HPU Women’s Basketball Plays UAB, Georgia Tech In Cancun Challenge

CANCUN, Mexico – The High Point University women’s basketball team is spending its Thanksgiving break at the Hard Rock Riviera Maya Hotel. The team takes on UAB on Thursday at 4:00 p.m. before playing Georiga Tech at 6:30 p.m. on Friday in the 2015 Cancun Challenge.

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LAST TIME OUT
Junior Kaylah Keys had a career night with 34 points off of seven 3-pointers while grabbing seven rebounds. However, the Panthers fell to Davidson in double-overtime by a score of 62-60 in the Millis Center on Tuesday night.

PANTHER NOTES
• Junior Kaylah Keys has 1,106 points in her career, which is good for seventh on HPU’s Division I scoring list.
• On the year, the team’s seven freshmen have been relied on heavily throughout the lineup. The group averages 47 percent of the team’s points (29.4 ppg) and 51 percent of the rebounds (19.7 rpg) while logging 65 percent of the available minutes.
• Kaylah Keys is second all-time at HPU with 148 3-pointers made in her career. She is 81 3-pointers behind Jurica Hargraves (2007-11) for the all-time lead.

SCOUTING UAB
• Like HPU, UAB has suffered two power-5 losses (Auburn and Florida State) and a close road loss to a mid-major opponent (Belmont).
• The Blazers were picked to finish eighth in the 14-team Conference USA after placing sixth last year after a posting an 18-13 record.
• UAB starts three seniors, a redshirt-sophomore and a freshman. But its the freshman Deanna Kuzmanic who paces the team with 12.3 points per game while Brittany Winborne averages 9.3 rebounds with 22 offensive rebounds already.

ALL-TIME SERIES WITH THE BLAZERS
• The Panthers and Wildcats are facing off for the 10th time with HPU leading the series 5-4.
• Davidson took last season’s meeting 76-57 at home as revenge after the Purple & White cruised to a 100-65 triumph the last time the two teams played in the Millis Center.

• High Point is 7-8 all-time against the current members of the Atlantic 10. The team went 2-0 against A-10 foes last season dropping contests at VCU and Davidson.

LAST TIME THEY MET
UAB came into the Millis Center on Dec. 17, 2013 and came away with a 58-43 win despite allowing then-freshman Kaylah Keys to pour in 18 points.

SCOUTING GEORIGA TECH
• Georgia Tech picked up its fifth win on Tuesday night besting Alabama State 80-54 behind senior Aliyah Whiteside’s 23 points.
• Whiteside is the team’s leading scorer on the year with 21.6 points per game while Katarina Vuckovic and Roddreka Rogers average double figure scoring and 6.8 rebounds apiece.
• Georgia Tech is outscoring its opponents by over 22 points per contest so far this season.

ALL-TIME SERIES WITH THE YELLOW JACKETS
• The Panthers and the Yellow Jackets have never met on the hardwood.
• High Point has posted a 23-25 record against members of the Atlantic Coastal Conference. The squad’s last win came on Dec. 2, 2011 against Pitt by a score of 82-75.

NEXT UP
The Purple & White will return to the United States on Sunday and get ready to open conference play when they host Longwood at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 1.