JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (20-7, 13-6 South Atlantic Conference) closes out the regular season against Mars Hill (3-23, 2-17 SAC) Saturday at 4 p.m. from Holt Fieldhouse.
C-N will honor three seniors – Ben Beeker (Hendersonville, N.C.), Caleb Bridgewater (Charlotte, N.C.) and Jarius Satterfield (Clarksville, Tenn.) – with a ceremony before the start of the game.
"We're grateful for the contributions that Ben, Caleb and Jarius have made to our program over the last five years," head men's basketball coach Chuck Benson said. "They truly have given more than is expected in their time here. While I hate to see them leave our program, I am eager to see what they do as men contributing to our world."
Beeker has appeared in 49 games in his two-year Carson-Newman career with one start. He has scored 309 points in his C-N career with a career-high 22 earlier this season against Emory & Henry. Beeker's 67.2 field goal percentage in his senior season is currently the fourth-best in school history.
Bridgewater has appeared in 70 career games with 15 starts in his career at Carson-Newman. His best outing came in his junior season when he dropped 30 on Tennessee Wesleyan. He went 8-fo-12 from three that game – the seventh-best three-point shooting night in school history. His 43.1 percent mark from beyond the arc as a junior is one of top 20 three-point shooting seasons in school history.
Satterfield has 57 career appearances and four career starts in his time at C-N. Satterfield logged his first career double-digit scoring effort earlier this season against Tennessee Wesleyan. A steady point guard, Satterfield has four games in his senior season with at least four assists. He is a career 38.6 percent three-point shooter.
Regardless of the outcome of Saturday's game with Mars Hill, Carson-Newman will be the four seed for the upcoming SAC tournament. C-N is guaranteed to play its quarterfinal game on Wednesday March 6 at 5 p.m. from the Rock Hill Sports and Events Center. Coker and Tusculum are in a tie for fifth in the league standings. The Cobras wrap up the regular season against Newberry at home. The Pioneers travel to Anderson. Should both win, Coker would be the five seed presuming that LMU remains in position as the one seed. Should Catawba surpass the Railsplitters, Tusculum would get the five.
Nick Brenegan's 4.00 made triples per game are the most in the country. He has buried 104 this season. also first nationally among all divisions by pure volume. Brenegan is the first C-N player to hit 100 threes in a season, breaking Ish Sanders' 12-year-old single-season record of 99. Brenegan is the 12th player in South Atlantic Conference history with a 100-three-point season. Brenegan currently sits in ninth in league history. He is five threes away from Newberry's Rob Valentine (2017-18) and eighth place. He also ranks fifth nationally and third in the SAC in percentage at 49.3 percent for the season.
Nick Brenegan and John Zhao are both top 10 in Division II among active players in career three-point field goal percentage. Brenegan is fourth among active players at 45.5 percent. Zhao is eighth at 44.6 percent.
Carson-Newman has been on another level offensively at home. C-N has topped triple digits in nine of its 14 home games. The Eagles average 100.9 points at home, while shooting 55.0 percent from the field and 45.0 percent from three. Carson-Newman has scored at least 90 in all 12 of its home victories this season. It has been kept below 90 in its two home losses to Limestone and Tusculum.
This iteration of the Eagles has the most 100-point performances since moving to NCAA Division II with 11. There have been just five seasons in Carson-Newman men's basketball history with double-digit 100-point games in a season. The last was in 1987-88 when a fourth straight Chris Jones-coached team accomplished it with 11. The 1970-71 team holds the record with 12 such games. Carson-Newman can tie that team with its next 100-point performance.
Carson-Newman is second in the country in rebounding margin, averaging an 10.9 rebound advantage per game. Carson-Newman has outrebounded 19 of 27 opponents this year by double digits. Tusculum is the only team this season to outrebound Carson-Newman. C-N has outrebounded four teams this year by 20 or more. Nine teams this season have grabbed six or fewer offensive rebounds against the Eagles.
Carson-Newman can get to 21 wins in the regular season for the second time in Chuck Benson's tenure as head coach. The 2017-18 team logged 22 wins in the regular season. The 2001-02 Sweet 16 team is the only other team to get to 20 wins in the regular season since the program moved to NCAA Division II in 1992-93.
The Eagles wrap up the regular season Saturday against Mars Hill. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 3:45 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 with a subscription to FloSports at cneagles.com/FloMBB.
