Jags Fall to Lady Braves in SWAC Opener

“Let’s Do It Again,” had been their motto all season. But doing it again (winning the Southwestern Athletic Conference title) was not to be for the Southern University women’s basketball team (17-8 overall, 13-5 SWAC).
On Tuesday, March 11, the fourth-seeded ladies were defeated 62-50 by the Lady Braves of Alcorn State University (18-12, 11-8), the number five seed, stopping their run for a second SWAC tournament title.
“They (Lady Braves) controlled the game. They out-hustled us,” said Jaguars head coach Sandy Pugh. “They simply wanted it more than we did.”
In only her second season with the Jaguars, Pugh managed to lead the team to both the 2002 SWAC regular-season and tournament titles.
Pugh, along with last year’s conference scoring leader Jackie Winfield and Tammy Bullock, posted a 26-5 overall record, going 17-1 in the SWAC play. The 2002 season ended with an 88-61 loss to the Lady Buffs of the University of Colorado in the first round of the NCAA women’s tournament.
“Last season we had Jackie and Tammy who were constantly stepping up their game,” said Pugh. “This year we had the talent, but I never felt like they stepped up to the level of the playing field.”
Leading the field for the Lady Braves were Tnonealyer Powers and LaToya Johnson, who both put up 15 points.
“They really only had one shooter, but we could not contain her,” said Pugh.
Lady Braves’ senior Zandra Hall gave the Jags a hard time with her skillful handling of the ball. Hall had nine assists in the match-up. Keairra Levy finished with 13 points and Candace Roberts put up 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Jaguar freshman guard Rolanda Monroe, who left the game late in the second-half due to foul trouble, posted 12 points and seven rebounds while Angie Bullock led the team with 13 points and nine rebounds.
Monroe, who was voted SWAC Freshman of the Year, has been an empowering force for the Jaguars all season long.
“We have five seniors, but it was a freshman that we had to depend on,” said Pugh. “When a team has five seniors, you really expect them to have a certain level of maturity. To know when to step up their game…I have been fighting with this team all season…the good thing is now I don’t have to.”
But Pugh will admit that the team was not entirely to blame in the loss.
“We made some bad catching moves,” said Pugh. “When we went up by seven I subbed so I could get some fresh bodies in the game, but we just did not have the bench.”
With this season being done and over with, the women can only look ahead to the season to come.
“There are going to be more championships for this program,” said Pugh. “When you have such a talented pool winning-it’s going to come.”