GREENWOOD, S.C. -- Tusculum didn't just make history here Monday night, the Lady Pioneers stepped up and earned their place in history.

Down 16 points less than eight minutes into the game, Tusculum stormed back to claim its first-ever Southeast Regional championship 70-63 over top-seeded Lander.

With the win, the Lady Pioneers move on to the Elite 8 on a roll with their ninth consecutive win.

That streak and Tusculum's season looked to be at an end here Monday night in the region championship. Host Lander certainly had the home floor advantage. With nearly 2,000 rowdy fans cheering the Lady Bearcats on, Lander jumped to a 24-8 lead by the 12:27 mark.

Tusculum could have quit but didn't. Feeding off the energy of a sizable group of traveling supporters, the Lady Pioneers cut the deficit to three by halftime. Tusculum used a strong offensive and defensive game plan in the second half to seize control of the game and take the victory.

"We just had to weather the storm," said Tusculum coach Adell Harris. "I knew those first (eight) minutes would be difficult. The crowd was on the edge of its seat every time Lander touched the ball. We talked about this environment. To get an opportunity to play in front of a couple of thousand people is good. I felt like Friday and Saturday the opponent against Lander got a little intimidated because of the energy from the crowd. Lander fed off that. We just had to fight back."

The fight back was led by junior All-American guard Jasmine Gunn. She scored 30, earning tournament MVP honors to go along with the haul of postseason honors Gunn already has to her credit.

"We are determined. We are determined like never before," said Gunn, still wearing the net around her neck after the Lady Pioneers had cut it down. "We say 'take one game at a time,' and that's what we are doing. We win one game, then we concentrate on the next one."

Monday night's game looked like it was going to be Tusculum's last one. Lander was strong in the early going by getting the ball inside to Shannon McKever for easy baskets. That allowed the Lady Bearcats to go up 24-8 on a jumper by Keondra Barnes with less than eight minutes gone.

Layups by Gunn and Staci Hicks seemed to get Tusculum into the game, and then a Catherine Hintz jumper started the Lady Pioneers on a run that ultimately pulled them back to within 34-31 by halftime on a layup by Kat Spears.

Despite some turnovers early in the half and a complete lack of offensive rebounding (five for the game), Tusculum took control on both ends of the floor.

The Lady Pioneers limited Lander to 29.7 percent shooting in the second half while hitting 68.4 percent of their own shots.

Harris said the defense was key.

"If you can make them take contested jump shots in a one-and-done situation, the pressure of taking contested shots changes the whole mentality of things," she said. "All it takes is for two not to go in before it's pressing and you start doubting."

There was no doubting Tusculum in the second half. The Lady Pioneers hit 13 of 19 shots from the floor and 10 of 12 from the line.

Tusculum took the lead on a 3-pointer by Kendal Baxter with just over 17 minutes to play. Just as important, the basket took Lander's huge home crowd out of the game.

It was a tight game for the next several minutes, but when Spears hit a jumper at the 9:51 mark the Lady Pioneers never trailed again.

Gunn scored 12 of her 30 in the final seven minutes of the game to lock up the win.

Lander coach Kevin Pederson said give credit where it is due.

"Tusculum has a great team," said Pederson, whose team ends the year 27-4. "They beat three very good teams. They had a kid score 45 and 30 in back-to-back games. You keep thinking she can't possibly do it every game. We were unable to stop her."

Gunn's 30 led all scorers. Hicks finished with 11. Spears had 10. Hintz pulled in eight rebounds, earning a spot on the all-tournament team.

Tasheba Butler had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Lady Bearcats. McKever scored 15 in the loss.

The win puts Tusculum (23-9) into uncharted waters. The Lady Pioneers came from the No. 4 seed to win the South Atlantic Conference Tournament. They were the No. 7 seed in the region, becoming what is believed to be the lowest seeded team to ever win the Southeast Region.

Now it's on to St. Joseph, Mo. next Tuesday to play No. 1-ranked Gannon (36-0) in the Elite 8.

Harris said Tusculum is going to enjoy what it's accomplished, but the Lady Pioneers aren't finished yet.

"We have to enjoy this moment," Harris said. "You may never get another opportunity. We are going to enjoy it. We are going to have fun. We are going to celebrate with all the fans that showed up to support us here. It's a great time for Tusculum women's basketball. Then, when it's time to focus we'll push the reset button. I don't think I'll have any problem getting our kids focused. We are three games away from being a national champion. That's something unheard of. We are one of the final eight teams in the country. I shouldn't have to do a whole lot, but we are going to enjoy this and have fun."

TUSCULUM (23-9): Gunn 11-20 8-8 30; Hicks 3-4 5-6 11; Spears 5-6 0-0 10; Baxter 3-6 0-0 9; Hintz 3-4 0-0 6; Oliver 1-5 1-2 4; Parker 0-5 0-0 0. Totals 26-50 14-16 70.

LANDER (27-4): McKever 6-12 3-4 15; Butler 6-14 0-0 12; Myrick 2-8 3-4 8; Webb 3-7 0-0 8; Lyons 1-2 2-2 4; Barnes 2-2 0-0 4; Small 2-3 0-2 4; Judge 1-7 0-0 3; Robbins 1-3 0-2 3; Johnson 1-8 0-0 2. Totals 25-66 8-14 63.

Halftime: Lander 34, Tusculum 31

3-point goals-Tusculum 4-9 (Baxter 3-6; Oliver 1-3), Lander 5-22 (Webb 2-5; Robbins 1-3; Myrick 1-4; Judge 1-7; Johnson 0-3). Rebounds-Tusculum 29 (Hintz 8), Lander 40 (Butler 11). Assists-Tusculum 13 (Gunn 6), Lander 18 (Robbins 5; Johnson 5). Total fouls-Tusculum 14, Lander 14. A-1897.