White’s last-second three stifles No. 25 C-N’s comeback bid
DAHLONEGA, Ga. – No. 25 Carson-Newman (3-1) rallied from a 16-point deficit and tied things up with six seconds left, only for No. 11 North Georgia (5-0) to stay unbeaten thanks to a buzzer-beating, right-point three from AJ White at the horn.
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
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|
32 | 43 | 75 |
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43 | 35 | 78 |
VIDEO: Chuck Benson Interview
VIDEO: Jack Browder Interview
DAHLONEGA, Ga. – No. 25 Carson-Newman (3-1) rallied from a 16-point deficit and tied things up with six seconds left, only for No. 11 North Georgia (5-0) to stay unbeaten thanks to a buzzer-beating, right-point three from AJ White at the horn.
The Nighthawks prevailed 78-75 Wednesday afternoon at the Convocation Center.
The final shot obfuscated a furious C-N rally. UNG started the game on an 11-0 run, led 43-32 at the break and was up by 16 in the early moments of the second half.
However, Carson-Newman put together a furious 17-2 second half run to get back within striking distance before tying the game on two Jack Browder (Kingsport, Tenn.) free throws with six seconds left, setting the table for three-time All-PBC selection White's heroics.
"We got off to a slow start and credit to North Georgia," head coach Chuck Benson said. "You better believe their coaching staff and roster would remember our decisive win at home last year. They came out electric. They didn't catch us off guard, but they were making everything early. Ultimately, as we tell our guys frequently, tones are set in the first half, but games are won in the second. I loved our response in the second half and we put ourselves in position to win the game. White's big shot at the end, he's capable of doing those things, and he did it."
The Nighthawks were up 61-45 with 12:58 to go when C-N surged. Over the next 100 seconds, the Eagles scored 10 straight. Browder hit an and-one three and Braden Ilic (Morristown, Tenn.) hit a fadeaway baseline J before Colin Brown (Bristol, Tenn.) pilfered a pass at half court and turned it into an uncontested layup. Brown's bucket prompted a UNG timeout and had the Eagles within six with 11:17 to go.
After two Nighthawk free throws, C-N's march back continued. Ilic started a 7-0 run with a three before Caiden Botts (Cleveland, Tenn.) and Brown capped the run with driving layups, and C-N was within one with 8:20 to go.
However, C-N never could get over the hump. It wasn't until Browder's two free throws that the Eagles tied the game. Neither team made a field goal over the final 2:30 of the game until White's game winner.
White weaved to the head of the key and scraped over a hard screen, but Bilbrey had a tight hand in his face and defended the winner well.
"This team will be as good as its defense drives it," Benson said. "I do believe we are becoming and finding out how we can best put our players in a position in the constructs of our defensive packages to get stops and get out in transition. Today our transition was something UNG was determined to slow down and they did that by sacrificing some of their offense rebounding."
White's buzzer-beater is the first time C-N has lost at the horn since Nov. 13, 2022 against Lees-McRae. Carson-Newman has fallen at the buzzer five times in Chuck Benson's 16-year tenure as head coach. In this case, the buzzer beater denied him his first chance at career victory 400.
Browder and Ilic led C-N with 18 apiece. Browder turned in his 27th career double-double with 10 boards. He also had four assists, three steals and a block. Browder was 4-of-9 from the field and 8-of-10 at the charity stripe.
Ilic's 18 came with four boards. He connected on 7-of-12 shots and 4-of-7 threes.
Matt Bilbrey (Crossville, Tenn.) added in 15 to go with a career-high eight assists.
"I wouldn't trade Matt Bilbrey for nobody," Benson said. "He has a different mind set. He plays chess while the rest of us play checkers. His vision and timing on passes is impeccable. I know he will continue to bring value to us."
Keliese Frye (Newport, Ky.) rounded out the double-digit scorers for C-N with 10. He was 4-of-7 from the field.
Colin Turner led UNG with a season-high 19 points. He was 8-of-16 from the field. Zach Hawkinson chopped in 15. Meanwhile, White had 13. He was just 6-of-16 from the field and was 0-for-5 from beyond the arc until he hit his game-winning triple.
Carson-Newman only shot 40 percent from the field in the first half before getting hot after halftime and shooting 53.6 percent from the field. The Eagles were 1-of-10 to start from beyond the arc, but made eight of their final 16 threes.
"We go in at halftime thinking that of the shots we missed, a bunch were uncontested," Benson said. "I have great confidence in our guys. We told them to keep shooting them in the second half as they came within the flow of our offense. We found that they did fall more efficiently in the second half."
Carson-Newman shot 46.6 percent from the field for the game. North Georgia was at 47.7 percent. The Nighthawks were the inverse, making 52 percent of their first half shots, but 41.4 percent after halftime.
North Georgia was the first team to outrebound C-N this season, doing so by a 35-30 margin.
"We've experienced our first loss, we'll see how our guys respond as we host a third straight PeachBelt foe Saturday," Benson said. "We move forward instantly and get to task on our preparation. We have to provide a good, solid diverse plan for Augusta."
Carson-Newman returns to Holt Fieldhouse Saturday to take on Augusta. Tipoff with the Jaguars is set for 4 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 3:45 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on Mix 105.5 (WSEV-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live. A video stream is available with a subscription to FloSports at cneagles.com/FloMBB. A courtside camera will also be set up focused on the Eagle Sports Network's broadcast seats to allow fans a view "On Press Row" on YouTube.
Team Stats
#11 North Georgia
| Game Statistics | #25 Carson-Newman | #11 North Georgia |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (27-58) | (31-65) |
| Field Goal % | 46.6% | 47.7% |
| Rebounds | 30 | 35 |
| Assists | 18 | 21 |
| Turnovers | 14 | 10 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 6 | 16 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 3 | 9 |
| Pts in the Paint | 32 | 32 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 2 | 6 |
| Bench Pts | 9 | 18 |
