving meals behind them and traveled to historic Oman Arena this weekend for the Second Annual Jackson Rotary Classic.
The Lady Tigers tipoff the Jackson Classic tonight at 5 p.m. ET facing No. 21 Montana State University-Northern. CU will then turn right around on Saturday to face a familiar foe in No. 3 Freed-Hardeman.
Both games will be aired on the Campbellsville University Sports Network, as
Matt Payton will have the radio call starting at 4:45 p.m. ET each day on 88.7 The Tiger.
Historic Oman Arena is very familiar venue for Lady Tiger basketball. The facility was home of the NAIA National Tournament for 21 years from 1990-2011 and Campbellsville has made the trip across Interstate 40 a total of 18 times during that span, including a nine-year streak from 1990-98.
The Jackson Rotary Classic is hosting 13 teams that are ranked or receiving votes in the NAIA Coaches' Preseason Poll. In addition, three of the Top 14 active coaching wins' leaders have their teams competing in the Classic. Dale Neal from Freed-Hardeman entered the year with a 639-172 record and is No. 1 on the list. Russ Davis is No. 4 with a 555-133 record and CU's
Ginger Colvin is No. 14 with a 279-73 record entering the tournament.
Campbellsville enters the Classic with an undefeated 6-0 record and are the lone Mid-South Conference team without a blemish on its record. In addition, CU is one of 11 teams in the 13 teams in the NAIA without a loss and three of them are playing this weekend in the Classic.
The Lady Tigers are coming off a pair of wins last weekend over West Virginia Tech (94-73) and No. 15 Central Methodist University (97-75).
Savannah Gregory led CU over the weekend and her performance earned her Mid-South Conference Player of the Week honors. She led the Lady Tigers to a 3-0 record last week by averaging 12 points per game. Gregory also added 11 rebounds, eight steals, and three assists during the week. Gregory hit 4-of-7 from the 3-point arc and finished hitting 13-of-19 overall. In the Lady Tigers first ranked matchup of the week, she put up 11 points and five rebounds in a 91-58 win over No. 25 Talladega College. Gregory picked up a career-high five steals to go along with 12 points against No. 15 Central Methodist University on Saturday. Her 2.33 steals per game is tied for sixth in the MSC.
Scouting the Skylights:
After reaching the NAIA Second Round last season, Montana State-Northern lost every starter and only returned four players from last year. The Skylights are coming into The Classic trying to break their first losing streak of the year after falling to Colorado Mesa (55-49) and Dixie State (77-66) - both which were exhibitions.
Shiloh McCormick leads the Skylights by averaging 12.5 points per game, while Peyton Filius pitches in 12.3 points. McCormick is a rebounding stud by ranking No. 11 in the NAIA with 7.1 defensive boards a game and 10.1 rebounds per contest. McCormick has compiled double figure rebounds in five of the six games this year but was limited to only three vs. Northwest College on Nov. 11.
As a team, Montana State-Northern ranks No. 1 in defensive boards a game (34.3) and rebound margin (+17.3). The Skylights also rank No. 2 in scoring margin (31.5) after holding opponents to 50 points or less in four of the six games this year. MSNU ranks No. 4 in scoring defense per game by allowing only 51.6 points per contest.
Friday, November 24th
| |
Home Team |
|
Visiting Team |
| 11:00am |
(4) Vanguard University |
vs |
(22) Cumberland University |
| 1:00pm |
University of Providence |
vs |
(3) Freed-Hardeman University |
| 3:00pm |
(5) Shawnee State University |
vs |
(16) Columbia College |
| 5:00pm |
(6) Campbellsville University |
vs |
(21) Montana State University-Northern |
| 7:00pm |
(RV) Martin Methodist College |
vs |
(19) MidAmerica Nazarene University |
| 9:00pm |
(11) Bethel University |
vs |
(7) Westmont College |
Saturday, November 25th
| |
Home Team |
|
Visiting Team |
| 11:00am |
(22) Cumberland University |
vs |
University of Providence |
| 1:00pm |
(16) Columbia College |
vs |
(4) Vanguard University |
| 3:00pm |
(21) Montana State University-Northern |
vs |
(RV) Martin Methodist College |
| 5:00pm |
(3) Freed-Hardeman University |
vs |
(6) Campbellsville University |
| 8:00pm |
(7) Westmont College |
vs |
(5) Shawnee State University |
| 9:00pm |
(19) MidAmerica Nazarene University |
vs |
(11) Bethel University |
