VIDEO: Chuck Benson Interview 

CENTRAL, S.C. – Carson-Newman (2-0) got a combined 49 points from two of its senior guards to coast to a 77-65 decision over Lander (0-2) Saturday afternoon at History Tysinger Gymnasium Saturday afternoon.

Mason Bates (Cookeville, Tenn.) dropped 26 points and Grant Teichmann (Brentwood, Tenn.) tallied a double-double with 23 points and 10 boards. The duo was a combined 14-for-22 from the field. 

"Those guys refused to surrender," head coach Chuck Benson said. "Those guys were monsters, and we needed it. Those guys were determined, showed up and acted like winners today."

Bates was 6-of-13 from the field but hit a career-high 12 free throws on 14 attempts. He also stuffed the stat sheet with four boards, five assists and a steal. 

Meanwhile, Teichmann was just unconscious.  The senior knocked down 8-of-9 shots, went 3-of-4 from long range and converted all four of his free-throw attempts en route to his first career double-double. 

For a second straight game, the Eagles relied on a lock down defense.  Lander was just 3-for-20 from distance for the game.  The Bearcats only knocked down 1-for-11 threes in the first half and 35.7 percent of their shots as Carson-Newman built a 41-24 halftime lead. 

Carson-Newman won the rebounding battle for a second straight game, outboards the Bearcats 34-29. 

"I've been impressed with our defense and rebounding," head coach Chuck Benson said. "Our offense has been coming and going.  For us to be stingy and make our opponents' offense difficult, that lets us buy some time to figure out where our points are going to come from this year."

Lander fired the opening salvo jumping out to a 9-2 lead in the opening three minutes of the game before Carson-Newman battled back.  The Eagles took the lead 12-11 on a Bates three with 11:44 to play in the first half. 

Carson-Newman wouldn't relinquish the advantage the rest of the way.  The Eagles plowed through a 14-2 run in a three-minute span to balloon the bulge to double figures, 23-10 off a Teichmann triple. 

Lander got as close as six in the second half, but the Eagles cranked out an 11-2 run with seven minutes to play to push the advantage back into double figures thanks to a Nick Rogers (Knoxville, Tenn.) layup and a Blake Ervin (Maryville, Tenn.) three. 

Carson-Newman's offense clicked to another level in the second half. The Eagles shot 60 percent from the field after halftime to prevent any hope of a Lander comeback.

"We are still in that process of figuring out who can do what offensively," Benson said. "We finally get to play at Holt.  To say that we are pleased with starting 2-0 away from home with this bunch would be an understatement."

Marquel Wiggins led Lander with 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting. Elijah Alston and Rahu Purdie chipped in 12 and 10, respectively. 

Carson-Newman opens the doors to Holt Fieldhouse Wednesday against NCAA tournament participant Lees-McRae.  Tipoff against the Bobcats is set for 7 p.m. Coverage for the game begins at 6:45 on the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on Mountain Country 106.3 (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live.