Eagles Rally to Defeat Tusculum 62-58
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. — The Carson-Newman men's basketball team rallied in the final minute to defeat rival Tusculum, 62-58, on Saturday afternoon in South Atlantic Conference action at Pioneer Arena.
GREENEVILLE, Tenn. — The Carson-Newman men's basketball
team rallied in the final minute to defeat rival Tusculum, 62-58,
on Saturday afternoon in South Atlantic Conference action at
Pioneer Arena.
With the game tied at 58, senior forward Darron Maxtion
(Huntsville, Ala.) made a layup with 16 seconds left in regulation
to give the Eagles the lead. Senior guard Jordan Dixon (Clinton,
Tenn.) then sank two free throws with four seconds remaining to
seal the win.
With the victory, C-N improves to 7-8 on the season and 2-3 in the
conference, while Tusculum falls to 8-8 overall and 2-3 in SAC
play.
“This win is huge because it’s a road win for
one,” said C-N head coach Dale Clayton, whose team snapped a
three-game losing streak. “It’s just so hard to win in
our league on the road. The second thing is it’s Tusculum,
one of our biggest rivals. To come (to Pioneer Arena) and beat them
at their style of play is a difficult thing to do. Everybody
stepped up that had to. I’m just really proud of the
guys”
Clayton said a key to Saturday’s win was the Eagles ability
to take care of the basketball. During its three-game losing
streak, C-N averaged 20 turnovers per contest. On Saturday, The
Eagles committed a season-low nine turnovers.
“We got off to a better start than we’ve been getting
off to,” Clayton offered. “The last game we had five
turnovers in the first 10 possessions. Tonight we didn’t do
that. Without question that was a big part of the win.”
The Eagles shot 48.9 percent (22-of-45) for the game, while they
held the Pioneers to 39.6 percent (19-of-48) shooting.
“Defensively, we were consistent the whole game,”
Clayton said. “That was the best man-to-man defense
we’ve played all year.”
Sophomore guard Cameron Sharp (Knoxville, Tenn.) led four Eagles
in double figures with 14 points, while Dixon and Erwin Staten
(Huntsville, Ala.) finished with 12 points apiece. Maxtion chipped
in 10 points in the win.
Reigning SAC Player of the Kyle Moore (Gainesville, Fla.) paced
the Pioneers with 27 points, while Rob Troutman (Mt. Washington,
Ky.) and Wes Taylor (Oregon, Ohio) netted 13 and 11 points,
respectively.
The Eagles held a 28-27 lead at the half, but Tusculum battled
back early in the second half with an 8-3 run capped off by a
Troutman 3-pointer that gave the Pioneers a 35-31 advantage.
Tusculum led 53-49 with 4:49 remaining before C-N began to chip
away at its lead. The teams tied the game twice during the final
three minutes before Maxtion’s layup with 16 seconds left
gave C-N the lead for good.
C-N returns to action on Wednesday in a SAC matchup at Brevard.
Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m.
