Fast start fuels No. 24 Lenoir-Rhyne past C-N
HICKORY, N.C. – No. 24 Lenoir-Rhyne (13-3, 7-1 SAC) snapped a nine-game losing streak to Carson-Newman (8-6, 3-5 SAC) by using an 18-0 scoring run in the first half to run away with a 95-71 win on Saturday evening at Shuford Arena.
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
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25 | 46 | 71 |
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52 | 43 | 95 |
HICKORY, N.C. – No. 24 Lenoir-Rhyne (13-3, 7-1 SAC) snapped a nine-game losing streak to Carson-Newman (8-6, 3-5 SAC) by using an 18-0 scoring run in the first half to run away with a 95-71 win on Saturday evening at Shuford Arena.
"They are very good," Carson-Newman head coach Chuck Benson said. "They've got some proven college basketball players and they all have unique body types that you typically don't see. There is a lot of hold over from that Elite Eight run they made last year. Give them credit, they are a good team and kicked our tails. We will quickly turn around and get ready for two in a row at home."
The 24-point win for the Bears is tied for the largest margin of victory in the series.
The Eagles are now 0-3 against ranked competition this season.
Senior forward Jack Browder continues to score at a exceptional rate. Leading all scorers with 22 points, Browder recorded his 10th straight 20-point game. The 22-point outing brings him to exactly 1,700 points in his career. He also led C-N with eight rebounds, finishing two shy of a fifth straight double-double.
Carson-Newman fared well in the first segment of the game. A Keliese Frye layup and two Matt Bilbrey free throws had C-N up 4-0 in the first two minutes. LR would tie the game twice but C-N regained a lead on a Rylan Houck layup at the under 16 media timeout.
From that point forward, Lenoir-Rhyne would control the game and never trail again. Blessin Kimble's layup kickstarted an 18-0 scoring run to put the Bears up 24-8 halfway through the opening half. During the run, LR went seven for 11 from the field with four triples. C-N missed eight straight shots which led to more than a five-minute drought and also had four turnovers during that segment.
LR's 18-0 scoring run is the longest run by an opposing team in the past decade. It's just the second 15-0 run or greater in the past decade as well.
Three LR three-pointers ignited a 9-0 run to lift their lead out to 24 with four to play in the first half.
The final 11 points of the first half were free throws scored in the final minute. The Bears made seven of those to lead by 27 at intermission.
The 27-point halftime deficit was the largest since a 28-point deficit at Catawba in January of 2019.
A Lenoir-Rhyne three-pointer to begin the second half gave C-N its first 30-point deficit in five years. C-N's largest deficit in the game was 34, trailing 63-29 just minutes into the second half.
Carson-Newman's defense improved as the game wore on. It forced LR to miss nine of its next eight shots and a pair of Bilbrey triples made it a 67-40 game with 15 to play.
Over another three minute stretch, C-N forced LR to miss its next five shots but the deficit was still 26 with ten to play.
Over the next nine minutes of game action, the two teams never scored more than four straight points.
The back-and-forth nature of the final several minutes changed in the final 100 seconds. Four free throws from Browder and Isaac Stamper and a Braden Ilic three-pointer helped Carson-Newman finish the game on 7-0 scoring.
Despite LR scoring 43 second half points, C-N's defense forced the Bears to shoot just 29 percent from the field, their worst shooting half of the year.
Lenoir-Rhyne dominated the battle on the boards, outrebounding C-N 54-31. It's the first time being outrebounded by 20 or more by an opponent since February of 2016, also a game against LR.
The Eagles have now allowed 50 or more rebounds in back-to-back games after not seeing that happen in the last 14 years.
Four LR players scored in double digits led by Tyler Burraston's 19 points and five made three-pointers. LR's bench scored 48 points.
Carson-Newman returns home on Wednesday evening against Lincoln Memorial. Tip off with the Railsplitters is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 7:15 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on Mix 105.5 (WSEV-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live. A live camera of the broadcast crew "On Press Row" will also be available on YouTube.
Team Stats
#24 Lenoir-Rhyne
| Game Statistics | Carson-Newman | #24 Lenoir-Rhyne |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (20-60) | (29-70) |
| Field Goal % | 33.3% | 41.4% |
| Rebounds | 31 | 54 |
| Assists | 7 | 14 |
| Turnovers | 12 | 13 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 14 | 23 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 10 | 23 |
| Pts in the Paint | 28 | 34 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 9 | 16 |
| Bench Pts | 12 | 48 |
