VIDEO: Chuck Benson Interview
VIDEO: Nick Brenegan Interview
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (6-2, 1-1 South Atlantic Conference) used a suffocating defense to neutralize Tusculum's (3-5, 1-2 SAC) and stiff-arm a late Pioneer rally for an 83-73 win over the Pioneers Wednesday night at Pioneer Arena.
The double-digit road win at Pioneer Arena is the first for the Eagles at Tusculum since Jan, 6, 2016 (an 86-65 win). It also snaps a five-game losing streak to the Pioneers in the series.
"I was really pleased with what we did defensively, especially in the first half," Carson-Newman head men's basketball coach Chuck Benson said. "I told our guys at the half that no game is won in the first half. I know Tusculum basketball too well to know they weren't going to pack it in. We showed we could throw punches in the first half, but I told the team we were going to have to take some punches in the second half. We had some breakdowns, yes, but we still did enough to get the job done on the road. It's refreshing to beat a good Tusculum team."
Carson-Newman used a suffocating defense and a 25-4 first-half run to build a 40-18 halftime lead on the Pioneers. It marked the fewest points scored in a half by an opponent since the Eagles' limited Mars Hill to 20 on Feb. 6 last year. C-N shot 51.9 percent from the field in the opening stanza while limiting the Pioneers to 25.8 percent shooting.
The bulk of C-N's burst came during a 13-0 spurt that carried the lead to 23, 30-7 before the under eight media timeout. Trey Hubbard (Charlotte, N.C.) and Jarius Satterfield (Clarksville, Tenn.) sparked the surge with back-to-back fast break layups. Nick Brenegan (Greenville, S.C.) and Jack Browder (Kingsport, Tenn.) finished it with a transition three and a backdoor cut for a bucket.
"Our guys follow through with our plan was top notch," Benson said. "It was going to take that. We did a bad job against Limestone of limiting controllable mistakes. We made a big deal about fixing that today."
However, Tusculum, a team with two double-digit comebacks under its belt already this season, wouldn't go quietly into the night. After trailing by 28 in the first half, Tusculum worked the lead down to single digits with 4:13 to go following an 11-0 run. Connor Jordan canned a corner three before Bryce Jackson stole an inbounds pass to cut the deficit to nine, 68-59. However, Carson-Newman made 13-of-15 free throws in the final five minutes to ice the game.
Brenegan led all scorers with 27 points. He reset his career high on a 6-of-12 effort from three-point range.
"They are a tough team," Brenegan said. "They'd had our number. We had a specific game plan of winning the three-point battle and being more physical. I think we did that tonight."
Brenegan's six threes mark the third time he's buried that many in a game. He also drilled six earlier this season against Southern Wesleyan. He converted on 9-of-11 free throws while becoming the first Eagle to play all 40 minutes in a game since his older brother Luke (now a GA on the team) did so against the Pioneers on Feb. 2, 2022.
"He knows he has to work hard to get open," Benson said. "Our players were on the lookout for when he got catch shots. He was in there 40 minutes. We went all in on him tonight. If 40 minutes is what he needs to get 27, trust me, this won't be the last time we do this."
John Zhao (Sevierville, Tenn.) tallied 23 to combine for 50 with Brenegan. It marked his fifth, 20-point game this season. He was 6-of-10 from the field, but 0-of-3 from three. However, he made up for that by going 11-of-12 at the charity stripe.
Browder and Hubbard rounded out the Eagles' double-digit scorers. Browder had 14 and eight boards, narrowly missing out on his third straight double-double. Hubbard added 10 on 4-of-11 shooting.
Meanwhile, the Eagles impacted the Pioneers' stars efficiency. Leading scorer Connor Jordan entered the game averaging 13 points per game. He had 11, including nine after halftime, but on 4-of-13 shooting. He was the only starter in double-digits. The other four Pioneer starters combined for 12 points.
In their stead, Jackson and Gemari Marshall stepped up. Jackson reset his career high with 24 points and seven boards. He came into the game averaging 8.0 points per contest. Marshall had scored six points all season. He went for 18.
"We had some really specific things to accomplish today," Benson said. "We wanted to make the other dudes prove they were something and they did. They have good players here. They recruit well. We wanted to impact their proven commodities, which is difficult because of the caliber of player they have here. I thought our team did a really nice job of impacting the ability of their top-tier guys from performing tonight."
Tusculum became the first team to outrebound C-N with a 44-37 edge on the glass. The Pioneers outrebounded the Eagles 28-15 after halftime.
Carson-Newman got to the free throw line a bunch. C-N made 25-of-33 as a team compared to 15-of-18 for the Pioneers.
Carson-Newman led wire-to-wire for a third time this season, but a first time against a league opponent since rolling past Emory & Henry 106-79 on Feb. 22, 2023.
C-N stays on the road Saturday to take on Anderson. Tipoff with the Trojans is set for 4 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network starts at 3:45 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on Mountain Talk 106.3 (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live.
