Team Effort bolsters the Skyhawks past Tennessee Wesleyan

ATHENS, Tenn. (Nov. 30, 2022) - The Point University women's basketball team returned to the court Wednesday evening for a road Appalachian Athletic Conference matchup against Tennessee Wesleyan University and came out victorious with a final score of 64-48. 

Point jumped on the scoreboard first as Mirial Cannon, and Sheyvonne Owens set the tone with the made baskets. Chinedu Nnadi added to Point's quick lead as she converted on the layup to bring it to 6-1. The Bulldogs did not stay away for long as early fouls from the Skyhawks helped TWU convert free throws to put them ahead by one. Both teams would trade baskets until Marta Gimenez started her return to the court with a three-point shot made to put the Skyhawks ahead 11-9. Point finished the quarter on a 6-2 run to lead by six in the second quarter. The Skyhawks' ball movement and consistent attacks continued to go in their favor throughout as Point wiped away TWU's chances at retaking the lead. Following a layup from the Bulldogs, Mirial Cannon scored the next two baskets for Point, followed by the conversion on the three ball from Chinedu Nnadi to put the Skyhawks ahead by 11. With under a minute left in half, Ananda Hughley responded with a strong take to the paint to extend Point to a 31-20 lead. As Tennessee Wesleyan looked to find some offense, Mataea Boyd picked off the pass from Jacelyn Stone for a steal and finished with a layup on the other end to push the Skyhawks to 13 point lead going into the half. 

Point continued to stay consistent with consistency as Destinee Ellison started the Skyhawks off with the first made basket in the quarter. Mirial Cannon showed her court vision on the next offensive possession when she connected with Sheyvonne Owens on the assist to bring their lead to 37-20. The attacks in the paint continued to add a spark for Point as their next four scores came from layups. The Bulldogs ended their cold stretch on offense as Abbey Barr made a three-point shot, but TWU still trailed by 17. Tennessee Wesleyan added two free throws to the final period trailing 45-30. 

As the fourth quarter started, Point picked up the pace on offense as the Skyhawks' hot shooting night continued with their next three shots being converted. The Bulldogs continued to creep at Point's lead after Cambree Mayo scored on a jump shot to now trail by 13. The Skyhawks gathered their focus in the timeout, and the plan to stay consistent fell into place as Marta Gimenez knocked the trey ball to push their lead back to 14. Gimenez followed on the next possession with an assist to Mirial Cannon on a made jump shot to move their lead to 56-42. As time started to wind down, Gimenez added another made three-pointer to push the Skyhawks' lead. The Bulldogs responded on the next two offensive possessions with two made three-pointers of their own until Mirial Cannon sealed the game with the final three-pointer as Point won in the end. 

In the box 

Mataea Boyd led the Skyhawks with 13 points, seven rebounds and one steal. Mirial Cannon followed with 11 points and six rebounds. Marta Gimenez returned to the court after missing time with an injury and added nine points with four rebounds. The Skyhawks shot 43.5% from the field and 37.5% from the three. 

Coach's Quote 

Head coach Tory Wooley was pleased with the team play from the Skyhawks and saw solid play throughout the game. "I'm so proud of the focus that our ladies came with coming into today's game. They truly are coming together, and it's great to see them put together a solid performance against a good Tennessee Wesleyan team. We did an outstanding job defensively, taking care of the ball, and we out-rebounded them, which I thought were key factors in today's game." 

Up Next 

The Skyhawks will return to the court on Saturday, Dec. 3, for a road AAC matchup against Kentucky Christian University starting at 12:00 P.M.