Eagles de-canonize Saints 91-55
February 1, 2021

Eagles de-canonize Saints 91-55

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (6-5, 5-5 South Atlantic Conference) collected its first win by 35 points or more in four years as the Eagles dominated Limestone (1-10, 1-10 SAC) 91-55 Wednesday night in Holt Fieldhouse. 

VIDEO: Chuck Benson Interview

VIDEO: Highlights

VIDEO: Nick Brenegan Interview

VIDEO: EJ Bush Interview  

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (6-5, 5-5 South Atlantic Conference) collected its first win by 35 points or more in four years as the Eagles dominated Limestone (1-10, 1-10 SAC) 91-55 Wednesday night in Holt Fieldhouse. 

All 15 players who played for Carson-Newman either scored or assisted on a basket in the 36-point romp. 

The Eagles used a 13-2 run to create separation in the first half to build their first double-digit halftime lead of the year.  Then, Carson-Newman pulled out its highest scoring half of basketball since scoring 50 at UVA Wise on Feb. 26, 2020 to cruise to its largest margin of victory in series history over the Saints. 

Carson-Newman held the Saints without a bucket over the final 5:42 of game action while closing the contest on a 19-2 run with the bench emptied. 

"We're not playing the scoreboard, if you get a chance to go in, you represent yourself and your institution," Carson-Newman head men's basketball coach Chuck Benson said. "We don't have mop up time. You either go out there and perform, or you won't get another chance if you act like an idiot.  Nobody did that, everyone went out there and kept on competing. I've got to take my hat off to this team because everyone from top to bottom was about business. As a coach, that's about all you can ask for."

Carson-Newman made 67.9 percent of its shots after halftime while burying 7-of-8 threes after halftime en route to dropping 57 on the Saints after halftime. 

Ivan Hadzic (Sabac, Serbia), Jarius Satterfield (Clarksville, Tenn.) and Ben Knight (Seymour, Tenn.) all saw their first action of the season as the Eagles surged late to the big win. 

Trey Smith (Boiling Springs, S.C.) kicked off the late run following the final media timeout with a four-point play.  Hadzic soard in for a tip-in and Caleb Bridgewater (Charlotte, N.C.) canned a head-of-the-key three to set the final score at 91-55. 

The 36-point win was Carson-Newman's biggest since throttling Brevard 96-55 on Feb. 22, 2017. 

"The fact is that fans see what they see on gameday," Benson said. "They aren't there everyday.  As coaches and team members we are.  The expectation is the standard for everyone if you have a Carson-Newman jersey on.  EJ Bush got to play a lot.  Ivan Hadzic got his first minutes tonight. He's been putting in the same level of work that EJ has.  To be able to have everyone to have a chance to play tonight and play at a high level was nice. There weren't any Rudy stories on our team. Everyone played to the standard that we expect.  I see what these guys do day in day out in practice. I'm not surprised they did what they did tonight."

Carson-Newman shot a season-best 52.5 percent from the field (31-of-59) while canning double-digit threes for a third time this year (10-of-23). 

The Eagles were also successful inside, outscoring the Saints 40-16 in the paint. 

"If I had a clean answer for that, I'd bottle it and sell it," Benson said of the Eagles' efficiency after halftime. "We have guys who have confidence in their shot-making. We found fortune in good shots and made those good shots. Credit goes to those guys because they are the ones who take them and make them."

While the Eagles offense surged, their defense clicked at the pace it has maintained for much of 2021.  Limestone endured three stretches of play where it missed six consecutive shots. 

After starting 5-of-7 from the field, the Saints would make just three of their next 18 shots to close the first half. 

From the 14-minute mark of the first half to the 16-minute mark of the second half, the Saints were just 4-of-23 from the field as C-N built a 52-29 lead. 

Limestone marks the third team Carson-Newman has kept under 60 points this year and the second it's held under 35 percent shooting. 

EJ Bush (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) guided Carson-Newman with 19 points and five boards. He was a flawless 9-for-9 from the charity stripe.

"I'm so proud of my team," Bush said. "We see this all the time from them in practice.  For them to get their chance and to step up and deliver, means a lot."

Luke Brenegan (Greenville, S.C.) added in 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting. He was also 3-for-6 from deep. 

His little brother Nick Brenegan (Greenville, S.C.) reset his career high with nine on 3-of-4 shooting from beyond the arc. 

Carson-Newman hampered the Saints leading scorers all night. Ayo Dada was kept five points below his average.  He finished with 11 on 3-of-10 shooting.  He did knock down 3-of-7 threes, all of which came in the second half. 

Isayah Owens led the Saints with 13 points.  The Eagles limited the Saints' second-leading scorer Ben Gahlert was held to two points on three shot attempts.   

Carson-Newman has a quick turnaround. The Eagles take on Anderson Wednesday night in Holt Fieldhouse at 6 p.m. The Eagle Sports Network will have coverage web only at cneagles.com/live starting with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff 15 minutes prior to gametime. 

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