By Jeff Thompson
Sports Editor
With the beginning of basketball season right around the corner, the men’s and women’s basketball teams begin play at home.
The Lady Bulldogs will start their season off with a special exhibition game at 7 p.m. Nov. 8, whose proceeds will benefit Birth Choice, a pregnancy resource center in Jackson.
“I think it’s an opportunity for our community to see some good basketball and for us to give back to our community through monetary means to Birth Choice,” said Mark Campbell, head coach of the women’s basketball team. “I think it is a central ministry in our area that helps young women dealing with pregnancy, and it shows our concern for life.”
The Bulldogs start off their season in play against Central Baptist College at 4 p.m. Nov. 10.
This season, both teams are expecting tough matchups as they compete in their final transition year in the Gulf South Conference.
“One of the hardest things is that prior to this season we had a pretty constant pool of teams that we would play, and we would have pretty good idea of what these teams were like,” head coach David Niven said.
He added he plans to scout the teams to examine their strengths and strategize on how his team can combat those strengths.
“There are only two teams on our schedule that we have ever played, so every night we are playing someone that we’ve never played before,” Niven said.
After the home opener, the men will start their season on the road, playing Southeastern Oklahoma State University and then Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, Ark.
Coach Niven said he is striving to see consistency on his team and hopes hard work and unity will help them overcome any challenges they encounter.
The women’s team will next compete in the annual Union Lady Bulldog Classic, will feature Brevard College and Clayton State University.
The women’s roster will include senior Hope Adams Curtis, who was part of Union’s 2011 national title team, and seven new players that include standout Carly Daniel, a 6-foot-2 freshman who was named Tennessee’s Miss Basketball in 2011 at Wayne County High School in Waynesboro, Tenn.
