JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. — A furious second-half rally by the Carson-Newman men's basketball team came up short on Saturday night, as Catawba held on for an 85-75 victory in South Atlantic Conference action at Holt Fieldhouse.

The Eagles trailed by as many as 20 points in the first half before they began to chip away at the Indians' lead. Trailing 46-26 at the 5:06 mark of the first half, C-N outscored Catawba 39-19 during the next 17 minutes of action to knot the game at 65-65 with 8:25 left in the second half.

But a 3-pointer by Lee Martin (Mt. Airy, N.C.) gave the Indians the lead for good on the next trip down the floor, as Catawba outscored C-N 20-10 to close out the game.

With the loss, the Eagles fall to 8-10 overall and 5-5 in the conference. Catawba improves to 8-10 on the season and 4-6 in SAC play.

The Eagles shot 43.9 percent (25-of-57) on the night, including an 11-of-24 effort from behind the arc. Catawba scored at a 40.3 percent clip (29-of-72) and was 9-of-21 from 3-point range. The Indians dominated the glass, outrebounding C-N 46-38 with 22 offensive rebounds that led to 34 second chance points. Catawba also scored 23 points off of 16 C-N turnovers.

Junior guard Antonio Sullivan (Louisville, Ky.) tossed in 16 points to lead C-N, while Ishmael Sanders (Cleveland, Tenn.) and Kevin Hare (Lexington, S.C.) added 14 and 11 points, respectively.

Keon Moore (Colerain, N.C.) fired in a game-high 28 points, including four 3-pointers, to lead five Indians in double figures. Kejuan Mayo (South Bostan, Va.) and Dominick Reid (Charlotte, N.C.) pitched in 14 points apiece, while Justin Huntley (Mooresville, N.C.) and Kelvin Drakeford (Charlotte, N.C.) contributed 13 and 10 points, respectively. Reid also pulled down 12 rebounds in the win.

The Eagles return to the hardwood on Wednesday at home against Brevard. Tipoff is slated for 8 p.m. at Holt Fieldhouse.