Midweek battle for C-N with rival Tusculum
February 11, 2025

Midweek battle for C-N with rival Tusculum

The top two scoring offenses in the South Atlantic Conference collide on Wednesday night when Carson-Newman (17-6, 14-5 SAC) visits Tusculum (8-15, 6-13 SAC) at 5:30 p.m. inside Pioneer Arena.

VIDEO: Carson-Newman vs Tusculum November Game Highlights

C-N Game Notes (PDF)

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The top two scoring offenses in the South Atlantic Conference collide on Wednesday night when Carson-Newman (17-6, 14-5 SAC) visits Tusculum (8-15, 6-13 SAC) at 5:30 p.m. inside Pioneer Arena.

Carson-Newman averages a conference-best 82.4 points per game and shoots just under 46 percent from the field. Both of those marks rank top ten in DII. On the flipside, Tusculum is second in scoring at 76.2 points per game, ranking 20th nationally. It shoots the third-best percentage from the field at 44.1 percent. C-N has 12 games with 80 points or more while TU has seven.

TU struggles defensively though, allowing a league-worst 81 points per game and is the second-worst defensive team in DII. C-N only allows 67.5 points per game and forces 21 turnovers per game.

The Lady Eagles have won seven of the past eight meetings in this series including three straight wins. C-N won the first meeting back on November 20, 93-73 and leads the all-time series 63-21.

When Carson-Newman wins, it wins big this season. 11 of its 17 wins are by 20 points or more this season. 15 of the 17 wins are by 12 points or more. C-N's average scoring margin is 14.9, the best in the SAC and 18th nationally. In Mike Mincey's tenure, C-N has 112 wins by 20 points or more with the most being 19 during the magical 2017-18 season. 6 of Carson-Newman's last 7 wins have been by 20 points or more.

Over the past two seasons, the Lady Eagles have struggled to win road conference games in the month of February. C-N has lost eight of its last nine February road games, with the win coming at UVA Wise on Feb 21, 2024. Prior to the past two seasons, Carson-Newman had won 13 of its last 15 road games in February.

Lindsey Taylor (Maryville, Tenn.) is coming off an exceptional week in Carson-Newman's two victories. Taylor averaged a league-best 27.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per contest while shooting an astounding 87.5 from the field this past week. Her 38-point scoring night versus Mars Hill last Wednesday is the most points by any player in the South Atlantic Conference this season. The graduate student continues to creep up the all-time scoring list, 150 points from Leah Jackson's 1,737 third place scoring mark.

Campbell Penland (Sevierville, Tenn.) continues to move her way up the program's scoring ranks as well. The senior guard scored 15 points on Saturday to pass Coreen Wells for 13th on the all-time scoring list. She needs 36 more points to get to 12th and is 87 points away from the top ten. After nailing five three-pointers on Saturday, Penland needs just 9 three-pointers to move past Ashley Tipton's 222 three-pointers for third all-time in C-N history.

Tusculum wraps up its longest homestand of the season on Wednesday night versus C-N. TU is 8-15 overall and has won six league games. At Pioneer Arena, the Pioneers are 4-7 and have lost six of their last seven home games.

Since the start of the new calendar year, Tusculum has a 3-8 record. Of the those eight losses, seven have been within 15 points including five by ten or less.

The Pioneers have the top scorer in the South Atlantic Conference in sophomore forward Ni'kiah Chesterfield. She averages 19 points per game and shoots 54.7 percent from the field. She was held to a season-low seven points in the first meeting with C-N.

Tipoff between the Lady Eagles and Pioneers is set for 5:30 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 5:15 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on MIX 105.5 (WSEV-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live.

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