Game Preview: The No. 11 University of North Georgia women's basketball team opens Battle of Blood Mountain play Wednesday at Young Harris before hitting the road for a Saturday afternoon showdown with USC Aiken.
Nighthawks on the Web: Both games can be found at the links above, courtesy of each opponent's sports information department. Fans can also follow the action through Twitter by following the women's basketball team (@UNGWBB).
Rankings: North Georgia jumped up three spots to No. 11 in the nation according to D2SIDA and the WBCA, each released Tuesday afternoon. UNG is No. 2 in the D2SIDA Southeast Region poll, five points behind Catawba.
Last Week: The Nighthawks swept last week's games, holding on to beat Augusta before downing Clayton State at home, 68-60.
Scouting Young Harris: Young Harris sports a 12-6 record and a 6-4 Peach Belt Conference record. Winners of three straight, the Mountain Lions sport the second-best scoring defense and field goal defense in the league. Niaya White leads YHC in scoring at 13.9 points per game, while Sarah Woghiren scores 13.7 points per contest. North Georgia is 14-4 against Young Harris and are riding a 10-game winning streak in the series. UNG is 7-2 on the other side of Blood Mountain, winning five straight dating back to a 69-59 loss on February 19, 2014.
Scouting USC Aiken: USC Aiken is 10-8 and 5-5 in league play headed into a Wednesday night matchup with Augusta to start a week inside their Convocation Center. The Pacers have won six of the last nine, but have lost two straight. Kwajelin Farrar puts up 16.7 points per game and pulls down 11.1 boards per contest. • The Nighthawks are 13-9 against USC Aiken and are on a five-game winning streak. When the two teams met on December 15, UNG earned a 64-53 win over the Pacers. Julianne Sutton led the way with 20 points, while Macey Gregg added 13 and Abbie Franklin put up 11.
Team Stats: North Georgia leads the Peach Belt in eight statistical categories, including ranking in the top 10 in the nation in two of them. UNG is second in the nation in three point defense at 24.1 percent shooting for opponents and ninth in DII in field goal percentage, firing at 47.3 percent from the floor.
Individual Stats: Julianne Sutton is the second-best scorer in the Peach Belt, scoring 17.4 points per game. She shoots the fourth best field goal percentage at 59.6 percent. Abbie Franklin ranks in the top seven in all three point shooting categories as well as third in minutes played. Kara Groover ranks sixth in boards per game and assists per game
