MOUNT BERRY, Ga. - Berry's women's and men's basketball teams will tip off Southern Athletic Association play Saturday at The Cage Center as the Vikings squads welcome Oglethorpe. The women will tip at 4 p.m. with the men scheduled to get started approximately 6 p.m.
Women's Preview
Saturday's contest will feature the teams picked to finish second and third in the SAA standings this season in the preseason poll of the league's coaches. The Vikings were selected third with 41 points in the poll, with the Stormy Petrels slotted in second with 46 points.
Berry won the two meetings during the regular season with Oglethorpe in the regular season, but OU got the biggest measure of revenge in the SAA Championships, topping BC in the semifinal round to end the Vikings' season.
So far, the Vikings are 3-4 on the young campaign, with a 62-57 win over Brevard last Tuesday night at The Cage standing as the most recent result. Four players scored in double-figures for BC, led by
Sarah Wright's 15.
Oglethorpe's most recent game was last Sunday and saw the Stormy Petrels fall on the road at LaGrange, 69-65. OU's scheduled game against Emory last Tuesday night was postponed due to health and safety issues impacting the Stormy Petrels' roster. The Stormy Petrels are 2-3 on the season.
Men's Preview
Berry and Oglethorpe continued a tremendous rivalry in 2021-22. Oglethorpe won the first contest of the season, 83-80, in Atlanta. Berry returned the favor in the regular season finale, 62-58, at The Cage to win the SAA Regular Season Championship and the right to host the league's post-season event. The two teams would inevitably meet in the final, with Berry earning a 63-62 win to clinch back-to-back SAA post-season tournament championships.
Chase Ellis was the Most Valuable Player of that tournament. This season, Ellis has already been named SAA Player of the Week one occasion while leading the team in scoring this year with 14.3 points per game. Just behind him is
Braxton Benham with 14.0 points per contest and 3.43 assists per game.
Berry is undefeated so far for the 2022-23 campaign, with a 72-65 win over Maryville on the road Tuesday night keeping BC undefeated. Oglethorpe is 3-2 overall, with its last countable game coming Nov. 20 against Warren Wilson, a 102-80 win for the Stormy Petrels.
This will be the only SAA game on the 2022 portion of the 2022-23 schedule for Berry. The two BC teams will return to SAA play in Jackson, Miss., against Millsaps Jan. 6, but will have non-conference and exhibition games before that day.
