The Tigers traveled to Berry College for the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) basketball championships on Feb. 27 and 28. The women’s team cruised past Berry College 73-49 in the semifinal round, but fell short against Millsaps College 72-66 in the championship game. The men’s team decisively won their semifinal matchup against Centre College 83-57, but dropped the championship match against Rhodes College 79-76.
Women’s basketball: Semifinal vs Berry College
The Tigers started the first quarter with a close contest against the Vikings. Both teams were tied at nine apiece five minutes into the game. Trinity proceeded to outscore Berry 13-2 to close the quarter, giving the Tigers a 22-11 lead to head into the second quarter.
The Vikings responded by holding the Tigers to eight points for the remainder of the half while scoring 11. Trinity headed into the locker room at halftime with a 30-22 lead over Berry. Trinity women’s basketball head coach Cameron Hill credited Berry’s defense, saying they make smart plays.
“Their players really understand exactly what they’re expected to do and they execute at a really high level,” Hill said. “So, it puts more pressure on taking advantage of your opportunities in transition because if you can get them cross-matched and run them to the floor, you can have success.”
The Tigers capitalized on their opportunities in the second half. Trinity’s offensive pace picked up speed in the second half, as they outscored the Vikings 43-27. The 73-49 win over Berry College earned Trinity a spot in the SAA championship game.
Men’s basketball: Semifinal vs Centre College
The Tigers opened the tournament with a large lead against the Centre College Colonels. Trinity led by as many as 21 points and ended the half with a sizable 45-27 lead.
Trinity men’s basketball head coach Marwan Elrakabawy said that the team needed to lock in defensively heading into the match against Centre. According to Elrakabawy, part of the preparation was how well the Colonels scored against the Tigers the last two times they squared off in the regular season.
“[We made] sure we identified their top scorers and kept them out of transition where they can really be really good,” Elrakabawy said. “So, that was really the point of emphasis, was just making sure we really locked in and connected defensively.”
The Colonels responded with a 12-0 run to start the second half, narrowing the Tigers’ lead to 45-39. Trinity wouldn’t surrender the lead to Centre, though. Shots continued to fall for the Tigers in the half, shooting for a field goal percentage of 54.55% while the Colonels shot for 31.71%. Trinity’s offensive performance claimed an 83-57 victory over Centre to advance them into the SAA championship game.
Women’s basketball: Championship vs Millsaps College
Millsaps began the game with an 8-2 run over Trinity in the first quarter. A quick 6-0 Tigers response aided them in keeping the championship game a close contest throughout the half, leading the Majors 38-34 at the half.
The Tigers continued to hang tight with the Majors heading into the fourth quarter. Free throws by first-year forward Emma Winans tied the game at 56 with 7:43 left to decide the conference champion. An 8-0 run by Millsaps with four minutes remaining helped seal the championship game for the Majors, as they won 72-66.
Senior point guard Kylie Minter accounted for 52 of the Tigers’ points scored in the SAA championships, leading the team in scoring with 23 points in each game. Minter said that playing teams in a new conference was challenging, especially since the team is used to regularly playing teams in their previous conference, the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC).
“It was interesting to say the least,” Minter said of the experience, “but, it doesn’t change what Trinity basketball looks like. We had the same mindset going in like every year. It’s not really about the other teams; it’s about how we perform as a team and just keeping the same energy with ourselves.”
Men’s basketball: Championship vs Rhodes College
Rhodes opened the game with a 10-0 run, putting themselves in an early position to take their third win on the year against Trinity. The Tigers trailed the Lynx 36-28 to close the half, having an 8-point deficit to work with going into the second half. Trinity’s deficit grew to as many as 22 points in the second half. However, the Tigers made a late-game rally, narrowing the margin to as few as three points within the last minute of the game to trail 79-76.
With four seconds left on the clock, Rhodes turned the ball over, giving junior guard Ben Estis a game-tying opportunity. The last-second half-court shot attempt was unsuccessful, solidifying the Rhodes College Lynx as the 2026 SAA men’s basketball champions.
Sophomore small forward Jackson Lawson led the team in scoring in the championship game, recording 19 points. Eleven of Lawson’s points came during the second-half rally.
“We were telling each other that we need to settle down a little bit and play at our speed, play our game and just play at the offensive level that we’re capable of,” he said. “I felt like we made a pretty good second-half effort.”
Looking ahead, the men’s basketball team will face Whitworth University in the first round of the NCAA playoffs on March 6. For the women’s team, their season concludes with a 16-11 regular season record and an 11-3 record against conference opponents.
