GREENWOOD – Lander seniors Shannon McKever, Tasheba Butler and Katie Hupp enjoyed a triumphant final regular-season home game as the No. 2 ranked Lady Bearcats beat Peach Belt Conference rival Augusta State 104-46 Saturday afternoon at Horne Arena.
While McKever and Butler had predictably big games, a seldom-used freshman also starred for Lander.
McKever had 23 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the floor and grabbed eight rebounds for the Lady Bearcats, scoring 17 of her points in the second half.
Butler posted a double-double with 18 points on eight-of-12 shooting and pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds.
Lander freshman Chenteih Ladson added a double-double off the bench with 18 points and 12 rebounds in 19 minutes of action. Prior to Saturday, Ladson had scored only 15 points all season.
McKever, Butler and Ladson were a combined 26-for-37 from the floor as Lander shot 57 percent (43-for-75) and posted 29 assists. The Lady Bearcats had a 48-25 edge on the boards and forced Augusta State into 32 turnovers.
Jasmine Judge added 12 points for Lander, Ciara Lyons contributed 10 points and eight assists, and Nardia Robbins nine points and six assists.
The Lady Bearcats, playing in pink uniforms in their annual WBCA Pink Zone Cancer Awareness game, finished undefeated at home.
Avenging only its second loss of the season Wednesday at USC Aiken, Lander ended the regular season at 26-2 overall and 16-2 in the PBC. The Lady Bearcats tied Aiken for the Peach Belt Eastern Conference title.
The Jaguars finish the regular season at 8-18 overall, 2-16 in the league.
Jemimah Ashby, Blaire Egardo and Jac' Weathers led Augusta State with seven points apiece, Waneta Carlisle led the Jaguars with five rebounds, and Jarquella Woods had a team-high four assists.
The Lady Bearcats will host a first-round Peach Belt Tournament quarterfinal game at 7 p.m. Wednesday against UNC Pembroke in Horne Arena. The semifinals and finals are next weekend at USC Aiken.
McKever has scored a school career record 1,681 points and also owns Lander's all-time blocked shots record. Butler has also scored more than 1,000 career points, and Hupp was a big contributor in her four years as a reserve.
Hupp joined McKever and Butler in the starting lineup Saturday and had a big moment when on Lander's first possession, Judge passed up an open trey, and Brittni Johnson found Hupp open for her first 3-pointer of the season.
Hupp would finish with three points, two rebounds, and two assists in eight minutes of action.
Judge made a pair of 3s for a 9-3 lead, and Lyons hit a jumper to give Lander a 15-6 advantage at the 12-minute mark.
Kaylyn Small scored inside, Ladson converted a three-point play and Keondra Barnes hit a jumper, giving the Lady Bearcats a 22-8 lead at the halfway point of the first half.
Judge nailed her 100th trey of the season, upping Lander's lead to 27-12 with eight minutes left.
Butler's jump shot gave the Lady Bearcats their first 20-plus point lead at 35-14 at the five minute mark. Ladson's offensive put-back gave Lander a 41-21 lead with under a minute left in the half. It was 41-23 at the break.
Augusta State pulled within 16 points three times early in the second half, the last time on Ashby's basket making it 45-29 at the 17:56 mark.
But the Lady Bearcats put the game away with a 21-2 run including McKever's four baskets, and Butler's two baskets, two assists, and two free throws for a 66-31 lead with 13:19 left.
Johnson's 3-pointer gave Lander a 75-37 lead with 10:18 to go, and her second trey upped the Lady Bearcats' advantage to 81-39 with 8:05 left.
Lander increased its lead to 44 points, 83-39, when Ladson hit two free throws with 6:49 remaining.
The Lady Bearcats surpassed the 90-point mark when McKever's 11th basket of the day made it 91-46 with 4:26 to go.
The onslaught continued as Ladson scored three baskets in a row for a 97-46 lead with 3:28 left.
Robbins' steal and layup gave Lander a 100-46 lead with 1:42 to go, and Ladson scored twice more in the final minute.
For the game, Lander made 43 of 75 shots from the floor (57 percent), 11 of 19 free throws (58 percent) and seven of 16 from behind the arc (43 percent).
Augusta State made 17 of 50 shots (34 percent), nine of 15 free throws (60 percent), and three of 14 from 3-point range (21 percent).
