Carson-Newman Game Notes - Lenoir-Rhyne Home

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles (12-9, 9-6 South Atlantic Conference) women's basketball team will welcome the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears (16-4, 11-4 South Atlantic Conference) to Holt Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m.

The Lady Eagles are in the midst of a season-long four-game losing streak, and must now face a team tied for first place in the SAC standings in Lenoir-Rhyne.

"Lenoir-Rhyne is one of the best teams in our league for sure," said Carson-Newman head coach Mike Mincey. "They're kind of like us in that they have a big bench and they've only lose one game since we were fortunate enough to beat them in Hickory. So here we are on a four-game losing skid and they have a five-game winning streak so it's a tale of two different tales at the moment."

The Lady Eagles are coming off a 73-68 loss to Lincoln Memorial last Wednesday at Holt Fieldhouse. Carson-Newman never led in the contest, yet after trailing by 11 points at halftime, the Lady Eagles outscored LMU 36-30 in the second half only to see the Lady Railsplitters hold on in the final minute to hand C-N its fourth-straight loss.

Carson-Newman's comeback bid in the second half was led by sophomore Tatum Burstrom (Maryville, Tenn.) who scored 15 points with 10 coming in the final 20 minutes as she hit a trio of 3-pointers in the game. Burstrom was joined in double-figures by junior Jassmine Franklin (Lexington, Ky.) who scored 11 points and just missed a double-double with nine rebounds.

Burstrom still leads Carson-Newman by averaging 11.6 points per game, and she has scored in double-figures the last two games.

The Bears, coached by Todd Starkey, are 16-4 on the season with an 11-4 record in conference play. Currently Lenoir-Rhyne is tied with Wingate for the conference lead at 11-4. Carson-Newman won the first meeting this season at Lenoir-Rhyne on Dec. 14, 80-77. Burstrom scored a career-high 27 points as the Lady Eagles became the lone unbeaten team in SAC play, and became 5-0 in conference play for the first time since the 2009-10 season.

Lenoir-Rhyne was led in scoring by the 17 points of Morgan Cooper. Lenoir-Rhyne was picked finish second in the preseason SAC poll. The Bears feature the SAC's top scorer in Jazmine Charles, who is averaging 18.6 points per game.

Carson-Newman leads the overall series against Lenoir-Rhyne 37-25. L-R has won eight of the last 10 meetings, although Carson-Newman snapped a six-game losing streak to Lenoir-Rhyne by winning 80-77 in Hickory, N.C., on Dec. 14. Last year L-R swept the season series, and won 55-49 at Carson-Newman on Feb. 9.

Saturday's game will be carried on the Eagle Sports Network's flagship station WPFT-FM 106.3 FM, with coverage beginning at 1:45 p.m. with "The Countdown to Tipoff," and live video is also available on www.cneagles.com.