Chuck Benson By The Slice – LMU preview

C-N Game Notes

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (12-6, 9-5 South Atlantic Conference) must be loaded for bear Wednesday when the No. 8 Lincoln Memorial Railsplitters (17-1, 13-1 SAC) invade Holt Fieldhouse for an 8 p.m. tipoff.

The Railsplitters have won 13 straight games. In  addition to the overall win streak, LMU has taken 12 consecutive on the road dating back to a February loss last year at Catawba. The road winning streak is the nation's second longest.

"They've got a little bit of everything," Carson-Newman head coach Chuck Benson said. "They've got veteran players; they're solid inside and out; they've got great leadership from their coaching staff. I can't sit here and tell you that they have any weakness about them."

The Railsplitters are bolstered by Vinny Bailey, the reigning South Atlantic Conference player of the week. The senior averaged 30 points and 12.5 boards in a pair of wins for LMU last week.  The senior is having a banner year, averaging eight more points per game than he did in his junior campaign. 

The Railsplitters took all three contests from the Eagles last year; that includes a SAC tournament semifinal win that ended C-N's season.  However, it was Carson-Newman who beat LMU twice during the 2011-12 season. Those wins represent C-N's last against ranked competition. The Railsplitters have spent 50 consecutive weeks ranked in the NABC top 25.

In addition to Bailey, the Railsplitters have gotten 30-point efforts from Luquan Choice and Chance Jones.

"We can't go out and try to stop everything," Benson said. "We've decided how we're willing to die. We're going to stay strong to our plan and we hope this turns into a good ole fashion game of chicken."

The Railsplitters are one of the better post-based teams in the country.  LMU leads the nation in rebounding margin (16.5 boards a game) and is 30^th in the country in blocks (91).

"They want to get the ball inside," Benson said. "Vinny Bailey is arguably the best player in this conference. They want to go in there and then cut your head off rebounding the ball. A plus 16 margin there is just absurd."

The Eagles are coming off a five-point overtime win at Catawba. The Eagles hit a lone three-pointer (the fewest of the Chuck Benson era) in the victory and also had the lowest shooting percentage in a win during Benson's four-year tenure as head coach of the Eagles. 

Tipoff Wednesday is slated for 8 p.m. Pregame coverage on the Eagle Sports Network starts at 7:45 with the Countdown to Tipoff on 106.3 ESPN Radio The Zone (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live. 

-CN-