SAVANNAH, Ga. | After concluding the regular season on a three-game win streak, the Clark Atlanta women's basketball team is set to enter the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament as the first seed in the east division and is slated to take on fourth-seed Lane College at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday in Savannah, Georgia.
When asked about his team's mindset heading into the tournament, head coach Antonio Bailey had this to say, "Accountability, that's something the ladies hear me say a lot. We've pushed hard work, accountability, and no excuses. At this point in the season, complacency has no place in a championship mindset. Always pushing the fact that we have something to compete for on and off the court. We stay competitive in every drill and in our approach, that's how we've fought off complacency. We're taking that mindset into the conference tournament as well."
FOLLOW THE ACTION
Panther fans can watch the action on ESPN+.
MATCHUP PREVIEW
Wednesday's matchup will be the 20th meeting between the Lady Panthers and Dragons with Clark Atlanta boasting a 13-6 lead in the series. This matchup is also a rematch of the CAU's December 15th contest against Lane in which the Panthers prevailed to win, 71-63, in Jackson Tenn.
Clark Atlanta finished the regular season on a three-game win streak to enter the tournament with a 16-10 record overall and 14-5 in the conference.
Lane College wrapped up the regular season on a two-game skid to finish 14-11 overall and 10-9 in SIAC play.
CLARK ATLANTA
The Lady Panthers averaged 61 points per game this season while holding opponents to an average of 59.2 per contest. Clark Atlanta finished the season shooting 35.2 percent from the field, 24.1 percent from three, and 65 percent from the foul line. On the defensive end, Clark capitalized off turnovers as they scored an average of 17.9 off turnovers per game while only allowing opponents 14.7 per game.
CAU placed two players in double-figure scoring this season led by Corriana Evans with 13.9 points per game and Janiah Ellis with 12.2 per game. Evans ended the season with 10 double-double performances during the 2022-23 campaign and nabbed an All-SIAC Second Team honor.
Evans also pulled down a season-high 17 rebounds in the win over Lane College on December 15th.
Ellis logged an average of 2.4 assists per game to lead the Lady Panthers in facilitating the ball this season.
LANE COLLEGE
The Lady Dragons have outscored opponents by an average of 1.8 points per game this season (68.0-66.2). Kayla Simmons leads the Dragons in scoring with a 14.8 point per game average Simmons also leads the team in rebounding after pulling down an average of 9.2 per contest on the season
Lane posted a 10-9 record in the conference with a 14-11 record overall for the regular season.
