No. 13 women's basketball opens season against Augusta Saturday

GREENWOOD – The No. 13-ranked Lander women's basketball team is set to open its 2020-21 season inside Finis Horne Arena against Augusta in a non-conference game at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.

QUICK HITTERS

Where to Watch: Bearcat Broadcasting Network

Live stats: LanderBearcats.com

First Met: 1977 (76-62 Augusta)

Last Met: Feb. 5, 2020 (85-61 Lander)

Last Five For Lander: 5-0

Next Game For Lander: Jan. 2, 2021 vs. Belmont Abbey (1:30 pm)

STORYLINES

This will be the 67th meeting between Lander and Augusta. The Jaguars lead the series 34-32, but Lander has won 13 consecutive games against Augusta.
Lander is 24-20 all-time in season openers.
A win would give Lander its fourth consecutive season-opening win, which would tie the program record set from 1978-81.
Lander hasn't opened the season at home in back-to-back seasons in over a decade.
The Bearcats finished last year as the No. 1-seed in the NCAA Southeast Regional after winning the Peach Belt Conference regular-season and tournament titles. Lander won 22 of its final 24 games before the season was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Augusta went 12-17 last season and finished PBC play with a 9-11 record.
The Bearcats were tabbed to finish second in the Peach Belt Conference Preseason Coaches Poll, while Augusta was picked seventh.
Lander lost its top two scorers to graduation in Jessica Harris and Tabitha Dailey, but returns eight of its top-11 scorers from last year.
Sophomore Zamiya Passmore was named to the Preseason All-Peach Belt Team. She averaged 14.9 points and 4.5 assists last season, leading the PBC in assists while making a team-high 30 starts.
A Bearcats has led the PBC in assists each of the last three seasons and five times in the past six years.
Lander led the Peach Belt and was seventh nationally in steals with 390 last season.
The Bearcats bring four freshmen into the fold in 2020-21. Natalia Crooke was named a finalist for 2020 Florida Dairy Farmers Miss Basketball award, Tyasia Freeman earned a spot on the Georgia Coaches Association 4A South All State Team, Kayla Sesberry led Douglass H.S. to back-to-back GHS AA state championships, and Sydney Wyatt was a Greenville News First-Team All-Upstate selection.
Lander enters the season ranked No. 13 in the D2SIDA Preseason Poll after being ranked in the final four D2SIDA polls of the 2019-20 campaign, including finishing the year ranked. No. 13.
Augusta shot 70.2 percent from the free-throw line last season, good for second-best in the PBC.
Lander was ranked in the top-25 nationally in multiple categories last season, including steals (7th), turnovers forced (8th), steals per game (10th), scoring offense (12th), assists per game (15th), assists (16th), turnover margin (18th), winning percentage (18th), and free throw attempts (20th).
The last game Lander played was the Peach Belt Conference Tournament championship against North Georgia, which saw the Bearcats use a 40-7 run to earn a 76-62 victory.
The Bearcats spread the scoring around last season with three players averaging at least 10.0 points per game. Sophomore Makaila Cangé is Lander's leading returning rebounder after averaged 5.6 boards per game last year. Junior Miriam Recarte led the Bearcats last season with 1.7 blocks per game.