VIDEO: Chuck Benson Interview
VIDEO: Highlights
VIDEO: Ren Dyer Interview
VIDEO: Tyler Bowens Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (5-1) stretched its win streak to five and matched its best start to a season since 2018 with a 112-76 beatdown of Johnson (0-9) Monday night at Holt Fieldhouse.
C-N dished out 31 assists – the sixth most in a game in school history – en route to logging a third consecutive win at home by at least 30 points. The 112 points C-N scored are the most since dropping 110 on Newberry on Jan. 19, 2019. They mark the Eagles' 32nd 100-point game under head coach Chuck Benson.
The 31 times are also the fifth-most in a Division II game this season.
Even with the slick offensive performance that saw C-N shoot better than 55 percent from the field for a third time in four games (the Eagles finished 56.8 percent from the field), Benson found himself wanting for a crisper defensive game.
"This year, we have talked so much about our standards of performance," Carson-Newman head men's basketball coach Chuck Benson said. "We've made it about us instead of our opponent. That first half, for whatever reason, we weren't as zesty defensively. That's not to take anything away from Johnson, they shot the ball well. I just didn't think we did enough to impact their shot-making or make them uncomfortable. I challenged our guys at halftime to do something about our defense, and they did that part. I'm greedy. I want 40 minutes of perfection. We didn't get that, but we will take a win any day of the week."
Johnson made 47.1 percent of its shots in the first half, and 35.7 percent of its threes. Carson-Newman did clamp down after halftime to limit the Royals to 31.0 percent shooting and 18.8 percent from three. The Royals finished the game shooting 38.2 percent from the field.
The Eagles blew the cover off the game early. Carson-Newman used a 16-2 run in the game's first five minutes to take a double-digit lead it wouldn't relinquish.
Ren Dyer (Weaverville, N.C.) sparked the run with a corner three, the first of four straight makes from deep for Carson-Newman. Monty Johal (Springfield, Mo.), Luke Brenegan (Greenville, S.C.) and Dyer again headlined with the run with shots from deep.
"There are so many guys who make me go home at night and think about what a good player they are," Benson said. "Unfortunately, we only have 200 minutes to dole out night in night out. We have quite the conundrum on our hands. Thankfully, we do have guys who are enjoying what we collectively are experiencing and who aren't caught up in themselves. They are very much caught up in each other's success and their team's success. For me, I can't describe how that makes me feel."
Dyer led six double-digit scorers for C-N – the second time in three games C-N has had at least six players score 10 or more. The Weaverville, N.C.-native tallied his 10th career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. He also added in four assists and two blocks.
Jack Browder (Kingsport, Tenn.) reset his career high with 14 points in 16 minutes. He was 5-of-8 from the field and 4-of-6 from three. Browder also swiped four steals, a new career mark, and tallied a block.
"Ren's explosiveness was very much on display tonight," Benson said. "You look at his line, you can marvel at that, but he's one of several who just did great things. Monty was amazing. Ben doesn't miss a shot playing with a dislocated thumb. Jack 'junkyard' Browder just stuffed the stat sheet. You just keep going on. I'm so impressed with these players. I'm dumbfounded as to who to highlight."
6️⃣th most assists in school history
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) November 29, 2022
1️⃣4️⃣th best three-point shooing night
✅ most points in a game since 2019 @CN_Hoops was on one in Holt tonight. pic.twitter.com/GUYvKRNTo0
Johal added an effective 13 points. He finished 4-of-5 from the field and 3-of-4 from three. Johal dished out three assists.
Caleb Bridgewater (Charlotte, N.C.) added in 11 for his third career double-digit scoring effort. Brenegan and Ben Beeker (Hendersonville, N.C.) added 10 apiece. Beeker didn't miss a shot on five attempts. He also had a career-high three steals.
"The willingness to follow the instructions of our staff, the trust and confidence they have in each other and the joy they get from watching each other succeed," Benson said. "Offensively, what you are trying to find are good shots. We know that we get stops, we can push the ball and have a better chance to get easy shots. We're motivated to do that."
Defense leads to a bucket for @JackBrowder3 on the other end. Eagles in control
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) November 29, 2022
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Carson-Newman threw down a season-high six dunks in the game. Three came from Dyer, Bryant Thomas (Charlotte, N.C.), Beeker and John Zhao (Sevierville, Tenn.) had the others.
The Eagles tallied a third double-digit rebounding margin this season. The Eagles outrebounded the Royals 45-33. In spite of shooting 56.8 percent from the field, Carson-Newman had a 13-10 edge in second chance points.
Orion Mashburn led Johnson with 19 points on 7-of-15 shooting. Parker Haun and CeeJay Miller added 11 and 10, respectively.
Carson-Newman wraps up a three-game home stand Friday against Columbus State at 6 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 5:45 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on Mountain Talk 106.3 (WPFT-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live. A video stream is available for a fee through FloSports at cneagles.com/flombb.
