Carson-Newman Women's Basketball Game Notes
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The first of a stretch of five out of six games away from home for the Carson-Newman Lady Eagles (15-5, 9-5 South Atlantic Conference) begins Wednesday evening at 6 p.m. in Harrogate, Tenn. against the Lincoln Memorial Railsplitters (11-9, 8-6 SAC).
A 4-5 month of January was littered with setbacks that included season-ending injuries to junior guard Jai Jai McLaughlin (Knoxville, Tenn.) and senior guard Lacy Miller (Dandridge, Tenn.). The duo represented the primary ball-handlers while leading the team in assists this year.
"Our kids are going to continue to battle," head coach Mike Mincey said following Saturday's 87-78 loss to Catawba. "There is a lot of adversity that we are going through right now. Those are not excuses. I know that the 11 that we have available are going to continue to work."
Saturday's game against the Indians saw the Lady Eagles turn the ball over 23 times, the second-most by the squad this season. Those turnovers led to 30 points for Catawba.
Fortunately for Carson-Newman, the Railsplitters have not shown a tendency to force turnovers as opponents are committing 14.8 per game this year, the lowest number by any SAC team on the year.
Carson-Newman and Lincoln Memorial are two of the top three scoring teams in the league with the Lady Eagles ranking first at 72 points per game while the Railsplitters are second in the conference in field goal percentage by making 43 percent on the year.
Lincoln Memorial has won four consecutive home games entering Wednesday night and are being led by Kiara Rawls who is averaging 11.3 points, 4.2 assists and 1.4 steals per outing this season. She has scored in double figures in five of her last six games.
Wednesday's contest marks 78th meeting between the two programs with the Lady Eagles holding a 49-28 advantage in the all-time series despite the Railsplitters owning a three-game winning streak.
In the last meeting, Lincoln Memorial earned an 80-71 victory on February 26, 2014 at home. Carson-Newman was held to a 36 percent shooting percentage from the floor.
Junior guard Tatum Burstrom (Maryville, Tenn.) led the Lady Eagles with 15 points on 6 of 14 shooting including 3-for-6 from distance.
Pregame coverage of Wednesday night's contest begins at 5:45 with "The AEC Countdown to Tip-Off" on the Eagle Sports Network's flagship station 106.3 WPFT-FM or via a live audio stream at cneagles.com/live.
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