VIDEO: Chuck Benson Interview
VIDEO: Highlights
VIDEO: Nick Brenegan Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (2-3) freshman guard Nick Brenegan (Greenville, S.C.) canned a three with 0.3 seconds left to boost the Eagles over Trevecca Nazarene (3-2) Tuesday night at Holt Fieldhouse.
Brenegan curled off a screen, took a feed from his older brother Luke Brenegan (Greenville, Tenn.) calmly buried his third triple of the night to hand C-N its third consecutive win over Trevecca Nazarene.
The play was set up because of the formidable post presence of TNU center Brendan Newton. Newton had blocked five shots in the contest making full use of his 7-2 frame.
"We felt like we were in a bind because Brendon Newton was a problem," Carson-Newman men's basketball coach Chuck Benson said. "At 7-2, the five blocks were one thing, the irreparable damage to our players' psyche was another. There late, we typically would not have wanted to take a three with a foul getting us to the line, but he is such big human being. We originally called for a rim attack shot.
"There late in the timeout, we decided there was no way that could happen because they would put him at the rim. We decided to put our shooter in a position to make the shot. I went with Nick without a moment's notice because he works so hard at his shot. We executed and set good screens and he knocked it down."
The game-winner is the seventh last-second shot Carson-Newman has made to win a game in the last nine years. Brenegan joins EJ Bush, Malik Abraham, Mason Bates, Charles Clark, Zack Pangallo and Ish Sanders as Eagles to beat the buzzer. Brenegan, Bates, Pangallo and Sanders all nailed threes to win for C-N.
NICK. BRENEGAN. FOR THE WIN
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) November 24, 2021
�� @CN_Hoops 70
�� @TNUmBasketball 67
FINAL pic.twitter.com/1GvFi4Bw1g
"We were in the timeout and CB called my number," Brenegan said. "He and the team had the confidence in me. I did the easy job and made the shot."
The contest took a different path for C-N. Carson-Newman was limited to 14 points in the paint thanks to the presence of Newton and the 6-11 Caleb Terry. The Trojans had nine blocks.
The 14 points in the paint are the fewest for Carson-Newman since Feb. 15, 2015 when Lincoln Memorial held Carson-Newman to 14 in the paint in a 91-61 Railsplitter win.
"I think Dima Bykov and Bryant Thomas are big guys," Benson said. "Next to him, they are not. I've never seen Dima look small next to somebody. His presence prevented us from establishing anything inside. We could not find our rim level shots because of him. Thankfully they cooled off in the second half and were able to give ourselves a chance to win."
In the absence of any inside game, Carson-Newman knocked down outside shots. C-N went 13-for-23 from long range – 56.5 percent from deep. The Eagles were 8-for-14 from deep in the first half and 5-of-9 after halftime.
Conversely, Carson-Newman was just 12-for-38 (31.5 percent) from inside the three-point stripe.
The contest featured streaky shooting from both teams. C-N started just 3-of-15 from the field before making 10 of their next 12 shots in route to building a 14-point lead on the back 14-2 and 8-0 runs midway through the first half.
However, Carson-Newman would go just 2-for-14 from the field spanning the halftime break while Trevecca powered through a 21-2 run to turn that 14-point deficit into an eight-point second half lead. The Trojans led 48-40 with 16:21 to play following a CJ Penha offensive rebound and put back.
Carson-Newman answered the bell with a 10-0 burst to take a lead with 8:45 to play. Ren Dyer (Weaverville, N.C.) knocked down an elbow jumper to put C-N in front before canning a corner three to give the Eagles a four-point edge.
"We could not stop the bleeding," Benson said. "Our guys about half way through the second slowed down and got very present while taking the focus off what had been going on and committed to the moment."
Dyer led Carson-Newman with 15 points. He also grabbed four boards and handed out four assists.
Luke Brenegan finished with 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting. He was 3-for-4 from range and grabbed six boards while dishing out six assists.
EJ Bush (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) and Bryant Thomas (Charlotte, N.C.) rounded out the Eagles' double-digit scorers with 11 apiece.
Meanwhile, the son of NBA legend Mark Price, Josh Price, went off for TNU. The Liberty transfer exploded for a season-high 25 points. He was 5-for-10 from long range.
Penha was held 10 below his average with 13. The Taylor University transfer was 6-of-18 from the field and 0-for-5 from three. However, Penha did grab 15 boards, becoming the first Carson-Newman opponent with that many rebounds since Quandaveon McCollum grabbed 15 for Newberry on Jan. 20, 2020.
Nick Brenegan knocks down @CN_Hoops sixth last-second game-winning bucket in the last nine years.
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) November 24, 2021
INFOGRAPHIC VIBES ⤵️⤵️⤵️ pic.twitter.com/bOIHz28xtt
"Penha did the job on the boards, but we cut his scoring significantly," Benson said. "I hate to say it, but the way the first half ended with their crazy shot-making and Price taking on his father's spirit going nuts. That stuck with us through halftime into the second half. We still had enough poise and composure late to secure the win."
Chris Rogers chased a triple-double for the Trojans with 10 points, six boards and nine assists.
Carson-Newman turned it over a season-low 10 times while converting 12 TNU turnovers into 16 points.
The Eagles assisted on 21 of their 25 made shots. It gives Carson-Newman back-to-back games with 20 or more assists.
Carson-Newman bounces back into SAC play Saturday against Wingate at 4 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network starts at 3:45 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on Mountain Sports 106.3 (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live.
