North Georgia Tournament Website
DAHLONEGA, Ga. – In a battle of the South Atlantic Conference Champions, No. 22 Carson-Newman, the tournament titlists, face off with Wingate, the regular-season trophy winners, to open the 2022 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Tournament from the Convocation Center at 7:30 p.m.
"They are going to be motivated," Carson-Newman coach Mike Mincey said. "We have been in their shoes where you stumble in the quarters or the semis knowing that you are an NCAA Tournament caliber team and that you will make the tournament. I'm sure they left Greenville thinking they are going to get it straightened out in the NCAA Tournament.
"We are happy to play anybody. In our format, playing teams that you have played twice already and in your own conference, there are a couple games like that. I wish the committee would not do that so you can see other people. We know what they have. They have the conference Player of the Year in Troutman. We have to figure out how to sure up some things that have failed us in the two games we played them and try to get them on Friday."
Carson-Newman (26-5) has won eight straight games, its longest winning streak of the year. That string is tied for the sixth-longest winning streak in the country entering the postseason. Over the period, the Lady Eagles have made 52 percent (269-for-522) of its shots and made 56 three-pointers. Over the last 32 quarters, the Orange and Blue have converted field goals at a 50 percent or better clip 21 times.
Mincey's club has evolved into one of the better defensive teams in the country moving into second in the conference in field-goal percentage defense at a 37.3 percent clip. In nine of the last 11 games, opponents have shot under 40 percent with six shooting below 35. C-N has not allowed a scoring run of 8-0 or greater in six straight games since Mars Hill scored 10 straight on Feb. 16. Since that point, the Lady Eagles have produced 18 such runs.
The Orange and Blue are aiming to snap a three-game losing streak in the NCAA Tournament with its last win coming in the 2018 Region Final, a 75-71 win over North Georgia. In 16 postseason games since joining Division II, Carson-Newman is 6-10 having won the first round contest in 2005, 2010 and 2018. Three of the wins came en route to a region title in 2018 and two came in 2005 when it was members of the South Atlantic Region losing the final to Shaw 67-53.
A school from the South Atlantic Conference has advanced to the Elite Eight on six occasions most recently by C-N in 2018 with Wingate (24-5) going in 1995, 1996 and 2008. Mars Hill advanced to the national quarterfinals in 2002 and Tusculum made a trip in 2010. No program has won a game in the Elite Eight in those six outings.
Since 2009, no five seed has won the region with Lander in 2019 being the only fifth seed to reach the region final. Over the past 12 years, the top seed has won six times, seven seeds have won three and each the two, three and four have won one apiece.
This season is the fourth time that the program will face a fellow SAC team going 2-1. The Lady Eagles beat Lenoir-Rhyne 79-72 in the opening round on March 12, 2010 in Greenwood, S.C and took down Anderson en route to the 2018 region title, 70-62, in the first round in a one versus eight matchup. Last season's loss to Catawba in the opening round is the lone loss in that time.
Meeting for the 82nd time overall, Wingate holds a 46-35 advantage in the all-time series as the club will meet in the postseason for the 14th time. Eleven of those meetings have come in the SAC Tournament and only one has come in the NCAA Tournament as C-N leads 8-6 in the postseason.
The lone NCAA Tournament meeting came on March 7, 1995, the first NCAA trip for the program, in the first round on Wingate's home floor, a 77-64 Bulldogs victory. In the last postseason matchup, the Lady Eagles prevailed in the 2018 SAC Tournament Title affair winning 79-70 on March 4, 2018.
In two matchups this year there have been 15 lead changes and 10 ties with the Bulldogs holding the advantage for 45:31 of the 80 minutes played. The Lady Eagles have been outscored 85-72 in the second half allowing 60 percent shooting in fourth quarter.
Wingate has been to the most NCAA Tournaments in the history of the SAC making its 19th appearance going 20-18 over that time reaching the regional semifinals in three straight treks, all by double figures, and four of the last five. The last time they failed to win the opening round game came on March 11, 2016, a 79-72 loss to Columbus State.
After reeling off a program-record 18-game winning streak, the Bulldogs are 6-4 in their last 10 going 3-3 down the stretch. The team has lost both of its neutral sites games this year by a total of 11 points.
Bryanna Troutman, the SAC Player of the Year, has been in double figures 27 times this year including in each of the last 18 since scoring nine on Dec. 20 against Tusculum. Fourteen of those outings have been 20-point nights as she is third in the league in scoring and field-goal percentage.
Ticket information can be found on the Tournament Website by clicking here with general admission tickets available for 10 dollars each.
Broadcast coverage airs on the Eagle Sports Network starting at 7:15 for "The Appalachian Electric Cooperative Countdown to Tip-Off" on Mountain Sports 106.3 (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) with an audio stream available on cneagles.com/live free of charge.
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