Longwood University Athletics

FARMVILLE, Va. - A dominant week for Longwood women's basketball where they won all three of their games, including a sweep of rival Radford, was punctuated by Kyla McMakin being named Big South Player of the Week and Adriana Shipp being named Big South Freshman of the Week, the conference announced Monday afternoon. Shipp was also recognized by College Sports Madness as the Big South Mid-Major Player of the Week.
 
Monday's sweep marks the second and third weekly awards for the Lancers in 2020-21, as Akila Smith was named Big South Player of the Week on Nov. 30. Longwood won 10 Big South weekly awards in 2019-20, including McMakin's seven Freshman of the Week wins—she is just one of six women in Big South women's basketball history to do so, as she went on to be named Big South Freshman of the year at the end of the season.
 
A member of the preseason All-Big South First team, McMakin piled up 70 points in three games to lead Longwood to its first three wins of the season, including a sweep of Radford to open Big South play. She totaled 39 points in two games against the Highlanders, and she finished the week with a season-high 31 points, her first time this season with 30+, to take down then-unbeaten Howard. The Virginia Beach, Va. native hit seven three's and added 11 assists—at least three in each game—while racking up six steals and a pair of blocks and averaging a touch under six rebounds per game.
 
A redshirt freshman, Shipp racked up 46 points over three games, including 39 points on the strength of back-to-back double digit scoring efforts in the team's sweep of Radford to start Big South play. She posted a career-high 19 points and eight rebounds in the Big South opener before topping that with her first 20-point performance to cap the sweep of Radford. She finished the week averaging 6.3 boards per game to go with six assists and two steals while knocking down seven shots from beyond the arc.
 
McMakin and Shipp's huge weeks have helped springboard Longwood to the top of the Big South leaderboard, as the Lancers average a league-best 76.9 points per game. After leading the conference in scoring a season ago, McMakin ranks second in the Big South in individual scoring, averaging 19.0 points. Their high powered offense, along with a defense that has held their opponents to a combined 36 percent from the floor while forcing 47 turnovers their last three games, has propelled Longwood to a sweep of Radford, who was picked to finish second in the Big South preseason poll, and their first non-conference win of the season over previously unbeaten Howard.
 
The Lancers will look to improve on their second-consecutive 2-0 start to Big South play when they had to Ashville, N.C. for a back-to-back set with UNC Ashville on Wednesday, Dec. 30 and Thursday, Dec. 31. 

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