2015 Lady Hawks Schedule
2015 Hawks Scheule

ROME, Ga. – The preliminaries clashes are over. The Gulf South Conference battles have arrived.

After opening the 2015-16 season with solid starts, the Shorter men's and women's basketball teams are now turning their attention to the start of what will be a long and hard slate of games in what is considered one of the toughest Division II conference in the nation when the Hawks and Lady Hawks hit the road for a pair of GSC tests visiting Union in Jackson, Tenn., on Thursday and Christian Brothers in Memphis on Saturday afternoon.

"We have shown the ability to be a good offensive team," Lady Hawks head coach Vic Mitchell said as the team carries a 3-0 overall record into the first of 22 GSC outings, "but now it's a matter of whether or not we can do it in the Gulf South Conference. Now I want to see just where we are and how we respond to what we have ahead of us."

"I've tried to prepare them for what they'll be up against," said Hawks first-year head coach Tyler Murray, who has seen his squad roll up a 4-1 slate – they opened the year with four straight wins – in their non-conference games. "This is one of the best Division II conferences in the nation. There are really good coaches and players on every team and it's a very structured league."

The Lady Hawks' three victories – two against Clark-Atlanta and the third versus Hiwassee – provided Mitchell with an insight of what is working and what needs to be addressed.
What the team has done thus far is shown in their three wins that they are a solid foundation at both ends of the court to build on as Shorter is averaging 83 points a game while allowing foes a 55.3 average.

Heading up the offensive firepower is 6-foot-2 junior Taylor Adams and senior point guard Shakierya McClendon, with Adams holding her own inside leading the team averaging 14.7 points and 11.3 rebounds a game and McClendon sporting an 11.7 ppg mark and averaging nearly four assists.

Senior Tamarr Williams is also averaging in double digits chipping in 10.7 points and freshman Kayla Tillie getting her career off to a fast start averaging 9 points.

"There haven't been a lot of surprises," Mitchell said. "We expected Taylor and 'Peach' (McClendon) to do what they've been doing and Tamarr has picked up where she left off last season when she led us in scoring at the end of the year.

"But we're also getting contributions from other players," the coach added, noting the combined presence in the lane by junior forward Shaundricka Mann and sophomore forward Jackie Hudson, and the contributions in the backcourt by senior guards Madison Rice and Maggie Peeples. "Shaundricka and Jackie are giving us consistency at their position, and we're getting good leadership."

Mitchell, however, and the Lady Hawks clearly understand that consistency will be the key when they step on the GSC hardwood, a factor that became clear to them in a 53-33 exhibition setback at Division I Samford, a game in which Shorter – the team is hitting 50 percent of their shots from the floor and have a 47 percent accuracy from three-point land – could never get its offense on track.

"They were physical and solid on defense, just like what we'll see from the teams in the conference," said Mitchell. "It was a wake-up for us. We know that we have to be able to play well consistently on offense."

The Lady Hawks will get to see immediately if they can do just that as Shorter's first GSC foe of the season is against the defending conference champion and currently ranked No. 11 in the national Division II poll, Union, which comes into the game with a perfect 6-0 record.

"They haven't missed a beat," Mitchell said about the Lady Bulldogs, who transitioned from the NAIA to the NCAA at the same time Shorter did. "It's a tremendous challenge and a great opportunity.

"But it's just the first of 22 conference games," he said. "We have a long schedule after that but we want to play consistently night in and night out."

Not surprisingly, the Hawks share just about the same early-season start and looking challenges when they tip off their GSC schedule.

Despite opening the year with an almost new lineup, the Hawks – they have yet to play a home game – reeled off four straight wins coming out of the gate, knocking off LeMoyne-Owen, Trevecca Nazarene and Stillman, before suffering their first defeat last week to North Georgia, 102-82, despite a 46-point night by junior guard Phil Taylor.

"We can score enough points to be competitive in every game," Murray said, pointing out that the team averages 88.6 points per game but yields 85.2 points, "but we've got to be better defensively."

Specifically, the coach points out, is doing a much better job rebounding as the Hawks, who will be outsized in most of their games this season, are being outrebounded by a minus-15 margin a game.

"Everybody's got to box out and scrap for the ball," said Murray. "We've got to collectively make rebounding a group effort. We get in trouble when we let teams play volleyball under the boards. We have to emphasize that every game."

Still, the Hawks have clearly shown the ability to put the ball in the hoop, with Taylor serving as the spark to the fireworks.

Thanks to his 46-point performance at North Georgia, the ninth most scored in a game in GSC history, Taylor gets his first taste of conference ball leading not only the league but the entire Division II nation with a 31.6 scoring average.

Junior Alijah Bennett also makes his GSC debut having started his career at Shorter on a bright note, averaging 16.6 points, junior Cole Birchfield joins the double-digit club with a 12.4 average and holding his own inside is 6-foot-6 junior forward Chris Daniels, who is averaging 9.2 points and 6.4 rebounds.

Union will certainly give the Hawks a quick indication of where they stand in the conference as the Bulldogs have a perfect 6-0 record, their most recent win coming on the road when they upset No. 16-ranked Drury.

"Margin of error – we've been emphasizing that for the last two weeks," said Murray. "Our margin of error is very, very small. We can't make mistakes."

The Lady Hawks take the floor first at Union tipping off at 7 p.m. (ET) with the Hawks following ay 9. In Saturday at CBU, the Lady Hawks and Hawks play at 3 and 5 p.m., respectively.
Both teams return home for their first GSC matchups on Saturday, Dec. 12 when the Lady Hawks (2 p.m.) and Hawks (4 p.m.) host Valdosta State, and on Monday, Dec. 14 Shorter welcomes West Florida to the Winthrop-King Centre at 6 and 8 p.m.