VIDEO: Mattie Nuckolls Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Behind another excellent efficient performance from Lindsey Taylor and a career day from Mattie Nuckolls, Carson-Newman won its third South Atlantic Conference game of the season defeating Newberry 86-67 Saturday afternoon inside Holt Fieldhouse.
"It's always good to win," Carson-Newman women's basketball head coach Mike Mincey said. "I didn't think we played particularly well; we just cannot seem to put everything together. I'm glad we found Lindsey inside a lot. Mostly, I am proud of the bench. We've been looking and needing a spark like that."
The win keeps Carson-Newman unbeaten at home this year at 7-0 and extends its winning streak over Newberry to 14 games in a row.
The Lady Eagles used a pair of scoring runs to build an early first quarter lead. C-N gained a five-point lead with 4:34 left in the 1st quarter, after Braelyn Wykle (Greeneville, Tenn.) scored five points during a 7-0 burst. Newberry ended that run, but C-N went on another scoring run, this one which was a 9-0 run that increased the lead to 12. A Hannah Nimmo three made the first quarter lead 9 for C-N. Mattie Nuckolls (Chatsworth, Ga.) and Lindsey Taylor (Maryville, Tenn.) combined for 13 of C-N's 22 points in the opening period.
That momentum carried into the second quarter for the Lady Eagles, scoring the first eight points of the period to lead 30-13 with 7:45 until halftime. Carson-Newman ended the second quarter well, thanks to a Campbell Penland (Sevierville, Tenn.) three-pointer, a Madelyn Ladd (Harriman, Tenn.) layup and two Makayla Alvey (Dandridge, Tenn.) free throws to make it a 20-point game at halftime.
Taylor started the second half with an and-one layup to push the lead to 48-25. Newberry scored the next six points to drop the deficit to 48-31. As the third quarter wound on, C-N increased the lead back to 22 after a Skylar Boshears (LaFollete, Tenn.) layup. Newberry scored the next seven points and trimmed the deficit back to 15. C-N scored the final five points of the quarter and maintained its 20-point advantage.
C-N scored six of the first eight points of the fourth quarter and led 69-45. Newberry continued to put up a fight and scored 13 of the next 17 points to bring the margin back down to 15. C-N would respond and give the Wolves no hope, going on a 8-0 scoring run to lead by 23 points with under three minutes to go, where the Lady Eagles would hold on for the 19-point victory.
Taylor finished the afternoon with 23 points, making nine of her 13 shots and grabbing seven rebounds. She finishes the week with 55 points, on just six missed shots and 18 rebounds as well.
Nuckolls' spark off the bench was her best game of her rookie season. The forward recorded season-highs in points (14), rebounds (5), assists (3), and blocks (3).
"It really started in warmups," Nuckolls said. "I thought we had a lot of energy in warmups, and it was getting me hyped up to play. I think my teammates did a great job of building each other up and it built my confidence up as well."
"Ever since she came back from Christmas break, I feel like she has been providing a lot in practice," Mincey said. "Certainly, we've seen glimpses of really good stuff here in the last few games. This was really her coming out party. She is one of the smartest players we have. She has a great sense of basketball.
Carson-Newman recorded a season-high 41 bench points in the 19-point victory. Nuckolls' 14 points paced the bench scoring, but four others made at least two field goals as well, including two other freshmen.
"I feel good about our bench and how they came to play today," Mincey said. "I think if we can continue to explore that route, it can help us put more points on the board, like we saw today."
The Lady Eagles finished the game shooting 48% from the field and held Newberry to just 38%. C-N had made a season-best 91% of its free throws (19-21). The defense forced 26 Wolves turnovers and scored 30 points off the turnovers.
Newberry was led by Deshona Gaither who scored 19 points on eight for 16 shooting from the field.
Carson-Newman is back in action on Wednesday when it welcomes Emory & Henry to Holt Fieldhouse for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff. Broadcast coverage airs on Mountain Talk 106.3 FM and cneagles.com/live starting at 5:15 p.m. with "The AEC Countdown to Tip-Off" courtesy of the Eagle Sports Network. A live stream of the game is available with a subscription to FloSports.
