VIDEO: 2024 C-N Men's Basketball Hype Video
VIDEO: Small College Hall of Fame Classic Hype Video
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – After narrowly missing out on the NCAA tournament last season with a low strength of schedule, Carson-Newman head men's basketball coach Chuck Benson has taken steps to ensure that won't happen again.
The Eagles open play this season with two games against top-25 caliber competition at the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic in Lakeland, Fla., at Florida Southern's Jenkins Fieldhouse.
Carson-Newman tips off the event Saturday at 11 a.m. against 2024 Sweet 16 participant Lake Superior State, who is receiving votes in the NABC Coaches Poll, and concludes the weekend at 11 a.m. Sunday against No. 22 Fort Lewis.
"We are thankful and excited for the opportunity to participate in the most prestigious pre-season event at the D2 level," head men's basketball coach Chuck Benson said. "This will allow us the chance to compete against elite programs from other parts of the country that we wouldn't typically play against. We have been waiting for this moment since the announcement in April and are eager to perform."
Carson-Newman men's basketball is 44-23 all-time in season opening games. The Eagles are 8-4 over the last 12 seasons in lidlifters.
Carson-Newman is the third South Atlantic Conference institution to represent the league in the SCBHOFC. Lincoln Memorial repped the league in 2016, 2019 and 2022. Queens went in 2018. SAC schools are 4-4 all-time at the event. LMU and Queens both went 1-1 in every year in which they participated.
This marks Carson-Newman's first visit to the Sunshine State in 24 years. Carson-Newman played in a tournament in Melbourne, Fla. at Florida Tech. The Eagles dropped a 78-63 decision to West Florida on Nov. 24, 2000 before taking a 72-53 win over Puerto Rico-Bayamon the next day. Future C-N Hall of Famer Kyle Gribble had an 11-point, 11-rebound double-double over PR Bayamon.
Senior shooting guard Nick Brenegan enters the opening-season tournament needing four threes to hit 200 for his career. That would make him the eighth player in Carson-Newman history with 200 triples in a career and tie him with Jesse McMurray (2005-09) for seventh all-time. He would need to hit 12 to catch Braun Dabbs (2001-04) for sixth all-time with his 208.
Carson-Newman has never taken on Lake Superior State nor Fort Lewis. Match ups with GLIAC and RMAC teams are also infrequent. Carson-Newman last played a GLIAC team in 2016, losing 73-61 to Hillsdale at the Kentucky Wesleyan Classic in Hillsdale's final year in the league. The Eagles are 0-2 all-time against the GLIAC. C-N is 0-1 all-time against the RMAC, with a 1972 loss, 84-53, to Fort Hayes State before the Tigers left the league for the MIAA.
Carson-Newman has not played a team currently in either league.
Fort Lewis is in the NABC Coaches Poll for a 32nd consecutive week with their No. 22 preseason ranking. and the first for 2024-25, as the Skyhawks check in at no. 22 on the organization's preseason poll. In 2023-24, the Skyhawks closed out the season at no. 5 in the country after winning its second straight RMAC Tournament and making back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 on a pair of no. 2 regional rankings. Fort Lewis matched its program-best 29-4 overall record.
LSSU went 23-9 last season and advanced to the Midwest Regional Final before bowing out to Ferris State 86-81just shy of the Elite Eight. The Lakers were the top three-point shooting team from the GLIAC last season, burying double-digit triples on 16 occasions. The Lakers topped out at an 18-of-36 effort against Canada's Algoma. LSSU hit 14 in the regional final against Ferris State.
Both games can be found on the Eagle Sports Network with the pregame show starting at 10:45 a.m. both days before the 11 a.m. tips. Coverage starts with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on MIX 105.5 (WSEV-FM, Sevierville) and online at cnegles.com/live.
