JACKSONVILLE – The Jacksonville State women's basketball team hits the road for Tallahassee, Fla., as its prepares to open the 2018-19 season at Florida A&M on Tuesday night.
The Gamecocks are fresh off a record-setting 19-12 season a year ago, including a 12-6 mark in Ohio Valley Conference action to earn the fourth seed in the league's postseason tournament. Following the strong 2017-18 campaign, JSU finds itself tabbed third in the OVC preseason coaches' poll for 2018-19.
Prior to beginning its conference slate on Jan. 3, the Gamecocks embark on an 11-game nonconference schedule beginning with the Rattlers on Tuesday. It marks the second all-time meeting between the two schools, but the first on either's home floor. The two first met in a Thanksgiving tournament in 2016 at Florida Atlantic with the Gamecocks claiming a 66-54 victory. The Rattlers will make a return visit to Jacksonville next year to complete a home-and-home series.
In Jax State's tune-up exhibition against Auburn-Montgomery last week, the Gamecocks were led by its trio of seniors in
Rayven Pearson,
Brianna Perry and
Destiney Elliott. Pearson hauled in a team-high nine rebounds, while Elliott led the way offensively with 15 points, courtesy of a few of Perry's five assists. The Gamecocks found its rhythm in the second half to pull away for the 66-42 win in Centre, Ala., as Pete Mathews Coliseum on campus remains under repair for the March tornado.
Elliott's big offensive night was a bright spot as the Oneonta, Ala., native didn't need long to shake off any rust following a two-year hiatus from Div. I basketball. The former Samford standout transfer to Alabama, before arriving at JSU last year where she was forced to sit out due to NCAA transfer regulations. She was joined on the bench last season by sophomore
Jessie Day who transferred in from Troy University, and will both make their Gamecocks debuts on Tuesday night.
Between a mix of seniors and newcomers, JSU also returns sophomores
Kiana Johnson and
Taylor Hawks who saw action in all 31 games last season as true freshmen. Hawks found her stride down the stretch to lead JSU in scoring during conference games. The young duo are joined by
Chloe Long,
Jayla Walker and
McKenna Lawrence as experienced returners ready to build on last season's success.
Tip-off at Florida A&M is scheduled for 6 ET/5 CT. Links to live stats and other available sources will be available at JSUGamecockSports.com as well as shared across JSU's social media platforms when they become available. In-game updates are also available by following the women's basketball twitter account (@JaxStateWBB).
