Mincey collects career win No. 300 in 87-63 win at Mars Hill
MARS HILL, N.C. – Carson-Newman head coach Mike Mincey recorded his 300th career victory by guiding his team to an 87-63 win over Mars Hill (4-13, 1-10 SAC) on Wednesday evening at Stanford Arena.
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
24 | 18 | 29 | 16 | 87 |
|
|
16 | 22 | 13 | 12 | 63 |
MARS HILL, N.C. – Carson-Newman head coach Mike Mincey recorded his 300th career victory by guiding his team to an 87-63 win over Mars Hill (4-13, 1-10 SAC) on Wednesday evening at Stanford Arena.
Head coach Mike Mincey becomes just the second coach in South Atlantic Conference history to reach 300 career victories in the win.
"This is a players game," Mincey said. "Coach Benson and I were talking about this stuff before the game. He and I are on the same page, if you have great players then you win games. Coaches probably get too much credit, but at the college level it is all about recruiting. You have to get people that buy into your culture and fit your scheme. Along with that, you have to have staff continuity and good players. I think every coach that understands this thing and will let their ego go, will tell you the same thing."
Importantly, the win for the Lady Eagles snaps a three-game skid at Mars Hill and is the program's first win at Mars Hill since February 16, 2022. Carson-Newman's win streak reaches three games and it now has five road victories this season.
Carson-Newman was led by a career-high 19-points from Chloe Heath. She was an efficient eight for 10 to lead the offensive charge and made her only three-point field goal attempt.
"Once I saw my first shot go in, it gave me a lot of confidence," Heath said. "I kept shooting it and my teammates encouraged that confidence to keep shooting."
Mattie Nuckolls also scored in double-figures, making five of her ten shots to score 15 points. Madelyn Ladd rounded out the double-figures scorers for C-N, notching her fourth career double-digit scoring game with 10.
Carson-Newman's bench helped elevate the lead to eight after a back and forth start to the game. Madelyn Ladd buried two triples and Abigail Johnson made two layups to help C-N's bench outscore MHU 12-5 in the final four minutes of the first quarter to make it an eight-point game after the first stanza.
C-N forced eight straight missed shots by MHU, spanning quarters, to jump out to a 12-point lead with 7:10 left in the second. An Abigail Johnson layup with 3:24 to play put C-N up by 12, but the rest of the second quarter would be controlled by the Lions. Makayla Street went on her own personal 8-0 scoring run to make it a four-point game. Overall, the Lions went on a 10-2 scoring run in the final three minutes of the half.
After a MHU basket to start the second half, the rest of the third quarter would be controlled by the Lady Eagles. Over 4:49, C-N would go on a 15-0 scoring run and forced eight Mars Hill turnovers to lead by 17 with 4:33 left in the third stanza. C-N would lead by as many as 21 and would go into the fourth stanza up 71-51.
It was a low-scoring start to the fourth quarter. C-N made just three baskets but was outscoring MHU 6-2 in the first five minutes. Multiple reserves scored in the final minutes. Delaney Weddington made back to back baskets and Harmony Sullivan scored the game's last field goal to help C-N win 87-63.
Mars Hill's 27 turnovers in the game are tied for the most by an opponent against the Lady Eagles this season. C-N committed just 14 turnovers. After just six points off Mars Hill turnovers in the first half, the Lady Eagles increased that number to 17 in the second half of play.
Carson-Newman made just eight of its 32 three-point attempts, a 25 percent clip. Conversely, C-N used a 60 percent mark in shots inside the arc to finish 45 percent for the game. As a result, the Lady Eagles outscored MHU 38-16 in the paint.
In the second half, C-N made more than 50 percent of its shots and was four of nine from three-point range.
The Lions had two players score 20 points in the game. Felesia Ondongo scored 20 points and made four triples, while Makayla Street made seven baskets for her 20. They are the first opposing duo to score 20 or more since Daisy Gale and Maddie Gillie both reached that marked in last season's meeting at Mars Hill.
Carson-Newman continues its week on the road with a quick turnaround, facing Catawba on Friday afternoon. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 1:45 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on Mountain Talk 106.3 (WSEV-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live. A live camera of the broadcast crew "On Press Row" will also be available on YouTube.
Team Stats
Mars Hill
| Game Statistics | Carson-Newman | Mars Hill |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (33-74) | (19-55) |
| Field Goal % | 44.6% | 34.5% |
| Rebounds | 41 | 37 |
| Assists | 22 | 10 |
| Turnovers | 14 | 27 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 17 | 8 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 12 | 6 |
| Pts in the Paint | 38 | 16 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 4 | 5 |
| Bench Pts | 36 | 9 |
