Opponent:
Salem at Montreat | Montreat, N.C. | McAlister Gymnasium | 2 p.m.
THREE FOURTH'S OF THE WAY DONE
The Salem basketball team has two road games left on its current four-game road swing, including Saturday afternoon's clash with Montreat at 2 p.m. The Spirits suffered setbacks to both Johnson & Wales (69-59) and Ferrum (84-70) in the first two games of the four-game stretch. The road swing concludes in Rocky Mount, N.C., when Salem takes on N.C. Wesleyan on January 3, 2024.
SAMPSON SHINES IN CLASH WITH FERRUM
Dionne Sampson led four Salem players in double figures, scoring 21 points, but it was a 21-point third quarter outburst that made the difference as Ferrum earned an 84-70 victory at Schwartz Gymnasium in non-conference action on Friday evening.
Sampson topped the 20-point mark for the second time this season by hitting 8-of-17 from the floor, 3-of-6 from 3-point range along with a pair of free throws. Meanwhile, Cree Bass delivered 13 points in 23 minutes in reserve. Bass finished 5-of-9 from the floor and was successful on 3-of-6 from 3-point range.
Alize Munn reached double figures with 12 points, also finishing 5-of-9 from the floor, while Ti'Erra Lee rounded out double-digit scorers with 11 points by virtue of a 5-for-7 outing. Lee also climbed the boards for a game-high five rebounds, while equaling Sampson for the team lead in steals with two.
Salem finished 26-of-62 (41.9%) from the floor and was 6-of-14 (42.9%) from beyond the arc.
SAMPSON, SPIRITS MAKING THEIR MARKS EARLY IN 2023-24
Through the first eight contests of the season the Spirits have had two double-double performances, both from senior Alize Munn, along with Dionne Sampson moving her career totals to over 700 points.
Munn became the first player in the 2023-24 campaign to notch a double-double, which came as part of a 17-point, 14-rebound performance against Trinity (D.C.). She followed that by having 27 points and 10 rebounds in the clash with Agnes Scott.
Sampson, who entered the season with 675 points to her credit, has scored 140 points in the first seven contests of the season. With 815 points in her career, including eight double-digit performances in 2023-24, Sampson needs just 185 points to reach 1,000 in her career. She would become the fourth different Spirit to reach that milestone. The others include Sabrina Shepherd (1,493), Quntashea Lewis (1,208) and MiKayla Seivers (1,126).
SAMPSON, MUNN PROVIDE GUIDANCE FOR SALEM OFFENSE
The tandem of Dionne Sampson and Alize Munn lead the way for a Salem offense that has amassed 530 points (64.9 ppg) through the course of the first eight games of the season. They have accounted for 49.2 percent of the Salem offense, scoring a combined 261 points along the way.
Munn leads the way in field goals made (49), one more than Sampson on the season, but it is Sampson that tops the duo in 3-point field goals (six). Sampson is also the team leader in free throws made (38), posting a 73.1 free throw percentage through the first eight games. Munn, with a 55.1 shooting percentage, tops all Salem shooters on the slate.
Teammate Cree Bass has provided a spark off the bench with 13 3-point field goals, a team high, while first year's Nykerah Engle and Aliyah Corpening have converted 20 and nine free throws, respectively, to give head coach Sharee' Boyd five players with at least 40 points.
DEFENSE, DEFENSE, DEFENSE
Through the first eight games of the 2023-24 campaign only two teams team, Bob Jones (72) and Ferrum (84), have topped the 70-point plateau on Salem. The Spirits have allowed the opposition to average just 63.8 points per contest this season.
One of the primary improvements defensively has been the ability to rebound the ball, which has resulted in a 314-328 (-14) differential on the glass. Alize Munn leads all Spirits with 52 rebounds, 11 more than teammate Ti'Erra Lee and 19 more caroms than both Cristina Battistini and Lily Gorum, who have 32 boards apiece.
Munn has snapped down a team-best 30 defensive boards, while Lee is fourth with 21. Cree Bass accounts for the second-most defensive rebounds (23), while Aliyah Corpening is third with 22.
Another key to Salem's defensive successes in 2023-24 has come in the form of steals. Through eight games, the Spirits have forced 109 steals, giving them a 34-steal advantage over the opposition. In the last five seasons, Salem has twice finished with at least 225 steals, which came in 2017-18 (248) and 2021-22 (243). The program record for most swipes in a season belongs to the 2012-13 unit, which tallied 408 in 28 contests.
SALEM, MONTREAT CLASH FOR SECOND TIME EVER
Saturday's game marks just the second time in program history that the Spirits will face Montreat.
The two teams met on only one occasion, January 19, 2009, with Montreat prevailing by an 85-61 margin in that contest.
Michala Michaux led the way for the Spirits in that meeting, delivering 20 points and seven rebounds. She was one of three Salem shooters with double-double scoring performances, along with Jessi Watts (14) and Courtney Sauer (10). Teammate Sarah Smith was also active on the boards with six rebounds, including five on the defensive glass.
Kelsey Rector came off the bench to score six points for Salem in the setback to Montreat.
BREAKING DOWN THE CAVALIERS
Montreat comes into Saturday's clash with a 6-6 mark on the season, dropping three straight in December. The Cavaliers suffered a 58-47 setback to Truett McConnell on December 2nd and four days later dropped an 89-50 decision to Byran College (Tennessee). In their last outing, which came against the University of Pikeville on December 9th, the Cavaliers fell by a score of 71-65.
After opening the season with three consecutive setbacks, Montreat's best stretch came from November 8th through November 30th, where the Cavaliers took down Tennessee Wesleyan (54-44), Point (66-57), Union College (Kentucky) (65-52), Kentucky Christian (72-70), Warren Wilson (73-40) and St. Andrews (81-68).
Individually, Virginia Edmondson leads all Cavalier scorers with 236 points, hitting 87-of-217 (40.1%) from the field. She has knocked down 34-of-108 (31.5%) from beyond the arc and picked up another 28 points at the free throw line.
Edmondson is joined among scoring leaders by Adrianna Gullette (183) and Rymiah Sanders (106). Gullette has come through with 50 field goals, while Sanders has accounted for 44 of her own. Teammate Aebri Graham is second among 3-point shooters with 22 field goals on the season. Gullette leads the way in free throws made with 74.
Vaniyah Petty is the top rebounder for Montreat with 79, hauling in 44 defensive rebounds and a team-best 35 offensive boards. Edmondson trails her teammate in total rebounds by 10, with 69, grabbing a team-high 53 on the defensive glass. She has also forced 34 steals. Meanwhile, Gullette leads the way with 39 assists, which is 11 more than Triniti Lockhart.