GREENEVILLE, TENN. — Anderson University women's basketball (21-9, 17-7 SAC) closed out the regular season with nine straight wins, including an 88-67 win over South Atlantic Conference opponent Tusculum (9-19, 7-17 SAC) on Saturday afternoon at Pioneer Arena.

"I thought we had a solid performance," noted head coach Jonathon Barbaree. "We talked before the game it's about winning all four quarters and today we did that." 

"The other two things were to control the boards and hit free throws," explained Barbaree. "Well, Diamond made sure that we did that with 26 rebounds of her own."

"Our bench was huge today as well, not because they just scored some points but the came in ready to defend," said Barbaree. "Ash, Zee and Diamond also did a great job scoring the ball and finding each other on the offensive end." 

"Really proud of the push we have made since the start of February, now it's time to get ready for the tournament," added Barbaree.

Senior Zamiya Passmore scored a season-high 27 points, dished out seven assists and was credited with six rebounds. Senior Diamond McDowell dominated the glass with 22 points and a career-high 26 rebounds recording her 16^th double-double of the season. McDowell's efforts on the glass helped the Trojans control the paint and out-rebound the Pioneers 52-33. Junior Ashlyn Sheridan added 14 points, connecting on 4 of 7 shots from beyond the arc, while Rose Gravel came off the bench to contribute 11 points and six rebounds.

Anderson shot 46.7% from the field and 47.4% from 3-point range, pulling away with a 28-point second quarter. The Trojans also outscored Tusculum 48-30 in the paint.

Tusculum's Zoe Sharpe led the Pioneers with 12 points off the bench while Abbi Douglas added 11 points, nine rebounds and four assists for the Pioneers.

The Black and Gold finished the regular season tied for third with Wingate and will be seeded third after the tie-break scenarios. AU is ranked No. 8 in the latest NCAA Regional Rankings with the final rankings scheduled for Sunday, March 9^th at 10:30pm.

Anderson will square off with the sixth-seeded Lions from Mars Hill on March 5^th at the Rock Hill Sports and Events Center in Rock Hill, S.C. Tip-off is slated for 7:30pm.

SOUTH ATLANTIC CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT
All tournament games will be broadcast on FloSports. The SAC Women's Basketball Championship schedule is as follows:

Tuesday, March 4 (Rock Hill Sports & Event Center, Rock Hill, S.C.)
Game 1: #1 Coker vs. #8 Limestone, 5:00 p.m.
Game 2: #2 Carson-Newman vs. #7 Lincoln Memorial, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, March 5 (Rock Hill Sports & Event Center, Rock Hill, S.C.)
Game 3: #4 Wingate vs. #5 Catawba, 5:00 p.m.
Game 4: #3 Anderson vs. #6 Mars Hill, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, March 6 (Rock Hill Sports & Event Center, Rock Hill, S.C.)
Game 5: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 3, 5:00 p.m.
Game 6 Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 4, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, March 7 (Rock Hill Sports & Event Center, Rock Hill, S.C.)
Game 7: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6, 7:00 p.m.