CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Bouncing back after its lowest scoring output of the year, Carson-Newman recorded the most assists against a South Atlantic Conference foe in history handing out 36 helpers in a 105-54 thrashing of Queens on Monday at Curry Arena.
"I think our team handled the zone really well," Carson-Newman coach Mike Mincey said. "Byrd went 9-for-11, Lindsey went 9-for-10 and we were giving her the ball in scoring position. Braelyn goes nine of 16 and hits six threes. We didn't even practice yesterday. We didn't get on the floor because I didn't want them to see a ball or a rim. I think they had a purpose in mind for what they wanted to do. I'm happy that we can come over here, share the basketball, play well as a team, hit threes and make the right reads and score a lot of points."
The program record for assists is 38 set on Nov. 30, 2016 against Johnson but the most against a league foe came against Elon when Wingate had 31 in 1991. The tally is the second-most in a Division II game this season, two behind Embry-Riddle's 38 set in December.
Carson-Newman (19-5, 16-4) extends its winning streak over Queens (6-14, 5-14) to 15 in a row, its longest active string against SAC foes. Monday was the 13th time in that stretch that the Lady Eagles won by double figures as they led wire-to-wire, their first such win in 30 games since a 68-63 win at Catawba on Feb. 13, 2021.
Overall the Lady Eagles shot 63 percent for the game, eight points higher than other contest for the year. It was the first time the team hit at least 60 percent since setting a school record with a 67.9 percent margin against the Royals on Feb. 10, 2018, 114 games and 1,471 days ago. It is the first time the team scored 100 points in a road game since pounding Coker 102-63 at Coker on Jan. 27, 2018.
Five players finished with double figures led by 25 points from Braelyn Wykle (Greeneville, Tenn.) as the junior went 9-for-16 from the field and drilled six triples, one shy of tying her own school record. She vaulted up two spots on the program's scoring list into eighth passing Haris Price and Heather Ford.
Lindsey Taylor (Maryville, Tenn.) was nearly perfect going 9-for-10 from the field racking up 21 points. Addison Byrd (Nashville, Tenn.) filled up the stat sheet with a season-high 19 points on 9-for-11 shooting adding seven rebounds and seven assists.
"I haven't been scoring like I'm capable of the last couple games," Byrd said. "I needed to come in with a different mindset. I don't need to drop 20 for us but I need to make the shots that I am capable of making. I made sure that I focused on making those shots today and it came to me."
3️⃣6️⃣ Assists
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) February 14, 2022
�� Lights out shooting
�� @AddisonByrd3 fills the stat sheet
✅ @CNwbasketball road win pic.twitter.com/fHFih3xDeB
Coming off of the bench, Campbell Penland (Sevierville, Tenn.) scored 13 points making five of eight from the field and Skylar Boshears (LaFollette, Tenn.) added 10 points and five boards.
In her second-career start, Abby Wilson (Kingston, Tenn.) handed out a career-high 11 assists adding three steals, three rebounds and three points. She is the first player since Mika Wester had 11 in the 2018 Southeast Region semifinals to record double-digit helpers, a span of 105 games and 1,441 days.
Out of the gates, the Lady Eagles came out swinging scoring the game's first 10 points in less than 90 seconds with seven of those points coming from Byrd. After the Royals pulled within eight at 16-8, C-N rattled off 10 unanswered making 11 of its first 15 shots of the day to open up a 24-8 lead before settling on a 27-12 advantage after 10 minutes.
Queens outscored the visitors for the first six minutes of the second quarter getting within 13 at 37-24 before C-N surged scoring the final nine points of the first half to open up its second-largest halftime lead of the year at 46-24.
Efficiency was on full display in the third quarter with the two teams combining for 59 points. While Queens went 8-for-13, Carson-Newman made 15 of 18 shots, 83 percent, and scored 35 points, its second-highest scoring period of the year behind a 37-point third against Tusculum on Nov. 17. The lead was 81-48 going into the fourth.
In the final frame, the Lady Eagles continued their hot shooting making 53 percent from the field but the defense turned up a notch holding Queens to 2-for-15 shooting and six total points, the second-lowest scoring quarter yielded by the group on the year.
Two players finished in double figures for the home team with Kalaya Hall leading the way with 16 points adding four assists. Amari Davis chipped in 13 points but went 5-for-12 at the free-throw line.
The Lady Eagles continue their road swing with a quick turnaround at Mars Hill on Wednesday night for a 5:30 p.m. opening tap from Mars Hill. Air time on the Eagle Sports Network is 5:15 p.m. with "The AEC Countdown to Tip-Off" on Mountain Sports 106.3 (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) with an audio stream available on cneagles.com/live.
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