VIDEO: Braelyn Wykle Interview
HICKORY, N.C. – Bouncing back after a season-opening loss, 21st-ranked Carson-Newman racked up six scoring runs of at least 9-0 earning its first win of the season against USC Aiken pulling away in the second half to secure a 99-56 victory over the Pacers Sunday at Shuford Gym.
"Effort and intensity is about the best way to describe it," Carson-Newman coach Mike Mincey said. "We walked out with a loss last night. The better team won but we didn't feel like we put our best foot forward on either end of the floor. After a meeting this morning, we decided that we wanted to be much more intense about how we wanted to guard."
Carson-Newman (1-1) beats USC Aiken (0-2) for the seventh straight meeting while picking up the biggest differential in series history passing the prior tally of 36 set in 2017. It was the first 50-plus point win since a 62-point thrashing of Mars Hill on Dec. 18, 2019, a span of 40 games and 699 days ago.
On the day the unit shot 54 percent from the field, the 51st time in Mincey's 11 seasons on the bench that the club made at least half of its shots from the floor. It was the 76th win by at least 20 points in 289 games under the mentor.
Five Lady Eagles finished in double figures with Lindsey Taylor (Maryville, Tenn.) and Braelyn Wykle (Greeneville, Tenn.) each throwing in 21 going a combined 17-for-24 from the field. Taylor added seven rebounds and Wykle recorded five assists.
"Anytime we lose, our mindset is to win the next game," Wykle said. "We played better together. We press and then the second group comes off of the bench and there is no change in intensity. It is hard for teams to play against us if they aren't as deep as we are."
Campbell Penland (Sevierville, Tenn.) led a bench that scored 41 points with 16 on 5-for-11 shooting and seven rebounds. Tori Rutherford (Rutledge, Tenn.) had 10 points and three assists and Skylar Boshears (LaFollette, Tenn.) added 10 points, seven rebounds and three assists.
Abby Wilson (Kingston, Tenn.) filled up the stats with six points, five steals and three assists and Addison Byrd finished with six points and seven boards.
��54 percent shooting
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) November 14, 2021
���� Biggest win in series history
⭐️ @19LindseyTaylor ties for the team lead in scoring
�� Stingy defense
1️⃣ @CNwbasketball win pic.twitter.com/s9pTWRgfZy
Aiken scored the first points of the game before the Lady Eagles answered by scoring seven straight and 19 of the next 25 using a 12-0 burst to open up a 19-8 edge before settling on a 27-20 lead after a quarter of play. C-N made 11 of its first 13 shots from the field.
Spanning the quarters, a 6-0 Pacers sequence trimmed the margin to six at 27-21 before Mincey's unit rattled off nine unanswered and finished the quarter on a 16-5 burst to open up a 45-29 advantage going into the locker room. In the second stanza, C-N's defense held Aiken to 3-for-13 shooting from the field.
After the team's traded buckets early in the third, a 10-0 scoring surge gave the Lady Eagles separation at 55-31 as they would outscore the Pacers 25-8 in the period and lead 70-37 going into the fourth.
In the final period, the Orange and Blue recorded scoring bursts of 11-0 and 12-0 scoring a game-high 29 points over the final 10 minutes holding the Pacers scoreless for the final four minutes of the game scoring the game's last 12.
"We had big leads in our scrimmages and let our opponent get back into the game," Mincey said. "We didn't have that killer instinct. Tonight we go into the locker room with a sizeable lead. We reminded them that they outscored L-R 20-11 in the third quarter. They have all the capability to come back so we can't take our foot off of the pedal."
All told, the Lady Eagles outscored the Pacers 54-17 in the second half going 21-for-39 from the field. Aiken failed to score double figures in any of the final three quarters.
Despite making 50 percent from the field in the first frame, Aiken went 9-for-40, 23 percent, from the field in the final three frames. Jentri Worley was the only play in double figures for Mark Miller's team finishing with 15 points and three assists.
USC Aiken turned the ball over 20 times leading to 34 points for Carson-Newman. The Lady Eagles finished with 46 points in the paint.
The Lady Eagles are back in action on Wednesday to open up South Atlantic Conference play against Tusculum travelling to Pioneer Arena for a 5:30 p.m. tip-off that will air on the Eagle Sports Network.
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