KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Carson-Newman junior guard Nick Brenegan (Greenville, S.C.) has been included in the Top 100 Watch List for the Bevo Francis Award, Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee announced Monday afternoon.
Brenegan is the first Eagle to be included on the initial listing since Charles Clark, who received recognition in both his junior and senior years. Brenegan is one of four players from the SAC this year recognized, joined by Coker's Andre Leavell and Lincoln Memorial's Chase Rankin and Martez Brown.
The Top 100 Watch List consists of some of the top players from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA.
The Clarence "Bevo" Francis Award is presented annually to the player who has had the finest overall season within Small College Basketball. Considerations will be season statistics and individual achievements, awards, personal character and team achievements. This is an incredibly prestigious award, as this award will only be given to one player within Small College Basketball per season.
Brenegan has been stupid efficient this season. The SAC's second leading scorer tallies 20.6 points per game on a 50/52.5/89.5 slash line.
Brenegan's 5.21 made triples per game are the most in the country. He has buried 73 this season. also first nationally among all divisions by pure volume. If he were to maintain this pace, he would break Ish Sanders' single-season record of 99 and become the first Eagle with triple-digit threes in a season. There have been 11 triple-digit three-point seasons in SAC history. He also ranks third nationally and tops in the SAC in percentage at 52.5 percent for the season.
Brenegan has made more threes this season than 39 teams in NCAA Division II. His 73 threes are already tied for the 18th most in a single-season in Carson-Newman basketball history. Another four-three game will move him into a tie with Antoine Davis for the 10th most in a season in school history.
Brenegan has buried multiple threes in every game this season, but the Lincoln Memorial contest. He's made a three in 21 straight games dating back to last season. He has made at least three threes in nine of the last 10 games.
He was named D2CIDA National Player of the Week on Jan. 9. The junior guard torched Newberry for 64 points on Jan. 6, canning 18-of-27 threes. He singlehandedly outscored Newberry in the Eagles' 103-51 win.
The 64 points reset the Carson-Newman and South Atlantic Conference single-game scoring record held by the Eagles' Charles Clark since 2017. Clark went for 54 against Coker. It marks just the fifth 60-point night in NCAA Division II since 1975 and the 15th if you include Division I. Overall, Brenegan's night is the 15th-highest scoring night in Division II history.
The bulk of Brenegan's bonkers night came from range. He broke the NCAA Division I and II records for threes made in a game with 18. However, he was stupefyingly efficient, going 18-of-27 from deep. He was 21-of-34 from the field overall and a perfect 4-of-4 at the line.
Brenegan had 21 points at the break before surging for a massive 43-points in the second half. The 43-point second half breaks Clarks' record for points in a half. Clark had 36 in the second half in his record-setting performance against Coker. Taking Brenegan's second half by itself, he would still have the sixth-highest single-game scoring mark. He made 12 of his 15 three-point shots in the second half. The 12 threes would have been the second-most in a single-game in school history.
Included in that stretch was a string of 10 consecutive made triples that tied NCAA Division II mark for consecutive threes made in a game.
With 21 made field goals, Brenegan also breaks Mike Ogan's 50-year-old record for shots made in a game, set in 1974 with 19 against Lincoln Memorial. His 34 shots attempted breaks WA Wright's mark of 32 on Jan, 20, 1968 against Georgia Southern.
His 21 made baskets are the most in league history, tied with Denzail Jones' (Anderson against Newberry on March 3, 2012) league mark.
Brenegan and the rest of the Eagles will be on display Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m. against UVA Wise. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 7:15 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 with a subscription to FloSports at cneagles.com/FloMBB.
