Eagles outlast Newberry, 99-89
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. — The Carson-Newman men's basketball team knocked down a season-high 14 3-pointers and held Newberry to a season-low 27.7 percent shooting, as the Eagles topped the Wolves, 99-89, in a fast-paced South Atlantic Conference matchup on Saturday afternoon at Holt Fieldhouse.
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. — The Carson-Newman men's basketball team knocked down a season-high 14 3-pointers and held Newberry to a season-low 27.7 percent shooting, as the Eagles topped the Wolves, 99-89, in a fast-paced South Atlantic Conference matchup on Saturday afternoon at Holt Fieldhouse.
The teams combined for 144 shots, with 94 of those coming on the Newberry end, while the 99 points were a season-high for the Eagles.
With the win, the Eagles improve to 5-8 on the season and 2-3 in the conference. Newberry falls to 6-8 overall and 1-5 in SAC play.
C-N torched the nets at a 58 percent clip and made 66.7 percent (14-of-22) of its attempts from behind the arc. Freshman guard Ishmael Sanders (Cleveland, Tenn.), junior Antonio Sullivan (Louisville, Ky.) and sophomore Joe Meady (Strawberry Plains, Tenn.) produced career-highs to lead the way. Sanders fired in a game-high 23 points and went 4-of-5 from deep, while Sullivan netted 22 points, going 6-of-7 from 3-point range. Meady added 11 points, five rebounds and four blocks, and senior Erwin Staten (Huntsville, Ala.) pitched in 10 points.
Newberry lost despite setting three SAC records on the day. The Wolves forced 39 turnovers, including a record 26 steals, and they pulled down a SAC record 33 offensive rebounds. Newberry scored 46 points off C-N's turnovers and had 29 second chance points. However, Newberry was unable to get things going offensively, shooting just 27.7 percent (26-of-94), including a miserable 5-of-42 effort from 3-point range.
Ray Robinson (Jacksonville, Fla.) and Brandon Riley (Baltimore, Md.) tossed in 16 points apiece to lead Newberry, while Tony Davis (Sarasota, Fla.) finished with 15 points. Riley also finished the contest with 10 rebounds. The Wolves had seven plays with at least three steals or more, with Danny Huffor (Marco Island, Fla.) collecting four to lead the way.
Newberry held a 19-13 lead at the 12:04 mark of the first half, but C-N answered with a 10-0 run capped off by a layup by Staten that gave the Eagles a 23-19 advantage.
The teams played through three more ties before Sanders drilled a 3-pointer with 1:15 left in the half to give the Eagles a 41-38 lead. Antoni Magdos (Knoxville, Tenn.) converted a 3-point play with eight seconds remaining to trim C-N's lead to 43-41 heading into the locker room.
C-N opened the second half on a 13-3 run and took its biggest lead of the game on a jumper by Staten at 56-44 with 15:29 left.
The Wolves scrapped back behind a 12-2 run, pulling to within 58-56 on a 3-pointer by Shamel Akins (Charlotte, N.C.) at the 13:33 mark. After C-N pushed its lead back to 10, Newberry made one last run as it trimmed the Eagles' lead to 80-77 on a steal and layup by Magdos with 4:48 remaining.
However, C-N went on an 11-0 run to put the game away.
The Eagles return to action on Monday at Lenoir-Rhyne. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. in Hickory, N.C.
