VIDEO: Chuck Benson Interview
BRISTOL, Tenn. – Justin Nicholson banked a three as the final horn sounded to help Lees-McRrae (1-0) stave off Carson-Newman (0-1) on opening night Friday at the Student Center Complex, 73-70.
The buzzer beater obfuscates a career night for Bryant Thomas (Charlotte, N.C.) and a massive comeback for Carson-Newman. C-N rallied from 14 down to tie the game at 70 with 18 seconds left before Nicholson's heroics. Meanwhile, Thomas reset his career high with a 28-point, 10-rebound double-double.
While Carson-Newman lost the game at the final horn, the bigger problem for C-N was turnovers. The Eagles coughed up 20 giveaways leading to a 21-12 advantage in points off turnovers for Lees-McRae.
"Both halves were punctuated by the fact that we struggled to take care of the ball," Carson-Newman head men's basketball coach Chuck Benson said. "Our guys understand that when you turn the ball over 20 times, that's a recipe for losing. We weren't foolish or loose with it, we just have to do a better job of valuing the possessions and making clean decisions."
The contest marks the first that C-N has turned it over 20 times since opening night on Nov. 21, 2020 against Coker.
C-N coughed it up 11 times in the first half and nine in the second. Included in that were two giveaways in the final two minutes where the Eagles either had the ball with a chance to take a lead, or in the case of the final miscue, had the lead.
"You have to remember that we have a first-year guard who was cleared to start playing 10 days ago and were without the services of Nick Brenegan tonight," Benson said. "I felt like across the board, this was a lot of first-game stuff. We'll learn from this and be better prepared for our next game tomorrow."
Lees-McRae jumped out to a 36-29 halftime lead on the strength of a 9-0 run. Carson-Newman went cold with under seven minutes to play in the first half and didn't make a shot for a 3:36 span.
In the interim, Lees-McRae caught fire. The Bobcats buried eight of their last nine shots headed into the halftime break. Brandon Brown sparked the run with a pair of free throws. Nico Ashley gave the Bobcats the lead off a back-cutting layup before Brandon Brown gave the Bobcats their biggest lead with a turnaround J.
Hampering C-N's first half cause were 11 turnovers. LMC scored 11 points off those giveaways.
The Bobcats swelled the lead to 14 early in the second half and led by 11 with 5:05 remaining following a pair of Sidney Dollar free throws.
Carson-Newman responded immediately with a 9-0 run. Five straight points from Thomas got the Eagles within two with 3:15 to play. A Caleb Bridgewater (Charlotte, N.C.) three and another Thomas bucket gave C-N a lead with 1:25 to play.
A defensive stop beget a turnover, which LMC capitalized on with 51 seconds left on a Williams Onyeodi free-throw line jumper. A Jaylin Stewart free throw stretch the LMC lead to two, but C-N drew up an alley oop jam to Thomas to tie the game with 19 seconds left, 70-70, to set the stage for Nicholson's heroics.
Nicholson's three was just his second attempt from deep on the night. He finished with eight points.
Three Bobcats finished in double figures. Nico Ashley, Brandon Brown and Onyeodi all had 11.
Thomas led all scorers with his 28-point night. It was his eighth-career double-double. He also added in three blocks. Thomas was hyper-efficient at the tin, shooting 11-of-14 from the field.
"Bryant has been an important part of our team," Benson said. "But he's been our fifth option offensively. We have encouraged him to find a new level of production. He did that, but he still defended and put pressure on LMC with his rim protection."
Tyler Bowens (Greenville, S.C.) was the Eagles only other double-digit scorer. He had 10 points and seven boards.
Carson-Newman outrebounded LMC 39-32 and outscored the Bobcats in the paint 42-30.
"We were very much in the process of trying to redefine who scores for us," Benson said. "We just want to be solid defensively and take care of the basketball."
Carson-Newman shot 42.9 percent from the field for the game, but just 15.8 percent from three (3-for-19).
The Eagles limited the Bobcats to 38.7 percent shooting after halftime.
Carson-Newman wraps up the SAC/Conference Carolinas Challenge with a matchup against King Saturday at 4:30 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network starts at 4:15 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff online at cneagles.com/live.
