Aiming to rebound, Mincey’s group travels to Mars Hill
February 7, 2023

Aiming to rebound, Mincey’s group travels to Mars Hill

MARS HILL, N.C. – Looking to avoid back-to-back South Atlantic Conference losses, Carson-Newman makes the short journey up the mountain to face off with upset-minded Mars Hill Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

C-N Game Notes (PDF)

MARS HILL, N.C. – Looking to avoid back-to-back South Atlantic Conference losses, Carson-Newman makes the short journey up the mountain to face off with upset-minded Mars Hill Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

"It's hard to stay perfect," Carson-Newman coach Mike Mincey said. "You don't like to lose but there's a lot to learn from losing. We have a young basketball team. Mars Hill has won two in a row. Our league has a lot of parity this year. It doesn't matter where you're ranked, every game you have to bring it especially if you are going on the road. It will be a challenge for us. We are a good team but we're not a dominant team. We have to go and grind things out."

Carson-Newman (14-7, 9-2) has avoided back-to-back losses in SAC regular-season play in each of its last 11 tries with nine of the 11 coming by double figures and seven by at least 20. The last time the team dropped two in a row came in 2019 falling to Wingate on Nov. 30 and at No. 16 Anderson on Dec. 7.

The Lady Eagles were 5-0 this year entering last weekend when scoring at least 80 points in a game before falling by nine at No. 21 Catawba. Under Mincey, the unit is now 98-9 when racking up at least 80 points in a game. The good news for the team is that after averaging 69 points per game in the first seven, the team is scoring 77 in the last 14 with nine contests of at least 75.

The two clubs are facing off for the 77th affair as C-N is leading Mars Hill (6-14, 2-10) 58-18 behind 13 straight wins and 20 of the last 21. During the current 13-game winning streak, C-N has scored no fewer than 86 points winning by at least 19 in 12 of those games and as many as 63 for an average of 41 per game. Mincey's crew has eclipsed triple digits in six of the last 11. The lone blemish in this recent stretch came at Stanford Arena on Feb. 3, 2016, an 83-82 comeback win for the Lions.

In the Lady Eagles' last 27 wins in the series, the team has won by double figures 25 times with the last single-digit win coming on Jan. 7, 2015, a 75-72 victory in the Tar Heel State. Since the last loss at Stanford Arena, C-N has won by at least 19 in every tussle.

When the teams met in December, the Orange and Blue won 103-70 behind a career-high 31 points from Skylar Boshears (Lafollette, Tenn.) helping lead the team to 55 percent shooting. Boshears went 15-for-17 from the field shooting 88 percent, the 11th-best effort by a Division II player for the year. Of the 22 players to make 80 percent from the field, the Lafollette, Tenn. native is the second make 15 or more. All told her 15 made shots were tied for the sixth-most by a Division II player for the year as she added five rebounds, two assists and two blocks.

After going 3-43 over the past two years, the Lions have doubled that so far this year winning more than four games in a year for the first time since going 7-21 in 2016-17. Former Wingate and Catawba assistant Emry Tsitouris has led the team to back-to-back wins including a 64-61 upset over No. 14 Lenoir-Rhyne on Saturday.

Jo Snow continues to be one of the best scoring threats in the league ranking fifth with just under 17 points per game being in double figures in 14 of her 16 games with four outings of at least 20. She was held to 13 on four of 10 shooting when the teams met in December.

Defensively, the Lions rank 271st out of 294 teams in field-goal percentage defense at 44 percent and are 275th in rebounding margin at minus-seven. However the team has held its last two opponents under 36 percent shooting and only 6-for-39 shooting from long distance.

Only two teams in the league attempt more triples than the Lions' 24 per game but the team is 11th in the conference in efficiency making 28 percent. In the last five games, the unit is making 10 per game on average with two of at least 11.

Broadcast coverage airs on Mountain Talk 106.3 FM and cneagles.com/live starting at 5:15 p.m. with "The AEC Countdown to Tip-Off" courtesy of the Eagle Sports Network.

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