TUSKEGEE, Ala. | The basketball regular season wraps up around the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference this week, and the Tuskegee University programs will wrap up with their finale on Monday against Miles College at Bill Harris Arena in Birmingham.
The games will tip off with the women at 5:30 pm, followed by the men at 7:30 pm.
The Tuskegee (5-19, 4-11 SIAC) women find themselves battling for seeding as they find themselves seventh with just one conference game remaining. They will need some help to move up the standings as a win, coupled with a loss by Lane to Central State (and a Stillman loss to Fort Valley State) would move them to fourth in the West Division. A loss would leave them at sixth, but a loss and a Stillman win would put the Tigerettes at seventh in the division.
Rachel Brownlee, who has scored in double figures in 21 consecutive games, leads the Tigerettes in scoring at 17.3 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game. She has scored in double figures in 23 of 24 games this season, and scored 14 in a 51-32 loss to Miles earlier this season.
Aryana Jackson is second on the team in scoring at 15.5 points per game, and returned to action on Saturday after missing the two previous games.
Uche Ibebunjo comes off the bench and averages 6.2 rebounds per game, while
Jesslyn Mahone leads the team at 3.0 assists per game.
Meanwhile, they will be facing a Miles team that is guaranteed the number two seed heading into the conference tournament next week and having their best season in four years. The game will feature two teams with opposite streaks, as Miles has won four-of-five while Tuskegee has dropped three consecutive games.
On the men's side, Tuskegee (13-11, 9-8 SIAC) looks to avenge an earlier season loss to Miles (76-71) at Chappie James Arena in which
Joshua Culver led the way with his first career double-double at 18 points and 10 rebounds.
The Golden Tigers find themselves in the fifth seed heading into the final game of the regular season. With a win, they would move to the fourth seed due to the tiebreaker with LeMoyne-Owen. However, a loss and they would need some help to keep the fifth seed. They would need a loss by Kentucky State and a loss by Central State to maintain their seeding with a loss on Monday night.
James Eads leads the Golden Tigers in scoring at 11.1 points per game, while
Elijah McMillan and
Camden Foster are averaging 10.3 points per game. Foster leads the team in rebounding at 6.3 rebounds per game, while McMillan is grabbing 5.7 per game.
Kevin May leads the team in assists with 118 total assists – a new season high for the senior – and is averaging 4.9 assists per game.
Tuskegee has been one of the best defensive teams in the country this season, ranking at or near the top 10 for most of the season and allow just 65.9 points per game this season.
Miles is in a battle for the second seed in the West Division and needs a win over the Golden Tigers to secure the seeding for the tournament after losing two-of-three heading into the battle Monday night.
Seeding for the tournament will officially be announced by the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference office later this week.
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