MORROW, Ga. – Mike Mincey became the third coach in Carson-Newman history to win 200 games as Carson-Newman led for 36 minutes and by as many as 15 points to take down Clayton State at the Loch 73-66 Tuesday evening.
The 11th-year coach joins Eddie Carter and Lewis Bivens to hit the 200 mark and becomes the fifth coach in South Atlantic Conference history to hit that threshold joining Carter on the list as the Lady Eagles become the lone program with two members of the club.
"I don't want to get into clichés," Mincey said. "It's true when you have good players you can win games. We have a role obviously in the outcome of the game but if you don't have good players you can't win games. I have been blessed in my 11-year career to have some very talented players especially in the last five years we have had some remarkable basketball players."
Carson-Newman (4-1) wins a fourth straight game this year while beating Clayton State (4-1) on the road for the third time in five tries to even the all-time series at five. It was the Lady Eagles first road win in the series since Dec. 12, 2009 when it won 65-52.
�� Strong road win
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) November 24, 2021
�� Clutch foul shots
�� @cjpen14 leading a balanced effort
✅ Win No. 200 for @MikeMincey pic.twitter.com/cbmtqyXcPI
The Lakers scored the first points of the game before the Lady Eagles snatched the lead back with four unanswered. Going back and forth into the final minute, C-N held a 16-15 edge before scoring eight points in 28 seconds to take a 24-15 lead after 10 minutes.
In the second period, the Orange and Blue started one of 11 from the floor giving up nine straight points to the Lakers to open the period. On top 29-28 with 4:07 to play before halftime, the reserves once again made a big push scoring 12 of the final 16 to open up a 41-32 lead at halftime.
"I told them in the locker room that we got outscored by two in the second half," Mincey said. "The two runs that we ended the first and second were probably what won us the basketball game. Those were quick buckets. We started getting some stuff out of our press. Those are the things are kids can do. I was really happy with our first half performance."
With 4:36 to play in the third, the Lady Eagles recorded their first double-digit lead of the night at 11 only to see the Lakers score eight in a row and 10 of the next 11 to crawl back within two at 50-48 with less than three minutes to go in the period.
Despite not making a field goal during a four-minute stretch, Carson-Newman converted at the free-throw line scoring six of the final seven of the third and nine of 10 extending into the fourth. The Lady Eagles were able to get the margin up to as many as 15 with 2:36 to play at 72-57. The Lakers closed the game on a 9-1 run to settle into the final score.
Braelyn Wykle (Greeneville, Tenn.) and Campbell Penland (Sevierville, Tenn.) each scored 14 points with Wykle making eight of 10 at the free-throw line and Penland chipping in four assists and three rebounds.
Lindsey Taylor (Maryville, Tenn.) posted 10 points and nine rebounds while Addison Byrd (Nashville, Tenn.) added nine points and nine boards. The bench piled up 35 points in the game with Abby Wilson (Kingston, Tenn.) and Tori Rutherford (Rutledge, Tenn.) each notching three steals.
"It is an electric feel," Wilson said. "The group that is out there, we are really fast. Clayton State is a fast team but we showed that we are fast too and that's why we came out with the victory. Effort and heart push us beyond people. The skill level is unmatched that we have across the board from one to the end of the bench. Anyone can play at any moment and we are going to have full effort."
While most of the hustle stats were even, C-N led 49-35 on the glass to rack up 22 second-chance points in the game. The Lady Eagles went 17-for-23 at the free-throw line while the Lakers were 16-for-29 including 9-for-20 in the second half.
Audrey McElhaney led all scorers with 19 points adding three blocks but missed nine of her 16 foul shots. Raven Riley had 12 points, Taniya Patrick finished with 11 and Timi'a Swanson had 10.
The Lady Eagles head back to Holt on Saturday for a 2 p.m. contest against Wingate to begin a string of 11 South Atlantic Conference games in a row. Broadcast coverage airs on Mountain Sports 106.3 (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) and cneagles.com/live 15 minutes before game time.
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